Women's International Science

< Back

Women in International Science and Engineering Research Collaboration PowerPoint Presentation

John Tsapogas, Program Coordinator, National Science Foundation,
Office of International Science and Engineering,
jtsapoga@nsf.gov

This PowerPoint presentation presents data from the National Science Foundation’s 2006 Survey of Doctorate Recipients (SDR). The SDR gathers information from individuals who have obtained a doctoral degree in a science, engineering or health field. The SDR is conducted every 2 years and is a longitudinal survey that follows recipients of research doctorates from U.S. institutions until age 76. This group is of special interest to many decision makers, because it represents some of the highest educated individuals in the U.S. workforce. The SDR results are used by employers in the education, industry, and government sectors to understand and to predict trends in employment opportunities and salaries in science and engineering (S&E) fields for graduates with doctoral degrees. The results are also used to evaluate the effectiveness of equal opportunity efforts. The 2006 SDR survey round for the first time included questions on the extent of international collaboration among U.S. doctoral degree holders.

Data on international collaboration from the SDR was analyzed by sex, research/teaching faculty status, sector of employment (industry, government, academia), minority status, citizenship, presence of children in household, field of study of doctorate, and year of doctorate receipt. Data is included on the extent of travel abroad by the U.S. collaborator and the extent of the foreign collaborators travel to the United States.

Preliminary results of the data indicate:

1. Female doctorates are less likely to collaborate internationally than male doctorates.
2. Doctorates who are research faculty have a higher rate of international collaboration than teaching faculty.
3. Doctorates employed in business/industry are more likely to collaborate internationally than those employed in government or academia.
4. U.S. doctorates in underrepresented minority groups are as likely as non- minority groups to be engaged in international collaboration.
5. There is not a large variation in international collaboration between doctorates that are U.S. citizens and doctorates that are not U.S. citizens.
6. The presence of children in the household does not deter female doctorates from international collaboration but their presence appears to be associated with increased international collaboration among male doctorates.
7. Doctorates with degrees in engineering and the physical sciences are more likely to collaborate internationally than doctorates with degrees in other sciences.
8. Doctorates that are in mid career stages are more likely to collaborate internationally than doctorates that are in early or late career stages.
9. In an international collaboration, foreign collaborators are more likely to travel to the Unites States than for U.S. collaborators to travel abroad.