@intparent, it’s pretty tough to compare LACs with public research U’s.
Yes, UW-Madison has more physics majors than Mudd, but likely not 10X more (because Madison has a ton more different fields and majors). Furthermore, not everyone who can get in to Madison can get in to Mudd, so other than for bragging rights, the percentage of majors who get this (or other prestigious designations) doesn’t tell you much either (as likely a good deal less than a quarter of Madison’s student body can get in to Mudd). It certainly doesn’t tell you about the relative strength of a department. So for a kid who can get in to both Mudd and Madison, which is better? Hard to say. It likely would depend on the kid.
What about Madison and Lewis&Clark? Still tough to say, though in that case I may lean towards L&C.
“Thirty-six University of Illinois students have won National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowships. Of the 36 awardees, 31 are graduate students, and five are undergraduates. An additional 51 students were accorded honorable mention.”
““Thirty-six awardees places us tenth nationally among all institutions of higher education, and fourth among public universities,” says Ken Vickery, director of the Graduate College’s Office of External Fellowships. “This level of success is significant given that each year sees a higher number of students competing for the same number of awards. We’ve seen the number of applications increase by 5,000 just in the past five years.”
And of course, there are many kids who can do well at both the schools who produce a decent number of high-achievers on both an absolute and per capita basis. In that case, choosing the cheaper option may be prudent.
BTW, on this list, U Arizona, UCD, and UCSC all do better than many people may expect (higher or equal to UPenn/UVa/NYU/USC) and may be considered “value” propositions (especially since U Arizona still has a NMF scholarship, though it isn’t full-tuition any more). I knew that UT-Austin was a STEM powerhouse. Also UW-Seattle, though placing as high as they do is impressive and beyond my expectations.
Among LACs, Lewis&Clark does better than some much more famous LACs (and Reed, though I rank Reed pretty highly already).
BTW, I see both “UM-Ann Arbor” and “U of MI” on the list. Should those 2 be combined? Possibly so.
The UIUC number may also be divided (and thus understated). “UIUC”, “U of IL”, etc.
Based on number of undergrads (<1000), Caltech could appear on top of the LAC charts.
Harvey Mudd just announced they had 5 undergrads win NSF fellowships. Both being STEM intensive schools with an emphasis on research should have these results.
@Purple Titan Yes, probably so if Ann Arbor is the main campus. Same with U of Illinois. There were a handful like that and I couldn’t figure out how to be sure which campus was listed. U of Calif is also listed without saying which campus. Sadly CC doesn’t let me edit by posts otherwise I’d fix that (or put an asterisk or something on).
@IlliniDad18 A couple things to keep in mind. #1 some of the U of IL NSF awardees would have done their undergraduate degrees elsewhere. Any big research university will draw graduate students from many institutions. Many of those 36 were graduate students and only those who got their undergraduate degree at U of IL would be on my list under U of IL. #2 I excluded Engineering and there are a lot of NSF awardees in that area. I’m going to do engineering separately so I can break out the different disciplines.
Are you better off going to the big public research university versus the smaller school where you more personal attention? Most graduate students in STEM come from the big public research universities because those institutions produce the most undergraduates in those fields. However, google around a bit and you find that some small liberal arts schools have higher ‘yield’, a higher % of their undergraduates go on to graduate school in STEM. But the ones with ‘higher yield’ tend to be much more selective than the large public research universities so you have keep that in mind when thinking about those higher yields. Large research universities have many research opportunities for undergraduates. The NSF REU program is one example and you can search to see what institutions are current REU sites (https://www.nsf.gov/crssprgm/reu/reu_search.jsp). Some fields involve labor intensive fieldwork and many undergrads in those fields get their starts there. A big research university will have both faculty and graduate students hiring undergrads. You have to seek out and apply for these positions, but they are there for the ‘go getter’. Some state universities (xyz state university) are also big producers of STEM graduate students and have many of the same advantages but can be easier to get into and lower cost. You just need to do your research to find which ones are strong in your area of interest.
I will say that in my years of mentoring young graduate students, I have noticed one big advantage that the students from small liberal arts colleges have. They all can write well. Your success at every stage of your career from graduate student to professional will depend on your ability to write well.
Yeah, I daresay that the vast majority of the “U of MI” students went to Ann Arbor, considering that the other 2 UM campuses are more commuter schools.
In IL, UIC is a research U, but most of the “U of IL” students would have attended UIUC.
@PurpleTitan Redo of the top 1-35 since I had U of Maryland, U of Michigan and U of Illinois #s split into 2 institutions. The flagship was designated w/o the location in early years and then later the location was added. This moves these institutions up quite a bit. Note Engineering is not listed; these institutions have big engineering programs.
ChemComSciGeoSciLifeSciEnvSciMath_PhysicsPsychSocScitotalname 453298360153829__48359UC Berkeley 2414174125392825__63276Harvard 2240105383650720246MIT 19151139639241610206Cornell Univ 92313382219132331191Stanford 102023503078820176U of WA 73283116251614__24173Princeton 1711724239162625158Yale 15128271812101425141U of MI Ann Arbor
_96553124181614137UC Los Angeles
_10472311171611__34133U of Chicago 1212029273715__18132Brown 1391428167910__22128UTX Austin 1115122111891518120Columbia Univ 11244424551213120U of WI Madison 71073416352015117UC San Diego 19157163202132106CA Inst of Tech 74920148515__19101UNC Chapel Hill 10113034246896UC Davis 531029174714_594U of AZ
_188316941510689U of IL Urbana-Champ. 2551619101131788Duke Univ
_126418_526131884Northwestern Univ 9971912767884UMD Coll Park
_112117233671383U of FL 65821937101483WA Univ 5481624274878UC Santa Cruz 57217929121578U of Penn 12691535132276Dartmouth Coll 53019192731876Swarthmore Coll 114219112107874U of MN Twin Cities 9761383118873Rice Univ 4332596731272AZ State 132312140128872UC Santa Barb. 6106178258668U of VA 72412724111665Pomona Coll
_1654194425564UC Irvine 7281119245563Carleton Coll 834993143861_Ohio State
Table of baccalaureate origin of awardees of NSF Graduate Fellowships in Engineering 2010-2016 by field of engineering. See post #1 in this thread for where the data came from. I left off fields that didn’t have more than 40 awards in this time period
AeronaCivilElectrMechanChemicEnviroMaterialBioengMedicaltotalname 821134205162714137MIT 16911181187920109GA Inst of Tech 121422187101912105UC Berkeley 44983274101694UTX Austin 677106131671183U of FL 1831311721101176UMD Coll Park 30278131310166CA Inst of Tech 2241287106960Cornell Univ 63111221064559U of IL Urb.-Champ. 117116797352Stanford 933641531549TX A&M Univ 3_51215553948NC State 1341270111948Rice Univ 431077143746U of MI Ann Arbor 030853381545Johns Hopkins 2_0688434944AZ State 1102436141243Clemson Univ 0__49452061040U of PR Mayaguez 2__0195732938UMN Twin Cities 115480213438U of WA 413503161437Duke Univ 4_2149432736Purdue Univ
_13732049736UC San Diego 116106230635Ohio State 013552110835U of Pittsburgh
_31745326435U of WI Madison
_01549513634Columbia Univ 00535069634U of Penn 100890201333Case Western Res 0001010532333Penn State 53673322233Princeton 012662111433UC Los Angeles 20699021231Brigham Young 01563326531Carnegie-Mellon 311342241131U of VA 214032031429U of MO Columbia 01456103929Vanderbilt Univ
_20455191128Iowa State
_04729220228U of AR
AeronaCivilElectrMechanChemicEnviroMateriBioengMedicatotalname
_21366111627Rens. Polytech Inst
_22323503727WA Univ
_21654132226MI State
_00118085225Northwestern Univ
_10770024324Franklin W Olin Coll
_10112618323UC Riverside
_10183222423U of NE Lincoln
_21230024822Harvard
_10442414222U of AZ
_30465210122U of CO Boulder
_00127332422Yale
_00360124521Brown
_15334110321VA Polytech Inst
_02761040020Drexel Univ
_30163022320U of AL Tuscaloosa
_00321035519Rutgers U New Brun.
_40170230219U of Central FL 110410010219U of Delaware
_01266301019U of Notre Dame
_60034102218Clarkson Univ
_11109111318CUNY City Coll
_16330012218Harvey Mudd Coll
_15231101418MI Tech Univ
_10122314418UC Davis
_00222102918U of Rochester
_00223104618U of Utah
_10244002417Auburn Univ
_00100033916Boston Univ
_01311015416Louisiana State
_00434211116Tufts Univ
_00121132616UC Irvine
_20023323116U of Kansas
_00453003116U of NM
_00375010016U of Tulsa
_02133312015MT State
_30214111215U of Southern CA
_00125101414OR State
_20441020114SUNY Buffalo
_00163120114UC Santa Barb.
_10154110114UMD Balt. County
_01127011114U of MA Amherst
_01211202514U of SC Columbia
_41043200014West VA Univ
_30020000813MS State
_14205001013Northeastern Univ
_00411102312Dartmouth Coll
_02024200111Lafayette Coll
_21031000411Syracuse Univ
_10106011111U of KY
_11212002211U of Miami
_22001500010Oklahoma State
_11230011110Rose-Hulman In of Tech
_00133001210U of CT
_00121201310Worcester Polytech Inst
Last table for Engineering. I stopped at 4 total awardees in Engineering from 2010-2016. There are about 200 more institutions with 3 or less awardees.
AeronaCivilElectrMechanChemicEnviroMateriBioengMedicatotalname 2023010109US Military Acad. 0_114210009U of NH 0__210021129UNC Chapel Hill 0__013300119U of Oklahoma 2__104000029Utah State 0__023011018Baylor Univ 0__011210128CO State 0__220002118FL Intnl. Univ 1__131020008MO U of Science & Tech 0__012100048SUNY Stony Brook 0__001200238Tulane Univ 0__034010008U of South FL 0__002112028U of TN Knoxville 0__001110137Bucknell Univ 0__031020017Murray State 0__003120017New Jersey Inst of Tech 0__011010047St. Louis Univ 0__001300037U of Chicago 2__003020007U of Cincinnati 0__004200017U of Dayton 0__011210027U of Iowa 0__011002127UTX Dallas 0__102120006CA State Poly Pomona 0__104100006Hope Coll 0__010101126Howard Univ 0__010210026IL Inst of Tech 2__210100006NM State 0__000000246U of AL Birmingham 0__032000106UNC Charlotte 0__101001216WA State 1__002001105Boise State 0__020002015Carleton Coll 0__001202005CO Sch. of Mines 0__101210005Cooper Union 0__001020115Kansas State 0__001010035Kettering Univ 0__000100225Lehigh Univ 0__020110105Mcgill Univ 0__012001105Morehouse Coll 0__020003005Mount Holyoke Coll 0__030000025Norfolk State 1__102000015NC Agri & Tech State 1__000010125Ohio Univ 1__002020005San Diego State 0__004010005TN Tech Univ 0__021100015U of Louisville 0__100001125U of Memphis 0__021020005U of WY 0__100000214CA Polytech State 0__000101114CUNY 0__101020004FL State 0__002001104Grove City Coll 0__001000034Marquette Univ 1__001101004NY Univ 0__001012004Pomona Coll 0__011000204Rochester Inst of Tech 0__010020014Rowan Univ 0__002001104San Jose State 0__010000124Smith Coll 0__012010004Swarthmore Coll 0__001000124U of Akron 0__012000014U of AL Huntsville 0__001200014U of Maine 0__001300004UNV Reno 0__200020004U of VT 0__103000004Valparaiso Univ 0__00002200_4Wellesley Coll
Another look at production of graduate students by the Oberlin Group of small LAC colleges (+ a few more similar ones that I added). This is the baccalaureate origins (where they got their bachelors) of PhDs in the hard sciences from 2004 to 2014. I downloaded the data from here: https://ncsesdata.nsf.gov/webcaspar
Same table but all schools. Note there is a huge diversity of size of schools here, so keep that in mind.
Baccalaureate origins (where they got their bachelors) of PhDs in the hard sciences from 2004 to 2014. I downloaded the data from here: https://ncsesdata.nsf.gov/webcaspar
s 1-100
GeoSciLifeSciPhysSciMath&CS___totalname
__7412224543422092UC, Berkeley 9610962972101699Cornell Univ 6410151921001371U of WI-Madison 387972191441198U of IL at Urbana-Champ. 41876146881151UC, Davis 597312071541151U of MI, Ann Arbor 87795173921147Penn State 454663012991111MA Inst of Tech 397591631241085UC, Los Angeles 505262512301057Harvard 49717173961035UC, San Diego 3668417388981U of FL
__37593168151949UTX at Austin, The
__33520204163920Brigham Young Univ
__60535163119877U of WA
__3164210153827TX A&M Univ, Coll Station
__43496144143826Stanford
__3348617564758U of AZ, The
__3649999104738VA Polytech Inst and State
__26476119105726UMD, Coll Park
__2553211150718MI State
__3446911388704U of VA, Charlottesville
__275079865697Rutgers, New Brun.
__2546514856694U of MN, Twin Cities
__5645973105693Brown
__2447511876693Ohio State, Columbus
__24366152137679U of Chicago
__3240712478641Purdue Univ
__134658572635U of Penn
__6636613759628UC, Santa Barb.
__25314150138627Princeton
__274586673624Duke Univ
__3242510253612UNC at Chapel Hill
__3633814096610NC State
__5934610488597U of CO Boulder
__4338611548592UC, Santa Cruz
__44145268127584CA Inst of Tech
__203749186571Yale
__383878542552Boston Univ
__184016651536Iowa State
__7179119223528Carnegie Mellon Univ
__204164939524U of GA
__2132511549510U of Rochester
__153459942501U of MA Amherst
__253457553498Indiana Univ
__153895832494CO State
__16253116109494Columbia Univ
__113646341479Johns Hopkins Univ
__3827312938478Coll of William and Mary
__232968376478WA Univ in St. Louis
__123239743475U of Pittsburgh
__528210579471UC, Irvine
__8821010051449Carleton Coll
__163246833441U of Delaware
__182847760439Northwestern Univ
__3021096101437Rice Univ
__29157128117431GA Inst of Tech
__133036939424U of MO
__152996539418U of Iowa
__212438865417U of Utah
__372636641407FL State
__292625953403AZ State
__191989966382U of Notre Dame
__123103821381U of CT
__342187352377Dartmouth Coll
__152525338358U of Kansas
__282303947344U of NE-Lincoln
__61939942340Case Western Reserve
__142027050336SUNY, Stony Brook Univ
__142346521334Louisiana State
__252186227332OR State
__182096441332SUNY, Binghamton Univ
__162155544330U of TN
__102395426329Miami Univ
__72036054324NY Univ
__121778844321CA Polytech State
__32653615319Emory Univ
__121878632317SUNY, Univ at Buffalo
__121159396316Rens. Polytech Inst
__32214738309Brandeis Univ 1261116120309Harvey Mudd Coll
__172213633307Tufts Univ
__301943937300Oberlin Coll
__102065033299U of South FL
__201885138297U of OR
__62073644293UMD, Balt. County
__451684930292U of Oklahoma
__72144227290U of KY
__242005214290U of PR at Mayaguez
__91716147288Swarthmore Coll
__152103820283U of NH, Durham
__311346751283Williams Coll
__52233024282Kansas State
__51865832281Clemson Univ
__81924534279Vanderbilt Univ
__392072111278U of Miami
__61569417273U of PR at Rio Piedras
__81855023266U of NM
__61935015264Boston Coll 11488529263Truman State
Baccalaureate origins (where they got their bachelors) of PhDs in the hard sciences from 2004 to 2014. I downloaded the data from here: https://ncsesdata.nsf.gov/webcaspar
s 101-200
GeoSciLifeSciPhysSciMath&CS___totalname
__51438132261Reed Coll
__81525039249St. Olaf Coll
__61575231246U of IL at Chicago
__81575326244James Madison Univ
__91385441242UC, Riverside
__121813316242WA State
__21235855238U of Central FL
__221564118237Wesleyan Univ
__71603533235Baylor Univ
__41375737235Rochester Inst of Tech
__141364835233U of Southern CA
__151484325231U of SC, Columbia
__231413531230Pomona Coll
__71455522229Grinnell Coll
__141622230228Tulane Univ
__21791927227Auburn Univ, Auburn
__41672629226TX Tech Univ
__71751923224Oklahoma State
__101762314223U of VT
__81534813222Ohio Univ
__61433835222Utah State
__231423023218Smith Coll 10148449211West VA Univ
__71385410209Allegheny Coll
__191352821203U of Rhode Is.
__71323924202U of AR
__51105532202Worcester Polytech Inst
__141203531200SUNY, Univ at Albany
__291193417199Colgate Univ
__111234718199SUNY, Geneseo
__71314219199Wellesley Coll
__211083631196Amherst Coll
__131283321195MT State
__131293221195Syracuse Univ
__81134825194Haverford Coll
__131144023190Bucknell Univ
__101115315189Western WA Univ
__131332715188Mount Holyoke Coll
__51353215187Wake Forest Univ 23974024184Macalester Coll
__91332414180NM State
__21073833180U of Houston
__151074015177Northern AZ Univ
__91212421175MS State
__151133610174Colby Coll
__171132518173Bowdoin Coll
__101212319173Georgetown Univ 1135_334173U of WI-Stevens Point
__81034814173Vassar Coll 27106309172Colorado Coll
__111023524172UTX at El Paso
__121291515171Humboldt State 121053717171U of Idaho 24824025171Whitman Coll
__12117_318168St. Louis Univ
__71133315168San Diego State
__201161913168U of MT
__11253011167Loyola Univ Chicago
__6934126166U of Southern MS
__211042614165Middlebury Coll
__101013121163U of Cincinnati
__91022328162George Mason Univ
__91072719162Southern IL Univ
__9944216161Coll of Charleston
__61191422161Northeastern Univ
__6923923160FL Intnl. Univ 111112216160U of Maine
__21106_294160UNC at Wilmington
__6973422159Coll of New Jersey
__111002919159U of WY
__11162516158VA Commonwealth Univ 101171712156Bowling Green State 1179559154Coll of Wooster
__31082815154ND State 7942231154U of AL
__71072514153Temple Univ 11912920151FL Atlantic Univ 10893616151Trinity Univ
__598_399151Villanova Univ 21614919150MI Tech Univ 13764516150U of Puget Sound 10972715149U of Hawaii at Manoa
__51022714148Wayne State
__9981723147George WA Univ 10962614146UNV, Reno
__9764317145Furman Univ
__9744319145Hope Coll
__1753633145U of North TX 16665111144Franklin & Marshall Coll
__9982413144U of WI-Milwaukee 19892510143Bates Coll
__21072212143Ithaca Coll
__31051915142U of AL at Birmingham
__9803517141Bryn Mawr Coll 9764610141Gustavus Adolphus Coll
__3119127141Marquette Univ 8823218140Kent State 14684315140Millersville U of Penn 32187019139CO Sch. of Mines
__410120_13138Howard Univ
Baccalaureate origins (where they got their bachelors) of PhDs in the hard sciences from 2004 to 2014. I downloaded the data from here: https://ncsesdata.nsf.gov/webcaspar
s 201-300
GeoSciLifeSciPhysSciMath&CS___totalname 41002410138San Francisco State 6832821138UTX at Arlington
__2853614137U of Richmond 10543240136UTX at Dallas 4853313135Grand Valley State
__2794013134Kalamazoo Coll 588329134U of Toledo 1942414133Davidson Coll 15713611133FL Inst of Tech 11802813132Lehigh Univ
__6603728131Drexel Univ 3813313130Calvin Coll
__9802218129Western MI Univ 3841723127CA State, Long Beach
__2981610126CUNY, Hunter Coll 1107_108126ND State 687248125Creighton Univ 382346125IL State 3793013125Luther Coll
__4812118124CA State Polytech Univ 380338124San Jose State 586265122Barnard Coll NA812812121Kenyon Coll 3673120121Lafayette Coll 10584013121Lawrence Univ
__6732813120U of WI-Eau Claire 276384120Western KY Univ 1170_308119Occidental Coll 293168119Ohio Wesleyan Univ 0792416119U of Louisville
__2614312118Coll of the Holy Cross 2723212118U of Northern Iowa
__881_199117Evergreen State Coll 4732416117U of Dayton
__8751518116CA State, Fullerton 1831814116UTX at San Antonio
__4672617114CA State, Chico 869289114Indiana U of Penn 1366_314114Juniata Coll 7682316114Northern IL Univ
__6662319114U of MS, Univ 188205114Ursinus Coll 2623711112U of Akron
__173_298111U of Scranton 367318109Bradley Univ 7662412109MO State
__467_307108Ball State 4652118108DePauw Univ
__377_226108East Carolina Univ 271304107U of WI-La Crosse 3374422106Clarkson Univ NA84157106Xavier U of Louisiana 1071_168105Augustana Coll, Rock Is. 4731315105CA State, Northridge 2465115105Eckerd Coll 13194924105NM Inst of Mining and Tech 2592420105UNC at Charlotte
__4692011104Appalachian State 14214425104MO U of Science and Tech 4711613104TX State, San Marcos
__564_259103CA State, Los Angeles 771169103U of MN, Duluth 4543411103Wright State
__274_206102FL Agri and Mechanical Univ 5711610102St. Mary’s Coll of MD
__782_121102SUNY, Coll of Env Sci and For 5622312102U of Mary WA
__871_184101Dickinson Coll 1559_216101Hamilton Coll 3721511101Towson Univ
__87886100Skidmore Coll NA76717100Spelman Coll
__7482619100Wheaton Coll 47220399Hampton Univ
__564191098Central MI Univ
__377_13598Earlham Coll
__363_24898Gettysburg Coll
__453301198SUNY, Buffalo State
__663_22697CT Coll
__670_17497U of South AL
__369_17695Denison Univ
__156251395New Coll of FL
__858131695Old Dominion Univ
__834242995U of Tulsa NA45351494Santa Clara Univ 37016493CA State, Fresno
__172_14693Clark Univ
__159_29392Drew Univ
__654221092Eastern MI Univ
__26224__492Wittenberg Univ NA6224__490IL Wesleyan Univ 845191890Portland State 1449_22590St. Cloud State
__84726__990Union Coll NA61171189Duquesne Univ
__65816__989U of ND 459131288GA State 545231588U of MN, Morris 1935_28587Valparaiso Univ NA52287___87Xavier Univ
Baccalaureate origins (where they got their bachelors) of PhDs in the hard sciences from 2004 to 2014. I downloaded the data from here: https://ncsesdata.nsf.gov/webcaspar
s 301-400 I'm stopping here. Look
GeoSciLifeSciPhysSciMath&CS___totalname 54332686Albion Coll
__14730__886Grove City Coll 247251286Knox Coll 34429985CA State, Sacramento
__157171085Lewis & Clark Coll
__165_10985Loyola Univ MD
__35918__585UNC at Greensboro 15025985Willamette Univ
__222322884Rose-Hulman Inst of Tech
__348211284SUNY, Fredonia NA53211084UTX-Pan American 1249121083Beloit Coll
__25820__383Muhlenberg Coll 250201082Drake Univ 95615282Richard Stockton Coll
__945151382WA and Lee Univ
__346_23981Hendrix Coll
__44923__581Idaho State 14625981U of St. Thomas (MN)
__242181981Youngstown State NA32435_80Butler Univ NA4782580CUNY, Brooklyn Coll 2_6071180East TN State 25815580Fairfield Univ
__242152079CUNY, Queens Coll
__552111179U of Louisiana at Lafayette
__45315__779U of Memphis 43930679U of PR at Humacao
__14624__879U of West FL 141211578U of AL in Huntsville NA60_13477Northern MI Univ
__14521__976Concordia Coll 45410876Stephen F. Austin State
__323272376US Air Force Acad.
__14720__876U of Central AR 24325575Fordham Univ
__840131475Sewanee: The U of the South
__54912__975U of Northern CO 1_655374UMD Balt. NA51131074U of NE at Omaha 142151573CUNY, City Coll 114751073Hampshire Coll 54613973TX Christian Univ
__350_15573UNV, Las Vegas
__83821__673UNC at Asheville NA41191272Canisius Coll NA4024872Centre Coll
__241_22772Morehouse Coll NA4224672Ohio Northern Univ
__739_17972U of New Orleans
__44714__772U of San Diego 13824972Wichita State
__14221__771Berea Coll 334241071Eastern IL Univ 242161171Middle TN State 23923771St. John’s Univ NA39221071Southern Univ and A&M Coll 255104_71SUNY, Coll at Plattsburgh NA634471TX Woman’s Univ
__143151271Trinity Coll, Hartford
__35015__371U of WI-River Falls NA4617__770Alma Coll 93223670SUNY, Oswego
__5479869Salisbury Univ
__736161069St. Lawrence Univ 1033161069U of AK Fairbanks 34711768Jackson State
__435181168Providence Coll
__732171268Southern Methodist Univ
__44712__568U of MA Boston 238131467Bard Coll 240131267DePaul Univ 43621667Indiana Univ-Purdue Univ, Indianapolis
__145_15667John Carroll Univ
__237111767Louisiana Tech Univ
__245_11967Rhodes Coll, Memphis
__44612__567Rutgers State U of New Jersey, Newark 54613367West Chester U of Penn
__24514__667Winona State NA3427__566Lebanon Valley Coll 13328466Penn State, Erie NA4514766Western IL Univ NA4610965Angelo State
__14115__865Gonzaga Univ 243101065NC Agri and Tech State 43817665Pacific Lutheran Univ
__246_13465St. John’s Univ, NY
__44017__465St. Norbert Coll 53022865TN Tech Univ
__23123__965U of MO, St. Louis NA4814__365U of the Sciences in Philadelphia 04118564AR State
__14017__664Baldwin-Wallace Coll 23221863GA Southern Univ NA35141463Harding Univ 335151063MN State, Mankato 5_469363Rutgers State U of New Jersey, Camden
__53417__763U of MA Lowell 34110862Montclair State
__24410662Morgan State
Nice work, @liska21. You’re truly a data cruncher!
I wonder if there is a difference between research universities and LACs regarding faculty encouraging students to apply for NSF grants? Could it be that a higher percentage of undergraduate students doing research in labs funded by government grants (i.e. research univ labs) are encouraged to apply for NSF grants simply because the faculty know about the opportunity? When I was on the faculty at a larger research univ, I know I kept my ear to the ground for any and all grant opportunities to fund lab members.
Typically, students (and their parents) looking to get into a science career only think about the quickest way to get a pipette in their hand and start “doing research”. What is often forgotten in this equation is the HUGE need to communicate your research results to be a successful scientist. Successful scientists all have the ability to communicate well. I can’t emphasize enough the importance of liska21’s statement:
@dadof1 Now that I have both the # PhDs and # NSF Grad Fellowships, I can look at the % of PhDs that get a NSFGF from various types of schools. However, many of these students would have applied for the fellowship while a masters student or early PhD, so after they’d left their BS institution and are in grad school. It’ll be interesting to see if there is an evidence of a baccalaureate effect in the % PhDs with NSFGF’s.
I started this data crunching after an info session at Williams College when they were touting the # of NSFGF’s their students and alums had gotten in 2015-2016. I was curious to see how it compared across schools, especially since we were headed off to Bates and Colby the next day (I was also stuck in a motel and feeling kind of bored…). But I was also interested to see how the different Univ of XYZ and XYZ State Universities compare across states.
There are lots on interesting tidbits here. Northfield, MN (Carleton + St Olaf, ~5000 students) produced as many undergrads who went on to get PhDs in the hard science as Univ of MN-Twin Cities (~30000 undergrads and a major res. univ). Reed College (~1.4K) produced 260 undergrads who went on to PhDs in the hard sciences compared to 297 at U of OR (24K undergrads) and 332 at OR State (28K undergrads). The two women’s colleges in Amherst, Smith+Mt Holyoke (~4700), produced 406 undergrads who got PhDs in the hard sciences compared to 501 by U of MA-Amherst (~22K). High per-capita scientist production by LACs is nothing new but it’s interesting when you compare institutions side by side. I had known the per-capita was higher but didn’t really grasp that the total #s produced were in the same ballpark for some institutions.