The Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering survey is an annual census of all U.S. academic institutions granting research-based master's degrees or doctorates in science, engineering, and selected health fields as of fall of the survey year. The survey, sponsored by the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics within the National Science Foundation and by the National Institutes of Health, collects the total number of master's and doctoral students, postdoctoral appointees, and doctorate-level nonfaculty researchers by demographic and other characteristics such as source of financial support. Results are used to assess shifts in graduate enrollment and postdoc appointments and trends in financial support.

The Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering (GSS) is an annual census conducted by the U.S. National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES) under the National Science Foundation (NSF) and co-sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). It collects data from all U.S. academic institutions granting research-based master’s or doctoral degrees in science, engineering, and selected health fields as of fall each year. The dataset includes the total number of graduate students (master’s and doctoral), postdoctoral appointees, and doctorate-level nonfaculty researchers, categorized by demographics (e.g., gender, race/ethnicity), field of study, citizenship status, funding sources, and institutional characteristics. Its primary purpose is to track trends in STEM education and workforce development, supporting policy decisions, resource allocation, and research on workforce diversity and training. Key features include its comprehensive coverage of U.S. institutions, granular demographic breakdowns, and longitudinal data for analyzing changes over time. Unique aspects are its role as the sole federal survey capturing institutional-level data on graduate students and postdocs, making it critical for understanding STEM education pipelines and workforce dynamics. The dataset is widely used by policymakers, researchers, and institutions to assess workforce needs and equity in STEM fields.

The International STEM Graduate Student Survey assesses why international students are coming to the United States for their graduate studies, the challenges they have faced while studying in the US, their future career plans, and whether they wish to stay or leave the US upon graduation. According to the Survey of Earned Doctorates by the National Science Foundation and the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, international students accounted for over 40% of all US doctoral graduates in STEM in 2013. The factors that influence international students' decisions to study in the US and whether they will stay or leave are important to US economic competitiveness. We contacted graduate students (both domestic and international) in STEM disciplines from the top 10 universities ranked by the total number of enrolled international students. We estimate that we contacted approximately 15,990 students. Individuals were asked to taken an online survey regarding their background, reasons for studying in the US, and whether they plan to stay or leave the US upon graduation. We received a total of 2,322 completed surveys, giving us a response rate of 14.5%. 1,535 of the completed were from domestic students and 787 of which were from international students. Raw survey data are presented here.Survey participants were contacted via Qualtrics to participate in this survey. The Universe of this survey data set pertains to all graduate students (Master's and PhD) in STEM disciplines from the following universities: Columbia University, University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign, Michigan State University, Northeastern University, Purdue University, University of Southern California, Arizona State University, University of California at Los Angeles, New York University, University of Washington at Seattle. Data are broken into 2 subsets: one for international STEM graduate students and one for domestic STEM graduate students, please see respective files.