BHEW’s Current Projects

Assessment of Research Doctorate Programs

The National Research Council has launched its latest project to assess U.S. research doctorate programs. Like previous efforts I the 1980s and 1990s, the new study is designed to help universities improve the quality of these programs through benchmarking; provide potential students and the public with accessible, readily available information on doctoral programs nationwide; and enhance the nation’s overall research capacity.
Visit the project website
View the project record in the Academies’ Current Projects System
Visit the report of the methodology study on the National Academies Press website.
Contacts:
Charlotte Kuh, Study Director, ckuh@nas.edu
Jim Voytuk, Senior Program Officer, jvoytuk@nas.edu
Rae Allen, Administrative Coordinator, reallen@nas.edu
Kara Murphy, Research Associate, kmurphy@nas.edu

Enhancing the Master’s Degree in the Natural Sciences
This study describes the goals and characteristics of students who pursue and obtain master's degrees in the natural sciences, assesses the needs of employers for staff trained in the natural sciences at the master's degree level, and examines how these staff contribute in the workplace. The project will lead to a consensus report that will provide findings, conclusions, and recommendations about appropriate goals and effective practices for enhancing master's education in the natural sciences to meet employer needs. It will identify general principles that can be developed to guide efforts to re-shape or enhance master's education in the sciences. It will also discuss what can be learned from efforts already underway to re-shape master's education in the sciences and what programs can learn from the way graduate-level professional programs in fields such as business, public policy, and public health developed to meet employer needs.
Visit the project website
View the project record in the Academies’ Current Project System
Contacts:
Peter Henderson, Study Director, phenders@nas.edu
Kara Murphy, Research Associate, kmurphy@nas.edu

Assessing Current and Future Workforce Needs in Veterinary Medicine
Joint project with the Board on Agriculture and Natural Resources
The National Research Council proposes to convene an expert committee to study the broad scope of issues related to the veterinary workforce in the United States. The study will explore historical changes in the size and characteristics of the veterinary workforce; assess the demographics and adequacy of the current supply of veterinarians in different occupational categories and sectors of the economy; and identify incentives, disincentives, and other factors that are likely to affect the numbers of veterinarians seeking jobs in different sectors in the future. The study will also examine trends affecting the kinds of jobs available to veterinarians and assess future demand for veterinary expertise in existing and new employment sectors. The study will examine the current and future capacity of universities and colleges to provide sufficient numbers of adequately trained veterinarians and identify training needs relative to the demand for specific expertise.  A report will present the findings of the study, and identify options for meeting requirements for a veterinary workforce.
Visit the project website
Contacts:
Jim Voytuk, Senior Program Officer, jvoytuk@nas.edu
Kara Murphy, Research Associate, kmurphy@nas.edu

Review of the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) Draft Memorandum, "21st Century Engagement, Education, and Technology Initiative"
An ad hoc committee will review the draft Department of Navy memorandum, "21st Century Engagement, Education, and Technology Initiative" in light of the recent National Academies report, "Rising Above the Gathering Storm."  This publicly available memorandum articulates a plan for NAVSEA to address the shortage in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) professional workforce that is vital to its mission success. The committee will advise on the viability and implementation of the activities proposed in the memorandum: activities to generate interest and capability in STEM in K-12 and higher education; engaging academia and industry; and efforts to improve recruiting and retention of STEM workers within NAVSEA and the Navy.  The committee will prepare a brief report detailing its advice and recommendations.
View the project record in the Academies’ Current Project System
Contacts:
John Sislin, Study Director, jsislin@nas.edu

National Needs for Biomedical, Behavioral, and Clinical Research Personnel
A committee will conduct a review and prepare a report to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Agency for Healthcare and Quality Research (AHRQ) on issues regarding research personnel needs as they relate to the administration of the National Research Service Awards (NRSA) program.  The committee will gather and analyze information on employment and education trends of research scientists in the broad fields of the biomedical, behavioral, and clinical sciences, and in the subfields of oral health, nursing, and health services research.  The analysis will take into consideration the demographic changes in the US, changes in disease pattern, and changes in scientific opportunity.  The committee will deal broadly with the training needs and direction of the NRSA program as they relate to relevant federal research training policies, the impact of changes in the level of support for research and training, and the emergence of cross-disciplinary research areas.  The analysis will include an estimate of the future supply of researchers from the current and future population of graduate students and postdoctorates, and the committee will make recommendations on the overall production rate of research personnel in the biomedical, behavioral, and clinical sciences for the period 2010 to 2015 as it relates to the NRSA program.  Separate consideration will be given to training with respect to NIH dual degree and career development programs, and NIH programs that are designed to address diversity in the research workforce.
Contacts
Jim Voytuk, Senior Program Officer, jvoytuk@nas.edu
Kara Murphy, Research Associate, kmurphy@nas.edu
Rae Allen, Administrative Coordinator, reallen@nas.edu

BHEW’s Recently Completed Projects

Preparing for an Evaluation of the NRC Resident Research Associateship Program at NIST
The NIST/NRC Postdoctoral Research Associateships Program provides two-year temporary appointments for outstanding scientists and engineers chosen through a national competition administered by the National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences. These appointments provide an opportunity for some of the Nation's best young scientists, mathematicians and engineers to engage in state-of-the-art research in association with senior research specialists of the Institute's staff, using the excellent and often unique research facilities at NIST. This study inventories the pool of applicants for and recipients of the NIST/NRC Postdoctoral Research Associateships, including career outcomes of NIST postdoctoral scholars. The report provides findings, conclusions, and recommendations about possible methods for conducting more in-depth and broader evaluations.
View the final report on the National Academies Press website

Enhancing the Community College Pathway to Engineering Careers
Joint project with the National Academy of Engineering
The important role of community colleges in educating engineers is not well known to the public, or even to the engineering community. In fact, 20 percent of engineering degree holders began their academic careers with at least 10 credits from community colleges, and 40 percent of the recipients of engineering bachelor and master degrees in 1999 and 2000 attended community colleges. This study provides guidelines to policy makers and higher education institutions on improving engineering education at community colleges and enhancing partnerships in engineering education between community colleges and four-year institutions.|
View the project web site
View the final report on the National Academies Press website

Policy Implications of International Graduate Students and Postdoctoral Scholars in the United States
Joint project with the Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy
The nation has drawn increasingly on human resources from abroad for its science and engineering workforce. However, competition for talent has grown as other countries have expanded their research infrastructure and created more opportunities for international students. The report discusses trends in international student enrollments and stay rates, and examines the impact of visa policies on international mobility of the highly skilled.
View the final report on the National Academies Press website

Advancing the Nation’s Health Needs: NIH Research Training Programs
This report is the twelfth assessment by the NRC of the National Institutes of Health National Research Service Awards (NRSA) program. The research training needs of the country in basic biomedical, clinical, and behavioral and social sciences are considered. Also included are the training needs of oral health, nursing, and health services research. The report has been broadly constructed to take into account the rapidly evolving national and international health care needs. The past and present are analyzed, and predictions with regard to future needs are presented.
View the final report on the National Academies Press website

Assessment of NIH Minority Research Training Programs
This report provides an assessment of NIH’s programs for increasing the participation in biomedical science of individuals from underrepresented minority groups. The report examines, using available data and the results of a survey of NIH trainees, the characteristics and outcomes of programs at the undergraduate, graduate, postdoctoral, and junior faculty levels. The report provides recommendations for improving these programs and their administration. It also recommends how NIH can improve the data it collects on trainees in all NIH research training programs so as to enhance training program evaluation
View the final report on the National Academies Press website

Evaluation of the Lucille P. Markey Charitable Trust Programs in Biomedical Science
BHEW has just completed an evaluation of the research and training programs in biomedical and clinical science funded by the Lucille P. Markey Charitable Trust. Five reports have issued from this project, including studies of the Trust’s research grants program and the Markey Scholars program and a workshop report on the role of evaluation in philanthropy. You may view the five reports on the National Academies Press web site by clicking on the report titles below.
Evaluation of the Markey Scholars Program (2006)
Funding Biomedical Research Programs: Contributions of the Markey Trust (2006)
Enhancing Philanthropy's Support of Biomedical Scientists: Proceedings of a Workshop on Evaluation (2006)
Markey Scholars Conference: Proceedings (2004)
Bridging the Bed-Bench Gap: Contributions of the Markey Trust (2004)

Building a Workforce for the Information Economy
Joint project with the Computer Science and Telecommunications Board, the Board on Science, Technology and Economic Policy, and the Board on Testing and Assessment
This study offers an in-depth look at information technology workers, where they work and what they do, illuminating key areas that have been raised in political debates: Where do people in IT jobs come from? What kind of education and training matter most for them? Does the labor market—and the experiences of employers and workers—differ in various parts of the country? How do citizens of other countries factor into the U.S. IT workforce? What do we know about IT career paths, and what does that imply for IT workers as they age? And can we measure what matters? The study identifies characteristics that differentiate IT work from other categories of high-tech work and also looks at the capacity of the U.S. educational system and of employer training programs to produce qualified workers
View the project website
View the final report on the National Academies Press website

Forecasting Demand and Supply of Doctoral Scientists and Engineers: Report of Workshop on Methodology
As the importance of science and engineering has increased in relation to the American economy, so has the need for indicators of the adequacy of future supply and demand for scientific and engineering personnel. Data-based forecasting models, however, have not met this need, and accurate forecasts have not been produced. The focus of the report was to provide guidance to the NSF and to scholars in this area about how models (and the forecasts derived from them) might be improved, and what role NSF should play in their improvement. In addition, the report examined issues of reporting forecasts to policymakers.
View the final report on the National Academies Press website

Attracting Science and Mathematics Ph.D.s to Secondary School Education
Joint project with the Center for Education
The National Research Council (NRC) has undertaken a project to explore the possibility of a program to attract science, mathematics and engineering PhDs to careers in K-12 education. The first phase of the project surveyed the interests of recent PhDs in science and mathematics in pursuing careers in secondary education. Analysis of the Phase I data suggests that a significant percentage of PhDs might be interested in pursuing careers in secondary education under some circumstances. The second phase of the project led to a report that presents a proposal for a national demonstration program to determine how one might prepare PhDs to be productive members of the K-12 education community. The proposed program is designed to help meet the needs of the nation's schools, while providing further career opportunities for recent PhDs in science, mathematics and engineering. You may view the two reports on the National Academies Press web site by clicking on the report titles below:
Attracting Science and Mathematics Ph.D.s to Secondary School Education (2000)
Attracting PhDs to K-12 Education: A Demonstration Program for Science, Mathematics, and Technology (2002)

Measuring the Science and Engineering Enterprise: Priorities for the Division of Science Resources Studies (SRS)
Joint project with the Committee on National Statistics
The science and engineering enterprise has continued to evolve, responding over the last decade to increased economic globalization, a post-cold war military, federal budget fluctuations, and structural changes in the way science and engineering are conducted and innovations are adopted. This report, based on a review of SRS’s portfolio of surveys, suggests ways to revise the data collection activities of the Division to better capture the current realities of R&D funding and S&E human resources. The report’s recommendations would improve the relevance of the data on graduate education, the labor market for scientists and engineers, and the funding and conduct of research and development, and thus better meet the data needs of policymakers, managers, and researchers.
View the final report on the National Academies Press website