Understanding Declining Time to Degree Across Disciplines

ABSTRACT

As part of our on-going project to identify best practices to advance graduate education (NSF IGE 1633008), we wish to determine the common denominators that have contributed to the steady decline in the median Time to Degree (TTD) for all disciplines over the past two decades. Specifically, the Total Time to Degree (TTTD = total elapsed time from completion of the baccalaureate to the doctorate), the Registered Time to Degree (RTTD = time in graduate school less reported periods of non-enrollment), and the Age at Doctorate (AAD = age at doctorate). Our study follows the recent work of Helen Schurke Frasier, which was described in her dissertation that was published in 2013. While Schurke Frasier’s work provided a theoretical framework and important analysis, it was of limited scope, employing SED data from 2004-2006, and the work was completed before it was appreciated the TTD would continue to decline, so not specific effort was made to determine the root causes of the decline. By expanding the data set to include reference SED data that preceded the decline and more recent data that follows the continued decline, we expect to garner additional insight into the factors that influence the TTD.