The Survey of Earned Doctorates (SED) gathers information annually from approximately 50,000 new research doctorate graduates from U.S. universities about their educational histories, funding sources, and post-doctoral plans.
Each year SED data are added to a historical record of doctoral graduates dating back to 1920. This Doctorate Records File (DRF) is used to track the number of graduates in various disciplines, follow their educational paths and movement into the labor market, and study related information about doctoral education.