The survey results are critical to our understanding of the specialty research areas of doctorate recipients and their post-graduation employment plans. The data from this survey are used by policy-makers in government and universities when making decisions about funding graduate education, developing new programs, and supporting existing ones.

As the liaison between doctoral graduates and the SED project team, the institution contact plays a critical role in the success of the SED. This individual helps students understand the importance of filling out the survey, distributes the survey in a way that facilitates student cooperation, and ensures accurate institutional data are reported to the SED project team.

The data from this survey become part of the Doctorate Records File (DRF), a virtually complete data bank on doctorate recipients from 1920 to the present. This rich source of data is the foundation for the many reports available from the SED.

The Survey of Earned Doctorates (SED) is administered only to recipients of research doctorate degrees. A research doctorate is a doctoral degree that requires the completion of an original intellectual contribution in the form of a dissertation or an equivalent culminating project (such as a musical composition), and that is not primarily intended as a degree for the practice of a profession.

Content in the Materials and Information section of the ICAT provides access to details on how to administer the SED at your institution and provides access to documentation on the use of this system and guidance on best practices.

Use this page to download the forms used for data collection, including your student roster.

The data from this survey become part of the Doctorate Records File (DRF), a virtually complete data bank on doctorate recipients from 1920 to the present. This rich source of data is the foundation for the many free reports available from the SED, as well as the Data Products for Purchase. Most of these resources are updated annually.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​