Disciplinary Distribution of Advanced Degrees in the Humanities
- In 2018, 28.6% of all humanities master’s degrees and 22.4% of all humanities doctoral degrees were awarded by English departments, substantially larger shares than for any other humanities discipline (Indicators II-22a and II-22b).
- Even when combined, the second- and third-largest disciplines conferring humanities master’s degrees in 2018—history and the humanities-oriented areas of communication (which awarded 15.3% and 12.5% of humanities master’s degrees)—still conferred a smaller share of degrees than English. The remaining disciplines each awarded less than 10% of the master’s degrees in the field.
- Focusing on the largest disciplines (as measured by degree completions), history, languages and literatures other than English (LOTE), and philosophy awarded larger shares of humanities degrees at the doctoral level than at the master’s level (in history, 16.2% at the doctoral level, as compared to 12.5% at the master’s level; in LOTE, 12.9% as compared to 8.1%; and in philosophy, 9.6% as compared to 4.4%). In contrast, communication and English conferred a smaller share of doctoral degrees than master’s degrees (in communication, 10.0% as compared to 15.3%; in English, 22.4% as compared to 28.6%).
- Again focusing on the largest disciplines, from 2000 to 2018, the most marked changes in the share of all humanities master’s degrees awarded were in general humanities/liberal arts degrees (a 40% loss in share) and nonprofessional communication degrees (an increase in share of 49%; Indicator II-22c).
- In the case of doctoral degrees, the shares of all humanities degrees awarded in the two largest disciplines, English and history, shrank from 2000 to 2018, while most of the other disciplines awarded larger shares of degrees in 2018 than they did at the turn of the century (Indicator II-22d). As was true at the master’s degree level, communication experienced a substantial increase in its share of all doctoral completions.
* Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding.
** Values for the disciplines included in this category are provided in a supporting table.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, Integrated Postsecondary Data System. Data analyzed and presented by the American Ƶ of Arts and Sciences’ Humanities Indicators ().
See the Note on the Data Used to Calculate Humanities Degree Counts and Shares and the Note on the Definition of Advanced Degrees.
For an inventory of the specific degree programs that compose each of the humanities disciplines as they are conceptualized by the Humanities Indicators, see the Degree Program Code Catalog.
* Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding.
** Values for the disciplines included in this category are provided in a supporting table.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, Integrated Postsecondary Data System. Data analyzed and presented by the American Ƶ of Arts and Sciences’ Humanities Indicators ().
See the Note on the Data Used to Calculate Humanities Degree Counts and Shares and the Note on the Definition of Advanced Degrees.
For an inventory of the specific degree programs that compose each of the humanities disciplines as they are conceptualized by the Humanities Indicators, see the Degree Program Code Catalog.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, Integrated Postsecondary Data System. Data analyzed and presented by the American Ƶ of Arts and Sciences’ Humanities Indicators ().
See the Note on the Data Used to Calculate Humanities Degree Counts and Shares and the Note on the Definition of Advanced Degrees.
For an inventory of the specific degree programs that compose each of the humanities disciplines as they are conceptualized by the Humanities Indicators, see the Degree Program Code Catalog.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, Integrated Postsecondary Data System. Data analyzed and presented by the American Ƶ of Arts and Sciences’ Humanities Indicators ().
See the Note on the Data Used to Calculate Humanities Degree Counts and Shares and the Note on the Definition of Advanced Degrees.
For an inventory of the specific degree programs that compose each of the humanities disciplines as they are conceptualized by the Humanities Indicators, see the Degree Program Code Catalog.
