[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 180 (Friday, September 16, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 63809-63810]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-22285]


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NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION


Notice of Intent To Extend an Information Collection

AGENCY: National Science Foundation.

ACTION: Notice and Request for Comments.

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SUMMARY: The National Science Foundation (NSF) is announcing plans to 
request renewal of the Survey of Earned Doctorates (OMB No. 3145-0019). 
In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we are 
providing opportunity for public comment on this action. After 
obtaining and considering public comment, NSF will prepare the 
submission requesting that OMB approve clearance of this collection for 
three years.

DATES: Written comments on this notice must be received by November 14, 
2016, to be assured of consideration. Comments received after that date 
will be considered to the extent practicable.

FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION OR COMMENTS: Contact Suzanne H. Plimpton, 
Reports Clearance Officer, National Science Foundation, 4201 Wilson 
Boulevard, Suite 1265, Arlington, Virginia 22230; telephone (703) 292-
7556; or send email to [email protected]. Individuals who use a 
telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal 
Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339, which is accessible 
24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year (including federal 
holidays). You also may obtain a copy of the data collection instrument 
and instructions from Ms. Plimpton.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Comments: Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed 
collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of 
the functions of the NSF, including whether the information shall have 
practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the NSF's estimate of the burden 
of the proposed collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the 
quality, use, and clarity of the information on respondents, including 
through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of 
information technology; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on those who are to respond, including 
through the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or 
other technological collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology.
    Title of Collection: Survey of Earned Doctorates.
    OMB Control Number: 3145-0019.
    Expiration Date of Current Approval: May 31, 2018.
    Type of Request: Intent to seek approval to extend an information 
collection for three years.
    1. Abstract: Established within the National Science Foundation by 
the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010 Sec.  505, codified in 
the National Science Foundation Act of 1950, as amended, the National 
Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES) serves as a 
central Federal clearinghouse for the collection, interpretation, 
analysis, and dissemination of objective data on science, engineering, 
technology, and research and development for use by practitioners, 
researchers, policymakers, and the public. The Survey of Earned 
Doctorates (SED) is part of an integrated survey system that collects 
data on individuals in an effort to provide information on science and 
engineering education and careers in the United States.
    The SED has been conducted annually since 1958 and is jointly 
sponsored by the National Science Foundation, National Institutes of 
Health, U.S. Department of Education, and National Endowment for the 
Humanities in order to avoid duplication. It is an accurate, timely 
source of information on one of our Nation's most important resources--
highly educated individuals. Data are obtained via Web survey or paper 
questionnaire from each person earning a research doctorate at the time 
they receive the degree. Data are collected on their field of 
specialty, educational background, sources of support in graduate 
school, debt level, postgraduation plans, and demographic 
characteristics.
    The Federal government, universities, researchers, and others use 
the information extensively. The National Science Foundation, as the 
lead agency, publishes statistics from the survey in several reports, 
but primarily in the annual publication series Doctorate Recipients 
from U.S. Universities. These reports are available on the NSF Web 
site.
    The survey will be collected in conformance with the Privacy Act of 
1974. Responses from individuals are voluntary. NSF will ensure that 
all individually identifiable information

[[Page 63810]]

collected will be kept strictly confidential and will be used only for 
research or statistical purposes.
    2. Use of the Information: Results from the SED are used to assess 
characteristics of the doctorate population and trends in doctoral 
education and degrees by researchers, policy makers, universities, and 
government agencies. Data from the survey are published annually on the 
NCSES Web site in a publication series reporting on all fields of 
study, titled Doctorate Recipients from U.S. Universities. Information 
from the SED is also included in other series available online: Science 
and Engineering Degrees; Science and Engineering Degrees, by Race/
Ethnicity of Recipients; Science and Engineering Indicators; and Women, 
Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering. 
In addition, access to tabular data from selected variables is 
available through WebCASPAR, an online table-generating tool on the 
NCSES Web site.
    3. Expected Respondents: The SED is a census of all individuals 
receiving a research doctorate from an accredited U.S. academic 
institution in the academic year beginning 1 July and ending 30 June of 
the subsequent year. As such, the population for the 2018 SED consists 
of all individuals receiving a research doctorate in the 12-month 
period beginning 1 July 2017 and ending 30 June 2018. Likewise, the 
population for the 2019 SED consists of all individuals receiving a 
research doctorate in the 12-month period beginning 1 July 2018 and 
ending 30 June 2019. A research doctorate is a doctoral degree that (1) 
requires completion of an original intellectual contribution in the 
form of a dissertation or an equivalent culminating project (e.g., 
musical composition) and (2) is not primarily intended as a degree for 
the practice of a profession. The most common research doctorate degree 
is the Ph.D. Recipients of professional doctoral degrees only, such as 
MD, DDS, JD, DPharm, and PsyD, are not included in the SED. The 2018 
and 2019 SED are expected to include about 580 separately reporting 
doctoral programs from among approximately 455 eligible research 
doctorate-granting institutions.
    4. Estimate of Burden: A total response rate of 90% of the 55,006 
persons who earned a research doctorate from a U.S. institution was 
obtained in academic year 2015. This level of response rate has been 
consistent for several years. Based on the historical trend, in 2018 
approximately 58,000 individuals are expected to receive research 
doctorates from U.S. institutions. Using the past response rate, the 
number of SED respondents in 2018 is estimated to be 52,200 (58,000 
doctorate recipients x 0.90 response rate). Similarly, the number of 
individuals expected to earn research doctorates in 2019 is estimated 
to be about 59,000; hence, the number of respondents in 2019 is 
estimated to be 53,100 (59,000 x 0.90).
    Based on the average Web survey completion time for the 2017 SED 
(19 minutes) and the extension of a few questions to an additional 
subset of respondents, NSF estimates that, on average, 21 minutes per 
respondent will be required to complete the 2018 or 2019 SED 
questionnaire. The annual respondent burden for completing the SED is 
therefore estimated at 18,270 hours in 2018 (52,200 respondents x 21 
minutes) and 18,585 hours in 2019 (based on 53,100 respondents).
    In addition to the actual questionnaire, the SED requires the 
collection of administrative data from participating academic 
institutions. The Institutional Coordinator at the institution helps 
distribute the Web survey link (and paper surveys when necessary), 
track survey completions, and submit information to the SED survey 
contractor. Based on focus groups conducted with Institutional 
Coordinators, it is estimated that the SED demands no more than 1% of 
the Institutional Coordinator's time over the course of a year, which 
computes to 20 hours per year per Institutional Coordinator (40 hours 
per week x 50 weeks per year x .01). With about 580 programs expected 
to participate in the SED in 2018 and 2019, the estimated annual burden 
to Institutional Coordinators of administering the SED is 11,600 hours.
    Therefore, the total annual information burden for the SED is 
estimated to be 29,870 hours in 2018 (18,270 + 11,600) and 30,185 hours 
in 2019 (18,585 + 11,600). This is higher than the last annual estimate 
approved by OMB due to the increased number of respondents (doctorate 
recipients) and the increased number of survey questions being asked of 
each respondent.

    Authority: Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act 
of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13)

    Dated: September 13, 2016.
Suzanne H. Plimpton,
Reports Clearance Officer, National Science Foundation.
[FR Doc. 2016-22285 Filed 9-15-16; 8:45 am]
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