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Enrollment in master’s and doctoral programs increase nationally and locally

Emily Komorowski
February 18, 2013

Obtainment of master’s and doctoral degrees increased both at Kent State and across the U.S.

The U.S. Census Bureau reported that the highest rate of increases in educational attainment levels was in doctoral and master’s degrees from 2002 to 2012. Nationally, the number of people with a doctoral degree increased by 45 percent and the number of people with a master’s degree increased by 43 percent.

A report from the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) in late 2012 claimed that in many fields, graduates with a master’s degree lead to significantly higher starting salaries than those with a bachelor’s degree. The average salary for individuals with a master’s degree can be almost 30 percent higher than the average salary of individuals who have a bachelor’s degree in the same major.

Kent State’s Research, Planning and Institutional Effectiveness (RPIE) website reported that the university awarded 1,663 master’s and doctoral degrees in 2012 compared to 1,187 distributed in 2002.

Graduate enrollment in general has increased by 8.5 percent from spring 2012 to spring 2013, according to RPIE. J.P. Cooney, director of graduate admissions, said the Division of Graduate Studies has received 1,375 doctoral applications and 2,484 master’s applications for fall 2013.

“This is only about half of the applications we expect to receive,” said Cooney.

Both the College of Arts and Sciences and the College of Education, Health and Human Services boasted having the most master’s and doctoral students. The College of Arts and Sciences has 956 master’s and doctoral students; the College of Health, Education and Human Services has 849 master’s and doctoral students.

“Our graduate programs are growing a strong reputation,” Cooney said, “and more and more students are coming in from across the country.”

The following are some numbers from this year’s enrollment of graduate students: