The Baccalaureate Origins of African American Female PH.D. Scientists

The study examines the baccalaureate origins of 1,465 U.S.-born African American females who earned their Ph.D.'s in the sciences between 1975 and 1992. The data are disaggregated by broad field−biological sciences, physical sciences, and social sciences. Three in four African American females earning the doctorate in the biological sciences had baccalaureate origins in historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), as did seven in 10 of their counterparts in the physical sciences. In contrast are the findings for African American females earning Ph.D. 's in the social sciences: slightly more than half had such origins in predominantly white colleges and universities (PWCUs), nearly two fifths from HBCUs, and another one tenth from women's colleges. The paper concludes with a discussion of the policy implications of the findings.