Education and employment patterns of U.S. Ph.D.'s in the biomedical sciences

During most of the 1970s and 1980s, the number of biomedical Ph.D.'s conferred in the United States was fairly constant. From 1987 to 1995, however, there was an increase of almost 50% in the number of biomedical Ph.D.'s awarded by U.S. institutions; nearly 70% of this increase can be accounted for by the increase in the number of noncitizens receiving a Ph.D. in the U.S. Although unemployment among U.S. citizens with biomedical Ph.D.'s is now extremely low--less than 2.0%--there have been some important changes in the job market for biomedical Ph.D.'s. The total number of biomedical scientists has grown, whereas the number of faculty positions has remained stable, causing a decline in faculty positions as a percentage of total employment for biomedical scientists. Jobs in industry have increased, and in the future might surpass academic jobs as the most prevalent form of employment for U.S. biomedical scientists.