WANTED : MORE Ph . D . s Graduate Enrollments in the Atmospheric Sciences

JANUARY 2002 AMERICAN METEOROLOGICAL SOCIETY | D uring the past two years, the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) Board of Trustees and other members of the UCAR university community have become increasingly concerned about the number of students applying for graduate school (Anthes 2000a). A number of us have seen the pool of applicants shrink at our own Ph.D. programs in recent years. Furthermore, participants in the 1999 UCAR Forum on the future of the atmospheric sciences confirmed that there is a serious problem regarding the quantity and quality of students entering the atmospheric and related sciences (including oceanography, space science, and earth science). In a subsequent UCAR survey on broad topics, conducted during June and July of 2000, we received more comments on the quantity and quality of graduate students than on any other issue (Anthes 2000b). Apparently many university departments around the world are experiencing similar difficulties recruiting highly skilled students in the environmental sciences (Brasseur 2000). Anecdotal evidence suggests that this decline has led to increased competition nationally for good students, a shortfall of graduate students to assist in teaching, and a smaller pool of students to contribute to the university research efforts. If the decrease is truly widespread and persistent, the number of Ph.D. graduates could be insufficient to meet national needs in the near future. To gain a more objective view of the situation, we surveyed UCAR universities specifically about this issue and investigated related statistics available elsewhere. To our knowledge, this is the first such study of the Ph.D. pipeline in atmospheric sciences in recent years, and the results reinforce our concern. The community may face a significant shortfall in Ph.D.s by the year 2011.