Agency Information Collection Activities: Comment Request; Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering

Federal RegisterJun 17, 2026

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NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION

Agency Information Collection Activities: Comment Request; Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering

AGENCY:

National Science Foundation.

ACTION:

submission for OMB review; comment request.

SUMMARY:

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has submitted the following request for revision of the approved collection of research and development data in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. This is the second notice for public comment; the first was published in the

Federal Register

and no comments were received. NSF is forwarding the proposed renewal submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for clearance simultaneously with the publication of this second notice.

DATES:

Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of this notice to

www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAmain.

Find this particular information collection by selecting “Currently under 30-day Review—Open for Public Comments” or by using the search function.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Suzanne H. Plimpton, Reports Clearance Officer, National Science Foundation, Randolph Building, 401 Dulany Street, Alexandria, VA 22314; or send email to

splimpto@nsf.gov.

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).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

NSF may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information unless the collection of

information displays a currently valid OMB control number and the agency informs potential persons who are to respond to the collection of information that such persons are not required to respond to the collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number.

Title of Collection:

Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering.

OMB Control Number:

3145-0062.

Type of Request:

Intent to seek approval to extend an information collection for three years.

Summary of Collection:

The Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering (GSS), sponsored by the NCSES within the U.S. NSF and the National Institutes of Health, is designed to comply with legislative mandates by providing information on the characteristics of academic graduate enrollments in science, engineering and health fields. This request to extend the information collection for three years is to cover the 2026, 2027, and 2028 GSS survey cycles. The information collected by the GSS is solicited under the authority of the National Science Foundation Act of 1950, as amended and the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010. Data collection starts each fall in October and data are obtained primarily through a Web survey. Data are disseminated annually. All information will be used for statistical purposes only. Participation in the survey is voluntary.

To improve coverage of postdocs, the GSS periodically collects information on postdocs employed in Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs). This survey of postdocs at FFRDCs will be conducted as part of the 2027 GSS survey cycle.

Additional details regarding this survey are provided in an earlier

Federal Register

Notice, at 91 FR 11340.

Use of the Information:

The GSS data are routinely provided to Congress, other parts of NSF, other Federal agencies, the GSS institutions themselves, and several professional societies. In addition, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) publish GSS data annually in the NIH Data Book

https://report.nih.gov/nihdatabook/

Expected Respondents:

The GSS is an annual census of all eligible academic institutions in the U.S. with graduate programs in science, engineering, and health fields. The response rate is calculated based on the number of reporting units (departments, programs, research centers, and health care facilities) that respond to the survey. For reference, in 2024, the GSS population was 23,121 units reported from 635 academic institutions. Based on recent cycles NCSES expects the annual response rate to be around 98 percent.

Estimate of Burden:

The total estimated respondent burden of the GSS, including 2,000 hours for potential methodological studies to improve the survey procedures, will be 52,855 hours over the three-cycle survey clearance period.

Table 1—GSS Estimated Response Burden