This indicator represents the extent to which a state provides associate’s degree–level training in S&E fields, controlling for the size of its college-age population. The cohort 18–24 years old was chosen to approximate the age range of most students who are pursuing an associate’s degree.

Educational attainment in an S&E field provides the advanced skills and technical expertise needed for a competitive workforce. A skilled workforce is important for a region’s innovative capacity, productivity, and technological growth.

The National Center for Education Statistics counts the number of associate’s degrees awarded in S&E fields. S&E fields include agricultural sciences and natural resources; biological and biomedical sciences; computer and information sciences; engineering; geosciences, atmospheric sciences, and ocean sciences; mathematics and statistics; multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary sciences; physical sciences; psychology; and social sciences. At the doctoral level only, health sciences are also included in S&E fields of study. Associate’s degrees are awarded at both 2-year and 4-year institutions in the United States, and the data include degrees from both public and private institutions. These values are reported by the state in which the school is located and include degrees awarded to both in-person and online students. Degree data reflect the location of the degree-granting institution, not the state where degree-earning students reside.

Estimates of the population ages 18–24 are provided by the Census Bureau based on the decennial census and are reported by the state of residence. Each year, the Census Bureau utilizes current data on births, deaths, and migration to calculate population change since the most recent decennial census and produces time series estimates of population. Because these are estimates, small differences in the indicator value between states or across time generally are not meaningful. Estimates for states with smaller populations are generally less precise than estimates for states with larger populations.

Data sources: Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System; Census Bureau, Decennial Census and Population Estimates Program.