Web Based Data Resources on Sociology (and Other Professions)
Below we review briefly four data resources we frequently use in our reports, presentations, and web pages. These tools provide you access to national postsecondary education datasets for use in your own custom reports for your strategic planning and departmental policy purposes.
Click on the icon of your choice to access these data tools.
NSF’s WebCASPAR: Integrated Science and Engineering Resources Data System
Build your own tables using NSF and NCES data. Data is available on degrees awarded, enrollments, R&D funding, and institutional characteristics in many science and engineering fields including sociology. Free registration is required and user tutorials and help menus are available. http://webcaspar.nsf.gov/
NSF’s SESTAT: Scientists and Engineers Statistical Data System
A comprehensive, public-use data system about the employment, educational and demographic characteristics of scientists and engineers in the United States including sociologists drawing on a number of NSF surveys such as the Survey of Earned Doctorates, National Survey of Recent College Graduates, among others. Free registration is required. Extensive help menus, variable documentation, public-use data downloads, and technical notes are available. https://sestat.nsf.gov/sestat/sestat.html
National Center for Education Statistics, Institute of Education Sciences’ DAS: Data Analysis System
This web based data analysis software provides public access to mostly individual-level education survey data collected by the US Department of Education. Users can build their own analysis tables, covariance matrices (with their standard errors) for regression analysis, and, with DAS 2.0, perform weighted least-squares and logistic regression analysis on the web. In nationally representative complex samples, data on sociology majors can be found in the National Education Longitudinal Survey (NELS) and Bachelor’s and Beyond (B&B), while data on sociology faculty can be found in the National Study of Postsecondary Faculty (NSOPF). Step-by-step tutorials, which can be found by clicking the “User Help Center” link, are highly recommended. http://nces.ed.gov/das/
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National Center for Education Statistics, Institute of Education Sciences Peer Analysis System (PAS) and Dataset Cutting Tool (DCT) |
An essential tool for performing institutional level comparisons and for creating specific data “slices” using NCES’s Integrated Postsecondary Data System (IPEDS). PAS provides a variety of analytical features for peer analysis. This includes the ability to create new calculated variables, to sort and rank schools based on the data items selected, and to view standard report templates. DCT allows users to download IPEDS data to use with software packages for analysis and comparisons. Use the DCT to obtain complete data files and codes or to create customized datasets according to your specifications. Users may select their schools of interest with the DCT or may upload a list previously created in PAS. Data on degree completions for many fields of study, including sociology, by degree levels, institutional type and control is available since at least 1980. To access recently updated “early release” IPEDS data, we recommend that users log in at the “institution level” using the IPEDS Institution Unit ID (see below) for their college or university in both log-in fields. Context specific help windows are available for both tools. http://nces.ed.gov/IPEDS/
To find the IPEDS Institution Unit ID for your school, search our database in either Excel or SPSS format, which includes over 1,000 colleges or universities granting a sociology bachelor's degree, or visit NCES's College Navigator data tool to search for your institution within your state.