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9 key findings about the humanities in higher education

Research aims to provide a “balanced look” at the state of humanities.

humanities-report [1]According to a new report, there is no evidence of a net decline in the number of degree-granting departments in the humanities. But that doesn’t mean humanities studies are where they once were.

The report aims to offer a look at the state of humanities in higher education to provide a balanced look at the field in the wake of portrayals that characterize it as beleaguered and declining.

The State of the Humanities: Higher Education 2015 [2], from the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, is intended to provide a more evidenced-based depiction of the health of the humanities on college and university campuses.

The new report draws on the latest research and analysis from the Humanities Indicators, an ongoing research initiative of the Academy that incorporates federal and high-quality private data sets as well as original survey information.

(Next page: Nine key findings from the humanities report)

The report’s publication coincides with the release of new and revised Indicators that delve more deeply into recent declines in the number of students earning degrees in humanities fields.

To provide context, the Academy is also publishing a discussion of the findings in its Data Forum, with commentary from Danielle Allen (Institute for Advanced Study; Harvard University) and Michael Roth (Wesleyan University) about the future of the field.

Among the key findings:

The Humanities Indicators covers 76 topics, with over 500 graphs and tables of information, on primary and secondary education, undergraduate and graduate education, the humanities workforce, humanities funding and research, and the humanities in American life. The Indicators are supported through funding from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Material from a press release was used in this report.