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pdfNSF Higher Education R&D Survey Update
Michael Gibbons, NSF/NCSES
Kathryn Harper, ICF
October 7, 2020
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics
Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences
National Science Foundation
Housekeeping Notes
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Questions
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presentation, but questions will mostly be addressed at the end of the presentation.
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questions submitted.
If you have technical issues, contact us via the Questions panel or e-mail [email protected].
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics https://ncses.nsf.gov
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Agenda
• General information about the HERD Survey
• Potential new questions about the impacts of the COVID-19
pandemic on R&D activity
• Best practices for explaining large increases or decreases in
expenditure data
• Changes coming to the FY 2020 survey
• Allowing equipment-only awards
• Two new questions about R&D personnel for institutions that
report R&D expenditures of $1 million or more.
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics https://ncses.nsf.gov
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Information About the HERD Survey
• Conducted annually since FY 1972, significantly redesigned in
FY 2010
• Census of all U.S. universities and colleges with minimum of
$150,000 of R&D spending (N = 916 in FY 2019)
• Survey response rate has consistently been over 95% - thank
you!
• Access to all HERD data, publications, and past questionnaires
available at https://www.nsf.gov/statistics/srvyherd/
• FY 2019 data will be published in January 2021
• FY 2020 survey will launch in early November 2020
• FY 2020 survey due date is January 29, 2021
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics https://ncses.nsf.gov
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Impacts of COVID-19 Pandemic
How do you think the FY 2020 R&D expenditures you report on the HERD
survey will be impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic?
60%
55%
50%
40%
30%
26%
20%
10%
10%
0%
8%
1%
R&D expenditures
will be much higher
R&D expenditures Little to no impact on R&D expenditures
R&D expenditure
will be somewhat
will be somewhat
higher
lower
R&D expenditures
will be much lower
Total institutions registered: 499
Responses were gathered through the informal webinar registration poll of HERD survey respondents and are hypothetical.
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics https://ncses.nsf.gov
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New Questions on the Impacts of COVID-19 Pandemic
• New questions about the impacts of the COVID-19
pandemic on R&D activity
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Why questions are being added
How data will be used and published
Development and testing
Review questions
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics https://ncses.nsf.gov
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COVID-19 Related Questions
• Will we have to report CARES Act funding separately?
• Will there be special reporting requirements for COVID-19
expenditures?
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics https://ncses.nsf.gov
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Responding to Trend Variances
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics https://ncses.nsf.gov
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Responding to Trend Variances
Why are trend variance checks and explanations included on the
survey?
• To help you find errors.
• To help us identify when survey instruction may have been
misinterpreted.
• So we have explanations to share with analysts when asked about
specific large changes.
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics https://ncses.nsf.gov
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Responding to Trend Variances
How do you decide what is a large increase or decrease from last year?
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Algorithms that differ from question to question, and may include consideration
of:
• Size of change (current year – last year)
• Percent change ((current year – last year) / last year) * 100
• Change as proportion of a total ((current year – last year) / total expenditures)
• Change in proportion of total ((current year / current year total) – (last year / last
year total))
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Variance algorithms are reviewed and revised routinely based on frequency of
occurrence and types of explanations received.
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics https://ncses.nsf.gov
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Responding to Trend Variances: Best Practices
Step 1:
Review your 3-year trend
report
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics https://ncses.nsf.gov
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Responding to Trend Variances: Best Practices
Step 1: Review your 3-year trend report
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics https://ncses.nsf.gov
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Responding to Trend Variances: Best Practices
Step 2: Correct your data, if needed
Step 3: Enter an explanation for the trend variance
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics https://ncses.nsf.gov
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Responding to Trend Variances: Best Practices
What should be included in a trend variance explanation?
• Information about specific projects with increased or decreased
spending including, as appropriate, title, sponsor, and expenditure
amount, OR
• The number of projects with increased/decreased spending and if
they are predominantly in a certain field OR
• A description of changes in accounting/recording keeping practices
that led to reporting larger or smaller amounts.
• Spell out acronyms specific to your institution.
• Explanations should be consistent across questions.
• Individual explanations should be able to stand on their own.
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics https://ncses.nsf.gov
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Changes to the FY 2020 Survey
• Allowing equipment-only awards
• Such as NSF Major Research Instrumentation grants
• Adding a question on headcounts and full-time equivalents
(FTE) of R&D personnel
• Why questions are being added
o Greater details on personnel demographics and effort (FTE) that are not
available elsewhere
o Better totals for international comparability of R&D statistics
• How data will be used and published
o Data tables
o Analytical reports
• Development and testing
• Review questions
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics https://ncses.nsf.gov
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Revised Question 15: R&D Personnel Headcounts
How many personnel (headcount) worked in the
functions listed below in FY 2020, and in which
demographic and educational categories would these
personnel be placed?
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All items on this question are confidential.
Count each person only once.
Include all personnel and students paid from R&D
accounts regardless of how much they were paid.
Pay could be a salary, a stipend or tuition remission.
Exclude personnel that would be considered indirect
research support such as research administration
and other personnel not paid for work on specific
research projects.
Functions are defined primarily by the nature of the
employee’s work, not the employee’s level of
education. Depending on the nature of their work, a
student could be placed in any functional category.
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics https://ncses.nsf.gov
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Revised Question 15: R&D Personnel Headcounts
Researchers
Professionals engaged in the
conception or creation of new
knowledge, products, processes,
methods and systems and also in
the management of the projects
concerned. Include R&D managers
in this category.
Description of R&D Functions
R&D technicians
Persons whose main tasks require
technical knowledge and
experience in one or more fields of
science or engineering, but who
contribute to R&D by performing
technical tasks such as computer
programming, data analysis,
ensuring accurate testing, operating
lab equipment, and preparing and
processing samples under the
supervision of researchers.
R&D support staff
Not directly involved with the
conduct of a research project but
support the researchers and
technicians. These employees
might include clerical staff, financial
and personnel administrators,
report writers, patent agents, safety
trainers, equipment specialists, and
other related employees.
Researcher versus R&D technician
Researchers contribute more to the creative aspects of R&D whereas technicians provide technical support.
For example, a researcher (scientist or engineer) would design an experiment and a technician would run the
experiment and assist in analyzing results.
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics https://ncses.nsf.gov
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New Question 16: R&D Personnel Full-Time Equivalents
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics https://ncses.nsf.gov
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Questions?
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics https://ncses.nsf.gov
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Contact: Michael Gibbons, NSF/NCSES
703-292-4590
[email protected]
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| File Type | application/pdf |
| Author | Gibbons, Michael |
| File Modified | 2020-12-08 |
| File Created | 2020-12-08 |