Across Johns Hopkins’ academic divisions, program leaders and deans have expressed their commitment to finding best practices for attracting, recruiting, and retaining an excellent and diverse pool of graduate students.

A detailed report about the composition of the university’s graduate student body by the Office of the Provost is helping to inform these efforts. Released in May 2017, the JHU Report on Graduate Student Diversity has established a baseline for measuring progress in diversifying the populations of PhD, other doctoral, and master’s degree students. The report, which will be updated every two years, uses data provided by students upon enrollment and compiled by the Office of Institutional Research.

Some key findings:

• Women made up 46 percent of PhD students, 58 percent of other doctoral students, and 53 percent of master’s students universitywide.
• 20 percent of PhD students, 40 percent of other doctoral students, and 26 percent of master’s degree students self-identified as minorities.
• Between 2008 and 2016, the universitywide percentage of underrepresented minority students increased from 7 percent to 9 percent in PhD programs, and from 13 percent to 15 percent in master’s programs.
• In some divisions, between 2008 and 2016, there was substantial progress in attracting URM students: The proportion of URM students at the School of Nursing increased from 5 percent to 24 percent; in the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences, the proportion of URM PhD students rose from 4 percent to 7 percent; and among master’s degree students, the School of Education saw the largest percentage increase, from 19 percent to 34 percent.

“This report is an important tool to measure and understand diversity among our graduate students,” says Provost Sunil Kumar. “With these numbers in hand, the departments and divisions can assess their progress and we can provide transparent information to the university community about our challenges and successes.”

Photo: From left to right, School of Nursing students Ruth-Alma Turkson-Ocran and Helena Addison.