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New Ph.D. enrollments declined at 27 top U.S. research universities

Hacker News reports, citing a New York Times analysis, that new Ph.D. enrollments declined from 2024 to 2025 at 27 top U.S. research universities, with engineering down about 18 percent.

Published Nov 10, 2026 · 21:49 UTC1 reports

The short version

  • Hacker News reports, citing a New York Times analysis, that engineering Ph.D. enrollments fell about 18 percent and science and health enrollments about 10 percent from 2024 to 2025 at 27 universities.[Hacker News]
  • Columbia University had $400 million in federal grants canceled, which the administration said was over failures to protect Jewish students from harassment.[Hacker News]
  • The White House says President Trump's policies are increasing research investment, while the NSF says its fellowship eligibility change aims to expand opportunities for first-time graduate students.[Hacker News]

Key facts

  • Between 2024 and 2025, new Ph.D. enrollments fell about 18 percent in engineering and about 10 percent in science and health at 27 top U.S. research universities, according to a New York Times analysis.[Hacker News]
  • Columbia University had $400 million in federal grants and contracts canceled, which the administration said was over a failure to protect Jewish students from harassment.[Hacker News]
  • White House spokeswoman Liz Huston said President Trump's policies are leading to increased investments in research in the United States.[Hacker News]
  • The NSF said the update to its graduate research fellowship eligibility criteria was designed to expand opportunities for students entering graduate school for the first time.[Hacker News]

What remains uncertain

  • Whether federal policies caused the enrollment declines is not established; the White House and NSF offer their own accounts.[Hacker News]
  • The reporting comes from a single outlet, and the source text ends mid-sentence, so the full analysis could not be checked.[Hacker News]

Sources

Outlet counts describe coverage, not independent confirmation. Reports may share a wire service or original source.