Federal Support Survey

Glossary

A| B| C| D| E| F| G| H| I| J| K| L| M|

N| O| P| Q| R| S| T| U| V| W| X| Y| Z

Academic science and engineering (S&E) obligations Top

Academic science and engineering (S&E) obligations includes all obligations for research and development (R&D); R&D plant; facilities and equipment for S&E instruction; fellowships, traineeships, and training grants (FTTGs); general support for science and engineering; and other S&E activities.

See also Research and development (R&D), R&D plant, Facilities and equipment, Fellowships, traineeships, and training grants (FTTGs), General support for science and engineering, and other S&E activities.

Code Book for Compatible Statistical Reporting Top

The Code Book lists institutions of higher education in the United States and its outlying areas that offer at least one year of college-level studies in residence, as well as independent nonprofit institutions and all Federally Funded Research and Development Centers administered by academic or nonprofit institutions.

Committee on Academic Science and Engineering (CASE) Top

The Committee on Academic Science and Engineering (CASE) was formed in 1965 in order to establish an Interagency Task Force on Compatible Statistical Studies. The Federal Support Survey is carried out under the auspices of CASE.

Consortia of institutions TOP

Consortia of institutions are partnerships of multiple institutions, which can be academic and/or nonprofit, which are formed for the expressed purpose of carrying out research activities. Data on consortia are contained in tables B-32, B-33, and B-34 of the Detailed Statistical Tables.

Direct Federal support TOP

Federal agencies are to report funds in terms of the institution directly receiving the support, even if all or part of the project involved is known to have been subcontracted to another institution.

Division of Science Resources Studies Top

The Division of Science Resources Studies (SRS), part of the National Science Foundation's Directorate for Social, Behavioral, and Economic Science, gathers and analyzes data on science and engineering resources in each sector of the economy and at the national and international levels. Decisions by Federal and State agencies, industry, and academic officials on the allocation of resources are often based on data collected by SRS.

See also NSF staff who work on the Federal Funds Survey.

Facilities and equipment TOP

Facilities and equipment for science and engineering (S&E) instruction include all programs whose main purpose is to provide support for the construction, acquisition, renovation, modification, repair, or rental of facilities, land, works, or equipment for use in instruction in science and engineering.

See also Academic science and engineering (S&E) obligations.

Federal agencies TOP

Federal agencies are organizations of the Federal Government whose principal executive officer reports to the President. Subdivisions refers to any organizational unit of a reporting agency, such as a bureau, division, office, or service.

To facilitate the dissemination of information to the public many Federal agencies now maintain a home page on the Web.

See also Survey population.

Federally funded research and development centers (FFRDCs) Top

Federally funded research and development centers are research and development (R&D)-performing organizations that are exclusively or substantially financed by the Federal Government and are supported by the Federal Government either to meet a particular R&D objective or, in some instances, to provide major facilities at universities for research and associated training purposes. Each center is administered either by an industrial firm, a university, or another nonprofit institution. The Federal Support Survey collects data for only academically and nonprofit administered FFRDCs.

Fellowships, traineeships, and training grants (FTTG) Top

Fellowships, traineeships, and training grants include graduate programs in support of the development and maintenance of science and engineering (S&E) personnel resources. The total amounts pertaining to such awards (stipends and cost-of-education allowances) are reported on the basis of the institution chosen by the recipient. Excluded are programs that support research and education institutes, seminars, and conferences such as teacher-training activities provided through teacher institutes, short courses, research participation, and in-service seminars; activities aimed at the development of education techniques and materials for use in S&E training; and programs that provide special opportunities for increasing the scientific knowledge and experience of precollege and undergraduate students. These activities are included in "other science and engineering activities" or if not S&E oriented, in "non-science and engineering activities".

See also Academic science and engineering (S&E) obligations.

Fields of science and engineering Top

Obligations for research and development (R&D) and fellowships, traineeships, and training grants (FTTGs) are reported by field of science and engineering (S&E). A field of S&E taxonomy is included in the Instructions and Specifications. This taxonomy provides a list of illustrative disciplines which are intended to be guidelines rather than sharp definitions as to what should be reported under a particular field; they represent examples of disciplines generally classified under each detailed field. A discipline, however, may be classified under another detailed field when the major emphasis is elsewhere.

Fiscal year TOP

The fiscal year in the Federal Government accounting period begins October 1 of a given year and ends September 30 of the following year; thus, fiscal year 1994 began on October 1, 1993, and ended September 30, 1994.

FSS data entry program TOP

The FSS data entry program is the data entry system for the Survey of Federal Support to Universities, Colleges, and Nonprofit Institutions. It is a user friendly, menu-driven system that can be used on any IBM compatible PC. FSS will allow Federal Support Survey respondents to enter data for the survey data submission, print out summary and detailed reports of their data, and comment on the data submitted.

General support for science and engineering (S&E) Top

General support for science and engineering (S&E) includes programs that support nonspecific or generalized purposes related to scientific research and education. Such projects are generally oriented toward academic departments, institutes, or institutions as a whole and embody varying types of support. The types range from support provided to be used for any scientific projects, to projects in which funds are provided for activities within a specified field of S&E without a specific purpose. The National Institutes of Health's (NIH) Biomedical Research Support Grants and Minority Biomedical Support Grants are examples of these types of programs.

See also Academic science and engineering (S&E) obligations.

Historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) Top

Historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are institutions of higher education that have been historically considered to predominantly enroll black students. An official list of HBCUs is maintained by the Department of Education. This list, which is reviewed annually, serves as the basis by which institutions are considered to have HBCU standing. Tables B-20, B-21, B-22, B-23, and B-24 of the Detailed Statistical Tables contain information on HBCUs.

Independent nonprofit institutions Top

Independent nonprofit institutions are legal entities other than universities and colleges, are privately organized or chartered to serve the public interest, and are exempt from most forms of Federal taxation. Data presented for nonprofit institutions and for nonprofit-administered FFRDCs are obligations for research and development (R&D) and R&D plant reported by the 15 participating agencies.

Coverage of the nonprofit section in the Federal Support Survey was expanded beginning in the late 1970s to include all types of nonprofit institutions that receive Federal R&D funds. For NSF purposes the types of institutions are defined as research institutes, voluntary hospitals, and all other independent nonprofit institutions:

See also Research institutes, Voluntary hospitals, and Other independent nonprofit institutions

Institutional profiles TOP

Selected data items for individual doctorate-granting institutions and schools with science and engineering departments that grant a master's degree are available on computer-generated Institutional Profiles. An Institutional Profile consists of data not only from this survey, but from NSF's other two academic science and engineering (S&E) surveys: the Survey of Scientific and Engineering Expenditures at Universities and Colleges (R&D Expenditures Survey) and the Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering (Graduate Student Survey).

Interagency transfers of funds Top

Totals for research and development (R&D) and R&D plant obligations between the Federal Support Survey and the Federal Funds Survey differ because the methods for reporting funds which are transferred to another agency (interagency transfers) before being distributed to institutions differ. In the Federal Support Survey the agency which distributes the funds directly to the institutions is responsible for reporting the obligations. Thus, agencies reporting in this survey would include funds received from other agencies but would exclude funds transferred to other agencies. For the Federal Funds Survey, however, the obligations are reported by the original source of funds, i.e., the agency that transfers the funds to the second agency.

National Science Foundation Act of 1950 Top

The National Science Foundation Act of 1950, section 3(a)(7), as amended in August 1968 directs NSF

"... to initiate and maintain a program for the determination of the total amount of money for scientific and engineering research, including money allocated for the construction of the facilities wherein such research is conducted, received by each educational institution and appropriate nonprofit organization in the United States, by grant, contract, or other arrangement from agencies of the Federal Government, and to report annually thereon to the President and the Congress.

Non-science and engineering (S&E) activities Top

Non-science and engineering (S&E) activities include all other obligations excluded from the foregoing categories of support but that represent direct funding (excluding loans) from a Federal agency to an academic institution for activities or purposes not specifically related to science and engineering. Included are all obligations for research, education, and facilities in the arts and humanities, as well as generalized projects for which the proportion utilized for S&E activities is unknown.

See also Academic science and engineering (S&E) obligations.

Obligations TOP

Obligations are the amounts for orders placed, contracts awarded, services received, and similar transactions during a given period, regardless of when the funds were appropriated and when future payment of money is required. Obligations differ from expenditures in that funds allocated by Federal agencies during one fiscal year may be spent by the recipient institution either partially or entirely during one or more subsequent years.

Other independent nonprofit institutions Top

Other independent nonprofit institutions include professional or technical societies, or academies of science and engineering, private foundations, science exhibitors, trade associations, and agricultural cooperatives

  • Professional or technical societies, or academies of science and engineering are voluntary associations of individuals sharing a common interest in the advancement of knowledge, either within a single field or across a broad spectrum of disciplines. The major function of these organizations is to aid and encourage the collection, collation, and dissemination of science and engineering (S&E) knowledge for the benefit of their members and the community as a whole.

  • Private foundations are nongovernmental, nonprofit organizations having principal funds of their own, managed by their own trustees or directors, and established to maintain or to aid social, educational, charitable, religious, or other activities serving the common welfare. Private foundations include operating foundations that allocate the greater proportion of their research and development (R&D) budgets to intramural performance and philanthropic foundations that allocate most of their funds to grants and contracts for research to be performed extramurally.

  • Science exhibitors are nonprofit organizations whose primary goal is to expand scientific literacy within the community by providing exhibits that display and interpret the latest scientific findings within its field or fields. Included in this category are museums, zoological parks, botanical gardens, and arboretums.

  • Trade associations are organizations of business competitors, in a specific industry or business, that are interested primarily in the commercial promotion of products or services. Membership is usually held in the name of a business entity. Activities may fall into one or more of the following areas: business ethics, management practices, standardization, commercial (i.e., statistical) research, publication, promotion, and public relations.

  • Agricultural cooperatives are organization of individuals or business entities that are normally competitors in the production and sale of agricultural products. Activities may include one or more of the following areas: collective marketing or purchasing, research, public relations, and the improvement of the economic condition of the farm population of the United States.

See also independent nonprofit institutions

Other science and engineering (S&E) activities Top

Other science and engineering (S&E) activities include all academic S&E activities that cannot be assigned to one of the preceding five categories, including obligations in support of technical conferences, teacher institutes, and activities aimed at increasing the scientific knowledge of precollege and undergraduate students.

See also Academic science and engineering (S&E) obligations.

Research and development (R&D) Top

Research and development (R&D) includes all research activities, both basic and applied, and all development activities that are supported at universities and colleges. Demonstration projects conducted to discover whether a technology or method is workable are considered to be within the scope of R&D if their objective is to produce new information within a specific time period.

"Research" is defined as systematic study directed toward fuller scientific knowledge or understanding of the subject studied. Research can be classified as basic or applied, although data reported here are not separated into these categories. In basic research the investigation is oriented toward gaining a better knowledge or understanding of the fundamental aspects of phenomena and of observable facts without specific applications toward processes or products in mind. In applied research the investigation is aimed at gaining the knowledge or understanding necessary for determining the means by which a recognized and specific need may be met.

"Development" is the systematic use of knowledge and understanding gained from research directed toward the production of useful materials, devices, systems, or methods, including design and development of prototypes and processes.

Research and development excludes topographic mapping and surveys, collection of general-purpose statistics, and activities concerned primarily with the dissemination of scientific information. Also excluded are routine product testing, quality control, and R&D facilities and fixed equipment.

"Research equipment" is included as part of R&D. It includes any item (or interrelated collection of items constituting a system) of nonexpendable tangible property or software having a useful life of more than 2 years and an acquisition cost of $500 or more that is used wholly or in part for research. R&D in the arts and humanities is excluded from this category but is included in "non-science and engineering activities."

See also Academic science and engineering (S&E) obligations.

Research and development (R&D) plant Top

Research and development (R&D) plant includes all costs--direct, indirect, and related--of all projects whose main objective is to provide support for the construction, acquisition, renovation, modification, repair, or rental of facilities, land, works, or equipment for use in scientific or engineering R&D. A facility is interpreted broadly to be any physical resource important to the conduct of R&D. Excluded are expendable research equipment and office furniture and equipment.

See also Academic science and engineering (S&E) obligations.

Research institutes TOP

Research institutesare separately incorporated, independent nonprofit organizations operating under the direction of their own controlling body. The primary function of these organizations is the performance of research and development (R&D) in the sciences and engineering.

See also independent nonprofit institutions.

Systems of universities and colleges Top

A system of universities is a group of institutions having a collective legal status and generally recognized by a State government, a board of education, or other relevant organization as a collective organization. Tables B-25 and B-26 of the Detailed Statistical Tables contain data on university systems.

Tuition support programs (Pell grants and Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants) TOP

Tuition support programs such as Pell grants and Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (SEOGs) are included in the totals reported in the Federal Funds Survey.

Universities and colleges TOP

Universities and colleges are those institutions of higher education in the United States that offer at least 1 year of college-level study leading toward a degree. A university or college comprises all parts of an academic institution, such as colleges of liberal arts, professional schools, hospitals, schools of agriculture, and agricultural experiment stations, including bureaus, offices, and research centers (excluding FFRDCs), whether located on or off the main campus, and branch campuses controlled directly by the parent institution. The universe of academic institutions that is the foundation of this survey is derived from the higher education institutions' portion of the Department of Education's Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), sponsored by the National Center for Education Statistics, and the Higher Education Directory, published by Higher Education Publications, Inc.

Institutions included are those that received Federal support during a given fiscal year and possessed a significant degree of academic and administrative autonomy. Institutions within a system (a group of institutions having a collective legal status and generally recognized by a State government, a board of education, or other relevant organization) in which a significant degree of autonomy remains at the individual institution level are presented separately; obligations to branch campuses are included in the totals for their parent institutions. The study excludes all obligations to the service academies and to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Graduate School.

Voluntary hospitals TOP

Voluntary hospitals are members of the American Hospital Association not subject to the control of either Federal, State, or local governments, nor an integral part of any institution of higher education. Hospitals that have been set up by research institutes and that, although providing patient care, function primarily as laboratories for the research institutes are included in the "Research institute" category.

See also independent nonprofit institutions.

[TOP] [START] [NSF_HOME] [HELP]