Research Guides: ECON-498: Senior Departmental Honors Seminar: Find Data and Statistics

Census Data

Under the authority of Title 13 and Title 26 of the U.S. Code, the United States Census Bureau provides current facts and figures about America’s people, places, and economy.

IPUMS Census Microdata
IPUMS USA collects, preserves and harmonizes U.S. census microdata and provides easy access to this data with enhanced documentation. Data includes decennial censuses from 1790 to 2010 and American Community Surveys (ACS) from 2000 to the present.

Social Explorer (1790 to present) This link opens in a new window
Access to data from the U.S. Census, American Community Survey, religious congregations, and other sources, with options to create thematic and interactive maps and reports.

United States Census Bureau
Data.census.gov is the new platform to access demographic and economic data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

ICPSR Datasets

The Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research "maintains a data archive of more than 250,000 files of research in the social and behavioral sciences. It hosts 21 specialized collections of data in education, aging, criminal justice, substance abuse, terrorism, and other fields". The ICPSR is a part of the University of Michigan's Institute for Social Research.

Format for citing ICPSR datasets: https://www.icpsr.umich.edu/web/pages/datamanagement/citations.html

ICPSR: Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research This link opens in a new window
World's largest archive of computerized social science data, with abstracts and data.

IPUMS Datasets

IPUMS is a collection of databases produced and managed by the University of Minnesota's Minnesota Population Center. The databases provides microdata samples from the U.S. federal censuses primarily, but also include data from several international, health, and education surveys.

Format for citing IPUMS data: https://usa.ipums.org/usa/cite.shtml

Current Population Survey Data
IPUMS CPS harmonizes microdata from the monthly U.S. labor force survey, the Current Population Survey (CPS), covering the period 1962 to the present. Data include demographic information, rich employment data, program participation and supplemental data on topics such as fertility, tobacco use, volunteer activities, voter registration, computer and internet use, food security, and more.
Environmental Data (IPUMS Terra)
IPUMS Terra integrates population and environmental data across disciplinary scientific domains, enabling research into dramatic transformations of human populations, the environment, and their interactions.
Global Health
IPUMS Global Health provides integrated international health survey data at no cost for research and educational purposes from two data series: the Demographic Health Surveys (DHS) and Performance Monitoring for Action (PMA).
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Integrated Demographic and Health Surveys from The DHS Program, currently covering Africa and South Asian surveys from the 1980s to the present. Integrated PMA surveys on fertility, contraception, hygiene, and health, administered frequently to monitor trends in select high-fertility countries.
Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS)
MEPS is a set of large-scale surveys of families and individuals, their medical providers, and employers across the United States. MEPS is the most complete source of data on the cost and use of health care and health insurance coverage.
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https://www.meps.ahrq.gov/mepsweb/
National Health Interview Series (NHIS)
The National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) has monitored the health of the nation since 1957. NHIS data on a broad range of health topics are collected through personal household interviews. Survey results have been instrumental in providing data to track health status, health care access, and progress toward achieving national health objectives.
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https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nhis/index.htm
Time Use Survey Datasets
These projects provide free individual-level time use data for research purposes. The data extract systems make it easy to create data sets containing time use and other variables a user needs. Data is from the American Times Use Survey.

International Data and Statistics

China Data Online This link opens in a new window
Includes monthly and yearly reports on national, regional, and local macroeconomics, as well as statistical yearbooks and census data.
IMF Statistical Databases This link opens in a new window
Includes International Financial Statistics with history to 1948, Direction of Trade with history to 1980, Balance of Payments with history to 1960 and Government Finance Statistics with history to 1990.
OECD This link opens in a new window
Digital collection of journals, working papers, e-books, and data sets produced by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development; accessible resources include the OECD Journal, Main Economic Indicators (1999-), OECD Economic Outlook (1967-), and OECD Economic Surveys (1961-).
WDI Online (1960 to present) This link opens in a new window
World Development Indicators providing international social and economic statistics from the World Bank.

National Center for Education Statistics

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) collects, analyzes and makes available data related to education in the U.S. and other nations.

Baccalaureate and Beyond
A series of longitudinal studies examining the work experiences of samples of U.S.-educated college graduates.
Common Core of Data (CCD)
CCD is a comprehensive, annual, national statistical database of information concerning all approximately 100,000 public elementary and secondary schools and approximately 18,000 public school districts (including supervisory unions and regional education service agencies), which contains data that are designed to be comparable across all states. The CCD consists of five surveys completed annually by state education departments from their administrative records. Information included are: a general description of schools and school districts, including name, address, and phone number; data on students and staff, including demographics; and fiscal data, including revenues and current expenditures.
DataLab
Online table and regression maker tools featuring 30+ federal education datasets.
Fast Facts
The primary purpose of the Fast Facts website is to provide users with concise information on a range of educational issues, from early childhood to adult learning. Fast Facts draw from various published sources and are updated as new data become available. Additional references on each of these topics are highlighted within each fact.
Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS)
IPEDS, established as the core postsecondary education data collection program for NCES, is a system of surveys designed to collect data from all primary providers of postsecondary education. IPEDS is a single, comprehensive system designed to encompass all institutions and educational organizations whose primary purpose is to provide postsecondary education. The IPEDS system is built around a series of interrelated surveys to collect institution-level data in such areas as enrollments, program completions, faculty, staff, finances, and academic libraries.
National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS)
The NPSAS is a comprehensive study that examines how students and their families pay for postsecondary education.

US Economic Data and Statistics

Bureau of Economic Analysis
The official site of the Department of Commerce's BEA contains downloadable national GDP, income and industry data.
FRED Economic Data
Time series series data collected by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.

Historical Statistics of the United States This link opens in a new window
Standard source for quantitative information about the U.S., updated and with 37,000 data series.
Statistical Abstract of the United States (ProQuest) This link opens in a new window
Statistical tables and charts covering various aspects of social, political and economic conditions of the United States.

Multi-Subject Data Sources

Sage Data This link opens in a new window
A source for datasets from 13.5 billion U.S. and 90 international sources. Find data about economics, education, health, politics and more. Sage Stats and US Political Stats are now part of Sage Data.
Statista This link opens in a new window
Statistics and studies on over 600 industries.