Graduate school enrollment numbers are on the decline, due in part to fewer domestic students pursuing doctorate degrees.

Eva Pell, vice president for research and dean of the graduate school, said the decrease at Penn State reflects a national trend.

Although the number of doctorate recipients from under-represented groups has been increasing over the past decade, the number of white students has been on a steady decline, both nationally and at Penn State, she said.

According to data conducted by the University of Chicago's National Opinion Research Center, the number of white U.S. citizens who received doctorate degrees decreased about 10 percent over the past decade.

Graduate Student Association (GSA) President Abid Kazi said graduate school opens the door for better possibilities, especially because of the lack of jobs available in the nation.

"Statistically the job market is so bad you would want to stay in academia," he said.

However, Kazi said many students are choosing to bypass graduate school because of the high tuition costs.

"It's a big cost factor," he said. "You're already living on a stingy budget in college, and people want to go out and get a job right away."

At last week's University Faculty Senate meeting, Pell said undergraduate students do not receive enough encouragement to pursue graduate and doctorate degrees. "We are not inspiring them to [find] other options in higher education," she said at the meeting. "We're not taking the time to say what you might do with this."

Pell said the university should introduce students to the broad range of opportunities opened up by graduate education in various fields and expose students to research and scholarships by different academic approaches inside and outside the classroom.

Kazi said some graduate programs are trying to reverse the trend by offering cost-cut incentives for students. For example, an $8,000 student scholarship is offered to the first 40 students who enroll in the chemistry program.

Obi Ezekoye (graduate-engineering science and mechanics) said he worked for an electrical company for one year before deciding to enroll in graduate school at Penn State.

Ezekoye said a graduate degree in engineering does not necessarily equal a higher salary, but will probably allow him to obtain a more specialized kind of job. "It leaves more room for advancement," he said.

Students often base their decision whether to attend graduate school on the state of the job market in their specific field.

Nick Shemonksy (senior-management information systems) said he is thinking about attending graduate school because it may grant him better job opportunities.

"The job market is not that great," he said. "The job market [for MIS] is overseas."

Brianne Conti (junior-health policy administration) said she might pursue the undergraduate/graduate program in her field.

However, some students said they are not considering that option. Stephanie Leahy (senior-chemical engineering) said once she graduates, she would not pursue an advanced degree.

"I'm done with chemical engineering," she said.