More than 10,000 doctoral-trained experts in science, technology, engineering, math, and health fields left federal jobs last year, according to employment data released by the White House Office of Personnel Management. While those exits accounted for just 3 percent of all federal departures, they represented 14 percent of the government’s STEM Ph.D. workforce at the end of 2024, as President Joe Biden prepared to leave office and President Donald Trump returned to power. At 14 research-heavy agencies analyzed by Science, departures outpaced new hires by an 11-to-one ratio, producing a net loss of 4,224 STEM Ph.D.s. Every agency reviewed lost far more of these specialists in 2025 than in 2024. The National Institutes of Health alone saw more than 1,100 departures, up from 421 the year before. Losses were most acute at the National Science Foundation, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Energy, and the U.S. Forest Service. At the National Science Foundation, a net reduction of 205 STEM Ph.D.s amounted to 40 percent of its pre-Trump doctoral workforce. Hiring of STEM Ph.D.s fell sharply at every agency. Reductions in force accounted for relatively few exits. Most departures came through retirements or resignations, including academics whose temporary research posts were eliminated.
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