Amplify AAPI is a groundbreaking research panel developed by AARP and NORC to scientifically represent Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) communities in the United States. It is the largest and most comprehensive survey panel of its kind, designed to provide accurate insights into the diverse needs, opinions, and experiences of AANHPI populations.

Key features of Amplify AAPI include:

1. Multilingual approach: Interviews are conducted in English, Mandarin, Cantonese, Korean, and Vietnamese, covering 92% of the AANHPI population's language preferences.
2. Rigorous methodology: The panel uses random selection from NORC's National Frame and address-based sampling to ensure representativeness across all 50 states and DC.
3. Cultural sensitivity: Recruiting and survey designs are tailored to maximize engagement with AANHPI communities.
4. Subgroup analysis: The project aims to increase sample sizes of smaller AANHPI subgroups for more stable estimates.
5. Scientific excellence: The panel employs best-in-class research methods to provide trustworthy data for decision-makers.

The goal of Amplify AAPI is to address racial inequities and stereotypes by providing accurate, comprehensive data about AANHPI communities. This information will be valuable for researchers, policymakers, businesses, and marketers in making informed decisions and improving access to social services, consumer goods, and other important aspects of society for AANHPI populations.

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In 2007, with funding from the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE) in ACF, NORC and its partners Chapin Hall Center for Children, Child Trends, and a team of prominent ECE researchers launched the design phase of a national survey on childcare supply and demand. That design work led to the 2012 National Survey of Early Care and Education (NSECE). 

The 2012 NSECE was the most comprehensive and scientifically rigorous study of the availability and use of childcare in the U.S. Three contributions of the 2012 NSECE design are particularly notable: the first nationally representative estimates of staff in center-based ECE classrooms; the first nationally representative estimates of the full spectrum of home-based ECE, spanning from relatives providing unpaid care to licensed family day care programs with paid staff; and a nationally representative sampling design that allows exploration of households with their locally available ECE providers—that is, local measures of supply and demand in a national study.

In 2019, NORC repeated the cross-sectional design of the 2012 NSECE to shed light on how the ECE landscape had changed since the initial fielding. The COVID-19 pandemic struck the U.S. in March 2020, deeply impacting the ECE sector. At the government’s request, NORC designed and conducted the NSECE COVID-19 Longitudinal Follow-up from 2020 to 2022.

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View NSECE public use files

The Survey of Doctorate Recipients (SDR) is sponsored by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The SDR is a survey of science, engineering, and health doctorate recipients who earned their degrees from institutions within the United States. This study is the only comprehensive source of data on the careers of science, engineering, and health doctorate holders from U.S. institutions. It provides key data on the education and training, work experience, career development, and demographics of this important population. 

NORC will conduct the 2023 and 2025 SDR after having previously conducted the 1997 cycle and biennial SDR data collections from 2003-2017. The SDR uses a fixed panel design that is augmented with a sample of new doctoral graduates added each survey cycle. The study follows sample members through age 75.

The current SDR sample includes more than 125,000 doctorate holders in the U.S. and around the world. The geographic dispersion and the diversity of their career tracks makes successfully conducting the SDR an exciting and challenging endeavor. Using tailored outreach and high-quality searching and contacting tools, NORC consistently achieves high response rates, resulting in representative and reliable data delivered to NCSES/NSF and research stakeholders.

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View SDR data documentation and public use files

Since its inception in 1991, the Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey (MCBS) has served as an invaluable source of information for administering, monitoring, and evaluating the Medicare program. A leading source of information on Medicare and its impact on beneficiaries, the MCBS provides important information not otherwise collected through Medicare operational or administrative data. The survey plays an essential role in monitoring and evaluating beneficiaries' health status and health care policy. 

The MCBS collects comprehensive data on beneficiaries' health insurance coverage, health care utilization and costs, access to care, and satisfaction with care, as well as special interest topics, including drug coverage, knowledge about the Medicare program, and housing characteristics. Data from the MCBS are used to inform policy and program advancements in Medicare, including the creation of new benefits such as Medicare's Part D prescription drug benefit. 

The MCBS is a continuous, multi-purpose longitudinal survey representing Medicare beneficiaries ages 65 and over and beneficiaries ages 64 and below with certain disabling conditions, residing in the United States. 

It is sponsored by the Office of Enterprise Data and Analytics (OEDA) of CMS. The MCBS has been continuously conducted since 1991, completing more than 1.2 million interviews since its inception. NORC conducts the full range of MCBS survey activities, including sampling, data collection, processing, editing, imputation, and delivering files to CMS for final processing and dissemination.

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View MCBS data documentation

View MCBS public use files

With support from the Carnegie Corporation of New York, NORC conducted a contemporary follow-up survey to provide further evidence about the effects of the Bottom Line advising and mentoring program. This study was conducted in partnership with Bottom Line and researchers at the University of Virginia and Texas A&M University. 

For more than 20 years, Bottom Line has been helping students navigate college access and college success pathways. This study sought to better understand the program's effects on improving general life outcomes for youth by conducting a follow-up survey in 2019 of the 2015 high school graduation cohort who were originally included in the multi-cohort, randomized controlled trial (RCT) of the Bottom-Line college advising program. This cohort was, on average, 22 years old at the time of the 2019 follow-up survey. Those pursuing bachelor’s degrees were in their senior year of college or just graduated, but all were at the critical juncture of early adulthood as they embarked on careers, advanced their education, started families, and pursued their life course. 

The 2019 Follow-up to the College Application Process Survey (2019 CAPS) assessed health, psychosocial well-being, career goals, career preparation, financial literacy, attitudes toward educational attainment, and civic engagement of youth who did and did not receive Bottom Line program services. These measures intentionally went beyond traditionally studied educational outcomes. General life and social measures are critical for both Bottom Line and program investors to fully understand the program’s impact on improving the overall well-being and life outcomes of youth from low-income backgrounds as they become adults in our American society. Data collection for 2019 CAPS was conducted from April to July 2019. A methodology report and public use data file (PUF), along with a codebook and user's guide, are available for download.

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View Bottom Line data documentation

View Bottom Line public use files

The University of Chicago Consortium on School Research and NORC conducted a three-year project (October 2018-September 2021) that provided much-needed evidence on the college-to-career transition for young people (ages 18-24) in the seven-county Chicagoland area, particularly for students from low-income backgrounds. The project used administrative data from agencies in Illinois and survey data collected to learn more about these issues. Specifically, three aspects of the college-to-career transition were explored, especially investigating differences by race/ethnicity, gender, socioeconomic status, and first-generation students. The funders were a collection of Chicago foundations, Circle of Service, CME, Crown, Gorter, Chicago Community Trust, Kaplan, Steans, and Pritzker Traubert.

1. Degree Attainment - Using administrative data from community colleges and four-year institutions, we explored the path to attaining certificates and degrees. More specifically, we looked at how many students who enrolled in a bachelor's or an associate degree program in the Chicago area earned a degree, how long it took them, and the disciplines they earned degrees in.
2. Transitions for College to the Workforce - Using administrative data, the research team followed students as they left college for the workforce. We looked at the percentage of college graduates that were employed, the amount of time that elapsed between their degree completion and employment, the industries graduates were employed in, and their wages. Using survey data, we asked more about the quality of their employment. We also looked at how many hours per week they were employed, their employment benefits, and the extent to which employment aligned with majors or programs.
3. Job Search Experiences - Using survey data, the research team examined the resources students used to locate employment. Among the unemployed or underemployed, we looked at the types of jobs respondents were seeking and in what industries as well as the challenges they faced. 

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For data documentation: Email Lauren Seward at seward-lauren@norc.org to request the codebook.

The National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY), sponsored and funded by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) of the U.S. Department of Labor, is the youth-focused component of the National Longitudinal Survey (NLS) Program—a set of surveys used to gather information on the labor market experiences of American men and women. The NLSYs are conducted jointly by the Ohio State University Center for Human Resource Research (CHRR) and NORC.

The U.S. Department of Labor began the NLS in the mid-1960s with surveys of four separate groups: older men, mature women, young men, and young women. Research based on the data from these four cohorts serves as a basis for the accumulated knowledge on which social and economic policy is formulated. These surveys provide much of what we know about the return on investments in schooling, career progression, job turnover, hours of work, and wages of the U.S. labor force. Government agencies and academic institutions regularly use the data and findings of these longitudinal surveys in their recommendations to—and testimony before—Congress.

Data collected yearly from 1979 to 1994, and biennially from 1996 to the present, provide researchers an opportunity to study the experiences of a large group of adults who can be considered representative of American men and women born in the late 1950s and early 1960s and living in the United States in 1979. NORC’s high response rates with the original cohort is a credit to the professionalism and dogged determination of our field staff and the extensive efforts they make to contact respondents no matter where they are, using a variety of communication methods, and tailoring efforts to motivate respondents.

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View NLSY1979 data documentation

View NLSY1979 public use files

The National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY), sponsored and funded by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) of the U.S. Department of Labor, is the youth-focused component of the National Longitudinal Survey (NLS) Program—a set of surveys used to gather information on the labor market experiences of American men and women. The NLSYs are conducted jointly by NORC and the Ohio State University Center for Human Resource Research (CHRR). The U.S. Department of Labor began the National Longitudinal Survey Program (NLS) in the mid-1960s with surveys of four separate groups: older men, mature women, young men, and young women.

Research based on the data from these four cohorts serves as a basis for the accumulated knowledge on which social and economic policy is formulated. These surveys provide much of what we know about the return on investments in schooling, career progression, job turnover, hours of work, and wages of the U.S. labor force.

Government agencies and academic institutions regularly use the data and findings of these longitudinal surveys in their recommendations to—and testimony before—Congress.

In 1997, NORC screened more than 90,000 households before identifying a new cohort of 9,000 people born between 1980 and 1984 and conducting the NLSY97 survey. Since then, this group of young people has provided insight into generational changes in the labor market. The participants are now in their 30s and 40s.  A hallmark of the NLSY97 is NORC’s impressive retention rate—77.3 percent in the most recent survey—which ensures exemplary data quality. The NLSY97 includes a variety of publicly available supplemental data collections. Supplemental data include a parent survey and an administration of the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) during the first round in 1997; high school transcript data collected in 1996 and 2000; and college transcript data collected in 2012. In addition, two surveys of local high schools were conducted in areas where NLSY97 respondents reside.

These data are available under restricted use arrangements.

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View NLSY97 data documentation

View NLSY97 public use files

Since 1972, the General Social Survey (GSS) has been monitoring societal change and studying the growing complexity of American society. The GSS is NORC’s longest-running project and one of its most influential. The GSS gathers data on contemporary American society to:

1. Monitor and explain trends and constants in attitudes, behaviors, and attributes
2. Examine the structure and functioning of society in general as well as the roles played by relevant subgroups
3. Place American society in comparative perspective and develop cross-national models of human society
4. Make high-quality data easily accessible to scholars, students, policymakers, and others with minimal cost and waiting

GSS topics include national spending priorities, marijuana use, crime, intergroup relations, social and economic life, lifestyle, civil liberties, subjective well-being, and confidence in institutions. Since 1988, the GSS has also collected data on sexual behavior, including number of sex partners, frequency of intercourse, and extramarital relationships.

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View GSS data documentation

View GSS public use files

The National Immunization Surveys (NIS) are a group of telephone surveys sponsored and conducted by CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD). Administered by NORC since 2005, the NIS is one of the largest telephone surveys in the nation and its data are considered the gold standard for public health surveillance on immunization rates. The NIS produces high-quality estimates on the rate of immunization among children in the U.S., considered a critical contributor to the prevention of childhood diseases.

The NIS comprises five surveys. The original, NIS-Child, was followed by the NIS-Teen in 2006 and the NIS-Flu in 2009 to provide weekly estimates of flu vaccination rates for children. In 2021, the surveys were again expanded to include COVID-19 vaccinations for adults and children.  

NORC employs an extra step in the family of surveys to ensure the best quality data. First, we call households to identify children in the right age group and ask the parent or guardian for consent to contact their child’s vaccination provider.  Because parental report is difficult to obtain and less accurate than a report from the child's provider, we then send the Immunization History Questionnaire directly to the provider to obtain a lifetime history of vaccination. That first telephone survey serves all five parts of the NIS, as households are asked about vaccinations from childhood up through those for COVID-19. 

Throughout our tenure, we managed to ensure consistent data quality even as we navigated the transition from a traditional landline phone survey to a hybrid landline-cell phone model and finally to the current cell phone-only survey. We achieved this consistency through sophisticated statistical modeling and a massive effort. The NIS is the largest telephone survey in the nation; in 2023, NORC placed calls to 29 million phone numbers. 

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View NIS-Child data documentation and public use files

View NIS-Teen data documentation and public use files

The health of older adults is influenced by many factors. Among them, social support and personal relationships remain some of the least understood. The National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (NSHAP) is a longitudinal, population-based study of health and social factors, aiming to understand the well-being of older, community-dwelling Americans by examining the interactions among physical health and illness, medication use, cognitive function, emotional health, sensory function, health behaviors, social connectedness, sexuality, and relationship quality.

NSHAP provides policymakers, health providers, and individuals with useful information on and insights into these factors, particularly on social and intimate relationships. The study contributes to finding new ways to improve health as people age. 

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View Wave 2 data documentation and public use files

View Wave 3 data documentation and public use files

The Entrepreneurship in the Population (EPOP) Survey is a resource designed to provide a comprehensive view of entrepreneurial activities across the United States. Funded by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, this multi-year study goes beyond examining only current business owners to include former business owners, potential entrepreneurs, and those considering self-employment.

The EPOP Survey addresses a gap in existing entrepreneurship research by offering a broader perspective on business formation and growth. This expanded scope is crucial for policymakers and support organizations to develop more effective strategies for fostering entrepreneurship.

Data from the 2022 and 2023 EPOP surveys are now publicly available through an interactive dashboard, public use data files, and microdata files. These resources enable reliable analysis at national, regional, state, and key metropolitan statistical area levels. By making this information widely accessible, the EPOP Survey aims to provide valuable insights for researchers, practitioners, and policymakers on the factors that support or hinder entrepreneurship across the country.

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View EPOP data documentation and public use files

NORC conducted comprehensive surveys in 2022 and 2023 to address the critical need for better math support among youth and teens, particularly those from Black, Latinx, and low-income communities. These surveys aimed to understand student perspectives on math, recognizing that math proficiency is a key factor in upward mobility in the United States.

The 2022 survey focused on teens ages 13-17, using NORC's AmeriSpeak® Teen Panel to ensure a nationally representative sample. It included oversampling of Black and Latinx teens and those from states of interest to the funder, the Gates Foundation. Additionally, a subsample of parents was surveyed to explore how parental beliefs might influence their children's math attitudes.

In 2023, NORC expanded the study to include youth ages 10-12, maintaining the focus on representative sampling and oversampling of Black and Latinx youth. Both surveys targeted specific states (California, Florida, New York, Texas, and Washington in 2022; California, Florida, New York, and Texas in 2023) to provide more detailed insights.

These surveys aim to provide decision-makers with crucial data on students' math mindsets, self-efficacy, and sense of belonging in math education. This information is vital for developing strategies to improve math proficiency and support for all students, particularly those from underrepresented communities.

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For data documentation: Email Diana Serrano at serrano-diana@norc.org for project documentation, including the codebook.