The contribution of HBCUs as “colleges of origin,” i.e., where Black doctorates earned their bachelors’ degrees, remains of
interest, given the historical role of HBCUs and the current desire to increase the percentage of doctorates awarded to African
Americans in all fields. Using national survey data from multiple sources, we estimated which college characteristics predicted
later doctoral degree attainment in all fields. We took into account the large number of Black graduates from HBCUs, which
make them likely to be colleges of origin, and controlled for standardized test scores, Carnegie classification, and student/faculty
ratio. HBCUs were associated with doctorate production more than twice the expected level based on their other average characteristics.
In addition, colleges with low student/faculty ratios, higher SAT scores, and historical Carnegie classifications of research
universities and selective liberal arts colleges were also associated with a higher percentage of Black graduates later earning
doctoral degrees.