Key Points From Mellon Report On Faculty Hiring

*Between 1977 and 1987, the percentage of professors under the age of 40 in the arts and sciences dropped from 42 percent to 22 percent.

*From 1971 to 1985, the percentage of doctorates conferred in the arts and sciences, as opposed to business and engineering, fell from 40 percent to 25 percent.

*For at least a decade after 1997 there will probably be only seven candidates for each 10 faculty openings in the humanities and social sciences.

*There will be no "bunching" in faculty retirements at any point during the coming decades. Instead, departures will increase at a steady rate.

*Even if the faculty retirement rate were cut in half--due to professors staying on past the customary departure age--demand for new faculty members to replace those leaving would only drop 2 percent.