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Government & International Data

Use this guide to help you find reliable sources for data and statistics.

United States Data

This page contains a selection of resources related to national data.  You'll find that much of this data is produced by government agencies or organizations.  Browse the resources below to see what may be a good fit for your research.

Government Data

The Library of Congress is a great source for governmental statistics and data. Please use this link for information on a variety of governmental databases and statistics. Thanks to LOC for this invaluable information.

Social Science Data

Data.gov

The Home of the U.S. Government's Open Data. Here you will find data, tools, and resources to conduct research, develop web and mobile applications, design data visualizations, and more.

World Data Atlas

World and national data, maps & rankings. Explore critical economic, social and demographic indicators for all countries and regions selected from 200+ public datasets.

Pew Research Center

Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world. We conduct public opinion polling, demographic research, content analysis and other data-driven social science research.

Figshare

Figshare is a repository where users can make all of their research outputs available in a citable, shareable and discoverable manner.

ICPSR

ICPSR maintains a data archive of more than 250,000 files of research in the social and behavioral sciences. It hosts 21 specialized collections of data in education, aging, criminal justice, substance abuse, terrorism, and other fields.

Healthdata.gov

You can find data on a wide range of topics, including environmental health, medical devices, Medicare & Medicaid, social services, community health, mental health, and substance abuse.

The data is collected and supplied from agencies from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as well as state partners. This includes the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Food and Drug Administration, and the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality, among others. 

Recommended Databases

Agricultural & Environmental Science Collection

Articles plus searchable charts, figures, graphs, maps, photographs and tables representing all major environment topics.

CQ Researcher

Reports on issues shaping our world, with in-depth coverage of political and social issues, such as health, education, the environment, technology, and the U.S. economy.

DigitalNC

Explore the history and culture of North Carolina through original materials from cultural heritage repositories across the state.

HeinOnline

HeinOnline is the world's largest fully searchable, image-based government document and legal research database. It contains comprehensive coverage from inception of both U.S. statutory materials, U.S. Congressional Documents and more than 2,500 scholarly journals, all of the world's constitutions, all U.S. treaties, collections of classic treatises and presidential documents, and access to the full text of state and federal case law powered by Fastcase. This Government, Politics & Law HeinOnline’s database package includes, among other things, special collections on Criminal Justice, History, Foreign Relations, Religion and the Law and Women and the Law.

Military Database

Articles from topics across all government and military branches, including international relations, political science, criminology, defense, aeronautics and space flight, communications, civil engineering, and more.

NCPedia

Information about the state, its history, people, government, and educational institutions.

Nexis Uni

Explore more than 17,000 news, business, and legal sources in this academic research database. Nexis Uni contains company and industry information for business research as well as codes, court cases and other legal information for legal research. Nexis Uni also provides access to an array of newspapers and full text journal articles for legal and business research.

Political Science Database

Political science and international relations journals, dissertations and working papers on topics such as comparative politics, political economy, international development, and environmental policy.

SIRS Issues Researcher

Research the pros and cons of current issues and enduring social issues through full-text articles, multimedia, primary sources, government documents and reference materials.

Statista

Access to 1 million statistics ready for use in PPT, XLS and PNG, comprehensive reports on over 3,000 industry topics and revenue forecasts from 2015 to 2020 on over 400 industries.

Statistical Abstract of the United States

An authoritative and comprehensive summary of statistics on the social, political, and economic conditions of the United States.