First-time doctoral enrollment in history, English, and other arts-and-humanities disciplines fell 0.5 percent from 2013 to 2014, according to a report published on Thursday by the Council of Graduate Schools and based on a survey of 636 universities. The small decline caps a steady downward trend in enrollment from 2009 to 2014, when it fell an average of 1 percent a year.

In contrast, doctoral enrollment for all fields increased an average annual rate of 1.2 percent during that time period, and grew almost 2.0 percent from 2013 to 2014. Over all, enrollment for both doctoral and master’s programs grew a combined 3.5 percent from 2013 to 2014, the highest rate of increase since 2009.