An official website of the United States government

The .gov means it's official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you're on a federal government site.

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Bureau of Labor Statistics > National Longitudinal Surveys > Data > Accessing Data

Accessing NLS Data

NLS Data is Provided in Three Access Tiers

Tier 1: National Longitudinal Survey Public-Use Data

Tier 2: National Longitudinal Survey 79 State, County, and MSA Geocode (Restricted NLSY79); National Longitudinal Survey 79 Young Adult State, County, and MSA Geocode (Restricted NLSY79 YA); National Longitudinal Survey 97 State, County, and MSA Geocode (Restricted NLSY97)

Tier 3: National Longitudinal Survey 79 Census tract and zip code (Highly Restricted NLSY79); National Longitudinal Survey 97 Census tract and zip code (Highly Restricted NLSY97); National Longitudinal Survey 97 School Surveys (Highly Restricted NLSY97 School Surveys)

National Longitudinal Survey Public-Use Data

NLS public-use data for each cohort are available at no cost via Investigator, an online search and extraction site that enables you to review NLS variables and create your own data sets. It is not necessary to get an account to browse data, but an account is necessary to save datasets online.

The Investigator User's Guide describes how to use this website.

An available tutorial also teaches how to search for variables in the Investigator.

For users who have the capacity to utilize extremely large data files and the programs to handle them, downloads are available for NLSY79, NLSY79 Child and Young Adult, and NLSY97.

National Longitudinal Survey 79 State, County, and MSA Geocode (Restricted NLSY79); National Longitudinal Survey 79 Young Adult State, County, and MSA Geocode (Restricted NLSY79 YA); National Longitudinal Survey 97 State, County, and MSA Geocode (Restricted NLSY97)

Restricted NLSY79, Restricted NLSY79 YA, and Restricted NLSY97 data include the respondent's state, county and MSA of residence and codes identifying colleges attended. These restricted data are a small subset of the NLS dataset and when provided to the researcher, the included respondent ID variable facilitates linking to the public-use data. More detail about the variables on the restricted data files is available in the NLSY79 Geocode Codebook Supplement and the NLSY97 Geocode Codebook Supplement.

To protect the confidentiality of respondents, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) only grants access to restricted files to researchers in the United States who agree in writing to adhere to BLS confidentiality policy and whose projects further the mission of BLS and the NLS program to conduct sound, legitimate research in the social sciences. [Applications from abroad cannot be accepted.] Applicants must provide a clear statement of their research methodology and objectives and explain how the restricted data are necessary to meet those objectives. Researchers who are granted access to restricted data may use them from approved locations on the physical premises of their institution.

Applicants for Restricted NLSY79, Restricted NLSY79 YA, and Restricted NLSY97 data must first complete the Standard Application Process (SAP) through the online portal at ResearchDataGov (RDG). RDG is a portal for requesting access to restricted microdata from federal statistical agencies.

After your standard application has been approved by BLS, you will complete a BLS specific form (the BLS VDE Confidential Data Access Information Form) detailing the signing official information for your institution, your software requirements, and other specifics of you proposed security set-up. This form is sent to you only after your standard application has been approved by BLS.

National Longitudinal Survey 79 Census tract and zip code (Highly Restricted NLSY79); National Longitudinal Survey 97 Census tract and zip code (Highly Restricted NLSY97)

For researchers who want to measure smaller geographic areas, the NLSY79 and NLSY97 surveys have highly restricted Census tract and zip code files. These files include all restricted state, county and MSA data. There are no Census tract and zip code files available for the NLSY79 Young Adult cohort, but researchers may request the restricted state, county and MSA NLSY79 YA data.

These confidential files are available for use only at Federal Statistical Research Data Centers (FSRDCs) on statistical research projects approved by BLS. Access to data is subject to the availability of space and resources. Information about applying to use the Census tract and zip code data is available on the BLS Restricted Data Access page.

National Longitudinal Survey 97 School Surveys (Highly Restricted NLSY97 School Surveys)

The 1996 NLSY97 School Survey contains all public and private schools with a 12th grade in the 147 nationally representative primary sampling units (PSUs) used for the NLSY97 sample construction. School characteristics were specifically targeted to gain information on school-to-work programs. The 2000 NLSY97 School Survey is a sample of all schools in the original 1996 NLSY97 school survey. In addition, vocational education schools in the PSUs are included in the sample. Where NLSY97 respondents have moved to secondary schools with a 12th grade outside the 147 PSUs, those schools also are included. The School & Transcript Survey section of the NLSY97 Topical Guide provides details about sample sizes and the types of information available.

Like the highly restricted Census tract and zip code data, the school survey files are available for use only at Federal Statistical Research Data Centers (FSRDCs) on statistical research projects approved by BLS. Access to data is subject to the availability of space and resources. Information about applying to use the school survey data is available on the BLS Restricted Data Access page.

NLSW and NLSM Geographic Variables

Data for the NLS original cohorts were collected by the Census Bureau. The public-use files for the original cohorts include variables indicating South/non-South residence. Other geographic variables were collected but are no longer available.

Access to the original cohorts public use files are available through Investigator.

Last Modified Date: March 24, 2025