Skip to main content
National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 (NLSY79)

Index to the NLSY79 Cohort

The NLSY79 Cohort is a longitudinal project that follows the lives of a sample of American youth born between 1957-64. The cohort originally included 12,686 respondents ages 14-22 when first interviewed in 1979; after two subsamples were dropped, 9,964 respondents remain in the eligible samples. Data are now available from Round 1 (1979 survey year) to Round 29 (2020 survey year).

  • Topical Guide to the Data

    Topic-by-topic descriptions of the NLS Youth 1979 data, a crosswalk between the NLS Investigator’s Areas of Interest, and a glossary of terms.

  • Asterisk Tables

    Table of NLS Youth 1979 topics across all survey rounds often referred to as the "Asterisk Table."

  • Introduction to the Sample

    Description of the sample, the sample design and screening process, interview methods, retention and reason for non-interview, and confidentiality.

  • Other Documentation

    Tutorials, NLS Youth 1979 Codebook Supplement, Geocode Supplement, Technical Sampling Report, List of Errata, and questionnaires for all rounds.

  • Using and Understanding the Data

    Information on survey instruments, variables types, the interviewing process, item nonresponse, sample weights and design effects, data documentation, and how to access the data.

  • Get Data

    The NLS Investigator provides access to all public NLS data, including NLS Youth 1979 data.