Internationalization%20of%20U.S.%20Doctorate%20Education

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Internationalization of U.S. Doctorate Education

• John Bound
• University of Michigan and NBER
• Sarah Turner
• University of Virginia and NBER
• Patrick Walsh
• University of Michigan

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Research Question

• What explains the rise in the representation of
  foreign students among PhD recipients from U.S.
  universities?
• What determines the level and change in the
  distribution across countries in the number of
  U.S. doctorate recipients?
• What effect does the rise have on the U.S. and on
  foreign economies?

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Empirical Starting PointsOverall
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Physical Sciences
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Life Sciences
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Engineering
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Economics
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Trends in funding for university science
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Theoretical Motivation(Borrowing from Roy Model)
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Predictions from Theory

• Cross section
• Who comes? Those with limited higher education
  systems will be relatively likely to pursue
  graduate study at a U.S. university
• Where do they go? Those with options relatively
  close to those in the U.S. will be among those
  with admission offers from some of the best
  programs in the U.S.
• Over time
• Demand shocks. Changes in home country BA
  production yield increases in doctorate
  attainment from U.S. universities.
• Supply shocks. Funding shocks to the U.S.
  graduate education market will yield relatively
  larger changes in PhDs awarded to those from
  countries where demand is relatively elastic.
• Networks matter.

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EvidenceCross-Sectional BA and PhD Degrees
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Representation of Doctorate Recipients at Top-5
Programs(Physics)
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Representation of Doctorate Recipients at Top-5
Programs(Economics)
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1980, Science Engineering PhDs
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1996, Science Engineering PhDs
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Country-Specific Trends (Physical Sciences)
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Country-Specific Trends by Program
Quality(Physics)
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Growth in undergraduate degree attainment
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Changes in BA Degrees and PhD Degrees Conferred
from U.S. Institutions
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The China Case
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Understanding degree attainment among U.S.
students
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Share of Growth in US PhDs by Source Country
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Physics by program rank and year of graduate
school entry
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Average Annual IncreaseReal Earnings
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Conclusion

• In the cross-section, representation and sorting
  by program quality varies with home country
  options selection is greater when options are
  close to those in the U.S.
• Demand side changes generated by dramatic
  growth in undergraduate degree attainment in
  countries like China and South Korea and
  political developments in China and Eastern
  Europe can explain much but not all -- of the
  rise in PhDs awarded to foreign students by U.S.
  institutions.
• Labor market and returns to science have not
  provided strong incentives for U.S. students to
  enter science and engineering.

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Further Thoughts

• Simple economic factors can explain increased
  internationalization of doctoral education and
  the Science and Engineering workforce. If there
  are significant agglomeration effects, increased
  internationalization will increase TFP.
• Is the increased presence of foreigners in U.S.
  PhD programs and in the U.S. scientific workforce
  a good thing for the U.S.? The simple answer has
  to be yes. More research at lower prices.
• What about sending countries? While there is a
  discussion of brain drain in various foreign
  countries, there is some circulation of
  scientists back to their countries of origin.
  Indeed, some countries have policies that
  explicitly capitalize on this (e.g. Israel).
  Also, the presence of the U.S. market provides
  incentives for foreign students and for foreign
  systems of higher education.
• Are there losers? Yes. (1) U.S. students who
  might want to become scientists. (2) Possibly
  U.S. undergraduates with foreign TAs, in the
  absence of monitoring of communication skills.

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Incentives from the labor market