Student mobility

The recognition of diaspora contributions towards their home country through remittances, investments and networks has facilitated a shift in attitude and thinking regarding migration, from brain drain to “brain bank”, “brain gain”, “brain trust” and “brain circulation”. This shift in thinking is also evident in India in recognition of the manifold contributions being made by the Indian diaspora to the home country. This paper examines the historical and socio-economic characteristics of one important Indian diaspora community, the Punjabis in the UK and discusses the latter’s contributions to India and to its home state of Punjab.

India is a major source of migrants, especially of highly-skilled and well-trained workers. This paper attempts to show that even with a high number of Indian talents abroad, India – as well as destination countries – takes advantage of the resources generated by this population. Traditionally the flows of Indian professionals have been directed towards the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and other similar destinations. Recently, however, Western European countries are being selected as migration options. In this paper, the growing diversification of receiving countries is explained as a consequence of European immigration policies focusing on highly-skilled migrants, demographic trends which raise several questions related to labour shortages and, finally, the effects of the global economic crisis on mobility. The migration of highly-skilled Indians is analyzed and put in the context of globalization and the intensification of the knowledge-based economy. The paper shows that what has happened in India might stand as a win-win scenario with wider application where a brain drain may be converted into a brain gain.

Löhne werden nicht nur von den individuellen Eigenschaften von Arbeitnehmern und Arbeitgebern bestimmt, auch lokale Gegebenheiten spielen eine Rolle. Dabei ist insbesondere der regionale Anteil an hochqualifizierten Arbeitskräften von Bedeutung. Hochqualifizierte tragen zur technischen Weiterentwicklung bei und regen den Wissensaustausch an. Dadurch steigern sie nicht nur ihre eigene Produktivität, sondern auch die anderer Beschäftigter in ihrem Umfeld. Eine gesteigerte Produktivität hat wiederum höhere Löhne zur Folge. Innerhalb des Forschungsprojekts wird daher untersucht, wie sich der regionale Zuzug (Brain-Gain) und Fortzug (Brain-Drain) Hochqualifizierter auf die Löhne ansässiger Arbeiternehmerinnen und Arbeitnehmer auswirkt. Ob ein regionaler Brain-Drain durch einen gleich großen Brain-Gain ausgeglichen werden kann, hängt von unterschiedlichen Effekten ab: Einerseits bereichern Hochqualifizierte, die als Wissensträger neu in eine Region kommen, den lokalen Wissenspool in besonderem Maße, was für einen relativ höheren Effekt von Brain-Gain im Vergleich zu Brain-Drain spricht. Andererseits basiert der Wissensaustausch stark auf sozialen Netzwerken. Geht man davon aus, dass Wegziehende verhältnismäßig große Netzwerke verlassen und Zuziehende zu Beginn verhältnismäßig kleine Netzwerke vorfinden, könnten wiederum die Effekte durch Brain-Drain überwiegen. Im Zuge des Forschungsprojekts werden die genauen Effekte anhand von regionalen Mikrodaten mit ökonometrischen Verfahren bestimmt. Projektziel Das Forschungsprojekt untersucht Effekte auf Löhne, welche durch den Zuzug (Brain-Gain) und den Fortzug (Brain-Drain) von hochqualifizierten Arbeitern hervorgerufen werden.

This paper studies the potential impact of Egyptian highly-skilled migrants (HSMs) residing in the OECD countries on the development of Egypt, their country of origin. The paper discussed the following questions: a) is Egyptian highly-skilled migration to OECD countries a case of brain drain? b) Could it generate brain gain? c) What is the overall potential impact of Egyptian HSMs on the development of their homeland?

The recognition of diaspora contributions towards their home country through remittances, investments and networks has facilitated a shift in attitude and thinking regarding migration, from brain drain to “brain bank”, “brain gain”, “brain trust” and “brain circulation”. This shift in thinking is also evident in India in recognition of the manifold contributions being made by the Indian diaspora to the home country. This paper examines the historical and socio-economic characteristics of one important Indian diaspora community, the Punjabis in the UK and discusses the latter’s contributions to India and to its home state of Punjab. The evidence reveals that the NRI Punjabi diaspora in the UK is quite old, dating back to the colonial period. It is a heterogeneous community, divided by castes and sub-castes which influence the institutions through which its subgroups engage with the homeland. The secondary and primary evidence collected for this study indicate a wide variety of contributions economic, social, philanthropic, cultural and political. Some of the main sectors of contribution are health, education and rural infrastructure. However, the evidence also reveals that there is much greater potential for diaspora engagement and that large scale investments by the diaspora are deterred by corruption, an inefficient bureaucracy, lack of streamlined procedures and lack of supportive diaspora policies at the state and central levels. The study thus concludes that greater thrust is needed, especially at the state level to facilitate the Punjabi diaspora’s engagement with India and with its home regions and state.

"Bei dem Projekt handelt es sich um ein internationals Kooperationsprojekt mit 15 Partnern das im Rahmen der Marie Curie Actions Research and Training Activities von der Europäischen Kommission finanziert wird. Die Projektlaufzeit beträgt ab dem 1. Januar 2007 4 Jahre. Das Projekt setzt sich aus Forschungs- und Trainingsaktivitäten zusammen. I. Forschungsaktivitäten Das IAB beteiligt sich an zwei Aufgaben im Projekt: Remittances, the skill composition of migration, and social networks und Migrants integration, regional mobility, social and business networks, and trade. Im ersten Teilprojekt untersucht das IAB gemeinsam mit den Partnern von IRES die Folgen der Migration für Humankapitalinvestitionen und ihre Implikationen für die Qualifikationsstruktur der Migranten. Dafür wird ein Paneldatensatz mit Makrodaten herangezogen der von dem IAB gemeinsam mit dem IRES-Team aufgebaut wurde bzw. aufgebaut wird. Das IAB wird darüber hinaus Mikodatensätze wie die IAB-Beschäftigtenstichprobe den Partnern im Projekt zur Verfügung stellen bzw. bei der Arbeit mit den Partnern beraten. Im zweiten Teilprojekt wird das IAB die Effekte der regionalen Verteilung der Migranten über die Länder untersuchen: Die Determinanten und Ursachen der regionalen Konzentration von Migranten in prosperienden urbanen Regionen, die Substitution der regionalen Migration von Inländern durch internationale Migranten, die Lohneffekte der internationalen Migration in verschiedenen Regionen bei zentralen Tarifverhandlungen. Das IAB wird in diesem Teilprojekt mit dem CEPR-Team und der Universität Turin kooperieren. II. Trainingsaktivitäten Im Rahmen des Projektes wird jedes Jahr eine Summer-School für die Junior-Forscher in dem Exzellenznetzwerk sowie externe Teilnehmer durchgeführt. Die Organisation wird von den italienischen Partnern im Projekt übernommen, das IAB wird sich durch Vorträge und Lehrangebote an dem Programm beteiligen. Ferner wird jährlich ein internationaler Workshop durchgeführt, das IAB ist an der Vorbereitung beteiligt. Schließlich wird das IAB einen oder mehrere Junior-Wissenschaftler aus anderen EU-Staaten einstellen, die on-the-job qualifiziert werden. Projektmethode Das empirische Forschungsprogramm stützt sich überwiegend auf Panelregressionen mit Makrodaten. Makrodaten zur Migration, Qualifikationsstruktur der Migranten sowie Löhne und Beschäftigung nach Ländern und Regionen in der EU. Projektziel Die Analyse des Einflusses der Migration auf Humankapitalinvestitionen, Arbeitsmärkte und die Integration der Migranten."

European policies on higher education have progressively encouraged inward student mobility and in recent years, a number of European countries have become popular destinations for foreign students. However, with the emergence of new host countries, the competition for international students has intensified. A key variable that determines the competitiveness of a host country is the legislation governing international students. This paper provides a comparison of the current legislation governing the entry and stay conditions of international students in 5 European countries – the UK, Germany, France, Sweden and Netherlands. The paper also provides a comparative analysis across stages of legislation to assess the post-study employment conditions for international students. As the objective is to assess the implications of the legal regimes for student flows from India (to selected European countries), the paper also draws a comparison between the former and the current legislation governing international students in the United States, Australia and other emerging host nations. The paper concludes with a summary of findings and policy recommendations to improve the competitiveness of European countries as destinations for higher education.

This paper synthesizes and extends recent research on “The New Economics of the Brain Drain.” In a unified framework, the paper shows that while recently identified adverse repercussions of the brain drain exacerbate the long-recognized negative impact of the brain drain, longer-term consequences turn the brain drain into the harbinger of powerful gains. These gains have been studied already in recent research, or merit attention in future research.

Au cours de la décennie ’90, l’Algérie faisait partie des dix pays ayant connu les plus forts taux d’émigration des compétences au monde. Aujourd’hui, même si toute la documentation statistique nécessaire fait défaut, la question du brain drain et du rôle de l’émigration dans le développement du pays sont des sujets bien présents dans le débat public. Ce papier contribue à alimenter ce débat à plusieurs niveaux. Tout d’abord, il propose une présentation systématique du mouvement des compétences algériennes et de son évolution. Par ailleurs, il passe en revue certains facteurs susceptibles d’expliquer l’évolution du brain drain en Algérie ; une décomposition originale des causes du brain drain a également été effectuée afin de mettre en exergue la contribution de la pression migratoire et celle de la sélection positive à l’augmentation de l’émigration des compétences sur la période récente. Enfin, la note analytique aborde les conséquences de l’émigration des compétences sur la croissance économique de l’Algérie. In the 1990s, Algeria ranked among the top 10 countries in terms of its highly- skilled emigration rate. Today, despite insufficient statistical documentation, the brain-drain issue and the role of emigration in the development of the country are both much debated. This paper aims to contribute to this debate at several levels of analysis. First, we present the recent evolution of Algerian brain drain highlighting the role of destination countries. Moreover, an attempt to understand the causes of this phenomenon is provided through an original analysis of brain-drain push-factors, which helps individuate the relative contribution of 1) migratory pressure and 2) positive selection in increasing highly-skilled emigration flows. Finally, emphasis is put on the consequences of brain drain for economic growth in Algeria.

The IAB data collection on international migration has been carried out within the framework of the TEMPO project (TEmporary Migration, integration and the role of POlicies), a European project financed by NORFACE (New Opportunities for Research Funding Agency Co-operation in Europe), a partnership of 15 research councils established to increase cooperation in research and research policy in Europe. The project has the goal of extend the knowledge of the causes and consequences of international migration with particular focus on themes like temporary migration, migrants’ integration, and migration policies. The IAB has been in charge of building a macro-dataset on international migration to 20 OECD destination countries by gender, country of origin and educational level, for the years 1980-2010 (5 years intervals). The above data collection has been carried out in cooperation with Abdeslam Marfouk (ULB, Brussels).

Highly Skilled Migration and International Flows of Talent, Knowledge, and Capital (TKC) is a project funded by the French National Research Agency (ANR). TKC aims to improve our understanding of whether and how highly skilled migrants activate their social networks and leverage their role as international knowledge gatekeepers, contribute to solve cross-border information problems, and transform the brain drain into brain gain and brain circulation. Highly skilled workers play a key role in today’s knowledge economies, as they introduce and diffuse innovations that encourage economic growth and well-being. Migrants are an essential component of these highly skilled workers worldwide: in 2013, the worldwide stock of migrants stood at 230 million, namely 3.2% of worldwide population (UN-DESA and OECD, 2013). However, important variations emerge across skills’ groups: tertiary educated immigrants living in OECD countries augmented by 70% during the 2000s, with just 10% for low-educated ones. Migration rates for the tertiary educated are higher than for the rest of the population, and generally increase with further education. Thus, differently from the past, highly skilled individuals represent the most dynamic component of international mobility flows. Far from taking place exclusively along a South-North or East-West axis, highly skilled migration occurs also between advanced economies, with the UK, Germany and other European countries as both destinations and origins. Science, technology, and engineering migration contributes heavily to these trends, including to its geographical variation. TKC’s research topic stands at the cross-roads of different disciplinary approaches, ranging from the geography of innovation, the economics of migration, and IB studies. All of them can be re-examined within the general theoretical framework of diaspora economics. Constant and Zimmermann (2016) define diasporas as “well-defined group(s) of migrants and their offspring with a joined cultural identity and ongoing identification with the country or culture of origin”, and propose to put them at centre-stage in all studies concerning migrations. While migration is the necessary precondition for diasporas to exist, not all migrant groups are internally bound by diasporic ties, nor ethnicity is the only source of such ties. In the case of highly skilled migrants, professional ties matter, too, as they both imply different migration channels and cohorts, and allows for specific forms of interaction. TKC is a theoretical and empirical project, whose deliverables will consist in research papers and open access datasets. Its ambition is to enrich the debate on migration on a global scale, but especially in Europe and France, where the dominant focus on low skilled or refugee immigration both obscures the importance of highly skilled flows and contributes to negative stereotyping. TKC will be articulated in six work-packages, taking a complementary approach between the macro (country), meso (firm), and micro (individual) levels of analysis. TKC has a strong engagement towards collecting micro-data concerning specific categories of very highly skilled workers, such as inventors, scientists and executives, with the migrant status to be ascertained by available biographic information and/or name analysis. These data may provide a suitable and interesting alternative to more classic data sources, both because of their detail and for their pointing at homogenous professional groups, rather than generically tertiary educated workers.

This proposal presents a study of the EXODUS of exceptionally gifted individuals due to the increased utilization of short-term contracts. The primary objective is to study the impact of Italian labour market reforms, specifically those related to the regulation and utilization of short-term employment contracts, on the departure of skilled workers towards other countries, which typically offer more and better opportunities (brain drain). Theoretically, the utilization of short-term contracts could help increase labor force participation, employment, efficiency and labour market opportunities. However, if not regulated in integration with the specific institutional framework, short-term contracts might generate undesired effects. By promoting adverse selection, driving the better workers away from the mother country as the less productive workers take up short-term contracts, short-term contracts might actually increase the brain drain. The purpose of EXODUS is to investigate the validity of these concerns and to analyze the way short-term contracts affect the brain drain phenomenon. In particular, EXODUS will focus on investigating the employment condition and behavioral choices of a specific category of workers: young individuals with a high level of education.

Young people are travelling more than ever before. Studying abroad is a growing and institutionalized practice, as in the Erasmus program. To find out what they’re getting out of this travelling, we have to get them to tell their stories and explore the meanings of their experience within the broader context of their lives. The results of this comparative study can usefully orient EU policymakers in sustaining young people in their transitional challenges – becoming adults, Europeans and citizens of a globalized world – fostering ongoing education in cultural diversity enhancing life for all Europeans. The key question is if and how students’ experiences abroad are contributing to overcoming cultural and social boundaries. Using a mixed-method and interdisciplinary approach, this innovative study investigates the meanings given by a group of 60 international students to their educational, cultural and overall life experience abroad (Finland and Italy). Through analysis of autobiographical-autoethnographical essays, ethnographical observations, focus groups and in-depth interviews I will address topics connected with self-construction processes in another culture: family of origin and its economic, social and cultural capital; perception of European social and cultural identity and sense of belonging to a “Cosmopolitan Generation”; fundamental cultural objects shaping the idea of Italy (South) Finland (North) and Europe in general; interaction with locals and involvement in the host culture; key life passages during students’ stay abroad. The narrative approach yields a clear, in-depth and comprehensive vision of what students abroad are actually doing and what they think about it. Beyond quantitative data, qualitative empirical material of this kind is rare; findings will offer unique insights on human life-span development, cultural globalization, social mobility, migration, tourism and education, enhancing intra-European education and mobility policies.