Scientific mobility

Scientific mobility describes the growing movement of scientists and tertiary students of science and engineering around the world. This trend is often being encouraged by national and regional policies and strategies. It permeates academia but the phenomenon is also growing in the private sector, as firms increasingly relocate their research laboratories abroad. For instance, the information technology industry accounts for six out of ten patents for new inventions in India but 92% of these patents are secured by foreign-owned multinational firms.

Trends in mobility at PhD level

Long-term growth of tertiary-level international students worldwide, 1975–2013. Source: UNESCO Science Report, Figure 1.4, data from UNESCO Institute for Statistics

The number of international students rose by 46% between 2005 and 2013, from 2.8 million to 4.1 million, according to the UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Many governments are accompanying this movement out of a desire to develop a knowledge economy or maintain their international competitiveness. The United States of America, United Kingdom and France hosted the largest contingents of international doctoral students in science and engineering in 2012. The United States alone accounts for half of these students (49%), followed by the United Kingdom (9%) and France (7%), Australia (5%), Canada and Germany (4% each), Switzerland, Japan and Malaysia (3% each). The United States also stands out for the small share of its doctoral students who choose to study abroad, just 1.7%, compared to 12.3% of French PhD students and 18.0% of Canadians.

Almost half (44%) of Vietnamese students seek their doctorate abroad, in line with the government’s strategy for adding 20 000 PhD-holders to the faculty of its universities by 2020. Saudi Arabia even has more doctoral students enrolled abroad than at home.

Global distribution of international doctoral students enrolled in science and engineering fields in 2012. Source: UNESCO Science Report: towards 2030, Figure 2.12, data from UNESCO Institute for Statistics

The great majority of mobile Latin Americans study outside the region. There are four exceptions: Bolivia, Nicaragua, Paraguay and Uruguay. In 2013, 132 814 Latin American students were studying in Western Europe or North America, about four times more than in other Latin American countries. The proportion was highest in Brazil, Mexico and Venezuela. Some 2 170 Brazilian university students were studying in other Latin American countries in 2013, compared to 27 793 in Western Europe or North America. In Mexico, 1 278 were studying in Latin America and 24 632 in Western Europe and North America. The figures for Venezuela were 1 053 and 10 380 respectively. Many scientists and engineers have emigrated in the past decade, according to the President of the Venezuelan Academy of Physical, Mathematical and Natural Sciences. In 2013, the Mexican Council for Science and Technology (CONACYT) and the Organization of American States created a joint programme offering 500 scholarships up to 2018 for postgraduate education in science and engineering, in order to facilitate student exchanges within the Americas.

Japan is hosting a growing number of PhD students. ‘Traditionally, the Japanese have been conscious that international interaction is not their strong point, largely due to their poor English. ‘At the turn of the century, however, virtually all businesses were finding it increasingly difficult to operate within Japan’s closed market’. In response, the government provided universities with generous subsidies from 2012 onwards to produce specialists who would feel comfortable working transnationally. Japanese universities themselves have made this a priority and are, thus, striving to attract more international students. By 2013, almost 40 000 graduate students (15.5%) were of foreign origin, most of them Asian (88%), including nearly 23 000 Chinese. The government has also introduced a number of incentives to raise the proportion of foreign full-time academic teaching staff (4% in 2013). The selection criteria for most large university grants, for instance, now take into account the proportion of foreigners among teaching staff and researchers.

Growing mobility at doctoral level is, in turn, driving scientific mobility. For the UNESCO Science Report, ‘this is perhaps one of the most important trends of recent times.’

Preferred destinations of international doctoral students, by country of origin, 2012

Countries with more than 4 000 students abroad in 2012

Country of origin	Number of students	Outbound mobility ratio (%)	Top destinations
China	58 492	22.1	United States	Japan	United Kingdom	Australia	France	Rep. of Korea	Canada	Sweden
India	30 291	35.0	United States	United Kingdom	Australia	Canada	France	Rep. of Korea	Switzerland	Sweden
Germany	13 606	7.0	Switzerland	Austria	United Kingdom	United States	Netherlands	France	Sweden	Australia
Iran	12 180	25.7	Malaysia	United States	Canada	Australia	United Kingdom	France	Sweden	Italy
Rep. of Korea	11 925	20.7	United States	Japan	United Kingdom	France	Canada	Australia	Switzerland	Austria
Italy	7 451	24.3	United Kingdom	France	Switzerland	United States	Austria	Netherlands	Spain	Sweden
Canada	6 542	18.0	United States	United Kingdom	Australia	France	Switzerland	New Zealand	Ireland	Japan
United States	5 929	1.7	United Kingdom	Canada	Australia	Switzerland	New Zealand	France	Rep. of Korea	Ireland
Saudi Arabia	5 668	109.3	United States	United Kingdom	Australia	Malaysia	Canada	France	Japan	New Zealand
Indonesia	5 109	13.7	Malaysia	Australia	Japan	United States	United Kingdom	Rep. of Korea	Netherlands	France
France	4 997	12.3	United States	United Kingdom	Malaysia	Switzerland	France	Japan	Germany	China
Viet Nam	4 867	78.1	France	United States	Australia	Japan	Rep. of Korea	United Kingdom	New Zealand	Belgium
Turkey	4 579	9.2	United States	United Kingdom	France	Netherlands	Switzerland	Austria	Canada	Italy
Pakistan	4 145	18.0	United Kingdom	United States	Malaysia	France	Sweden	Australia	Rep. of Korea	New Zealand
Brazil	4 121	5.2	United States	Portugal	France	Spain	United Kingdom	Australia	Italy	Switzerland

Notes: 1. The outbound mobility ratio refers to the number of students from a given country enrolled in doctoral programmes abroad, expressed as a percentage of total local doctoral enrolment in that country. 2. Germany is a top destination for international doctoral students but, due to data unavailability, Germany is absent from this list. 3. Data in this table concern 3.1 million international students enrolled in 44 mainly OECD and/or EU countries.

Source: UNESCO Science Report: towards 2030 (2015), p. 79, data from UNESCO Institute for Statistics

Trends in two-way scientific mobility

Percentage share of doctoral students who chose to study abroad in 2000 and 2012, by region. Source: UNESCO Science Report: towards 2030, Figure 2.10, data from UNESCO Institute for Statistics

Often, policies favouring mobility are a two-way street, with governments encouraging their own students to gain expertise abroad, while simultaneously striving to attract young researchers or confirmed experts.

The case of Brazil

Brazil’s Science without Borders programme sent 70 000 undergraduate students abroad between 2011 and 2014. Researchers employed by private companies could also apply for specialized training abroad within this scheme. In parallel, the programme sought to attract young foreign researchers interested in settling in Brazil or in establishing partnerships with Brazilian researchers in priority areas. The programme was discontinued in late 2015, after the Brazilian economy entered recession.

The case of China

In China, the desire to develop world-class universities has inspired the government to raise the number of scholarships for study abroad from fewer than 3 000 in 2003 to over 13 000 in 2010. In parallel, the Thousand Talents programme offers an enticing benefits package to Chinese expatriates and foreign experts under the age of 40 to encourage them to work in China’s universities, institutes and enterprises.

The case of Malaysia

Number of degree-seeking international students in Malaysia, 2007 and 2012. UNESCO Science Report: towards 2030 (2015), Figure 26.9, data from UNESCO Institute for Statistics

Malaysia hosts numerous multinational firms specializing in electronics and engineering but suffers from a shortage of skilled personnel. It plans to become the world’s sixth-biggest destination for international students by 2020. With 2.9% of all international students in science and engineering choosing Malaysia for their PhD, the country already ties with Japan for eighth place, behind Germany and Switzerland. The largest contingents of degree-seeking international students come from Iran, Indonesia, China, Nigeria, Yemen, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Between 2007 and 2012, the number of foreign students in Malaysia almost doubled to 56 203. The government plans to host 200 000 foreign students by 2020.

The case of South Africa

South African universities attracted 61 000 foreign students in 2009. Students from the other 14 countries of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) pay the same fees as their local counterparts, meaning that the South African taxpayer subsidizes their studies. This policy is in line with the SADC Protocol on Education and Training (1997), which was designed to facilitate mobility. Nearly half of the researchers in South Africa (49%) are transitory, spending fewer than two years in the country’s research centres.

The case of the European Union

The European Union (EU) requires public-funded bodies to advertise vacancies internationally and is introducing a ‘scientific visa’ to slash the red tape for non-EU nationals submitting job applications. These policies have been inspired by the need to augment the number of researchers in the EU, a significant share of whom will have to come from third countries. Studies conducted across Europe have shown that a high level of mobility by qualified personnel across countries and between the public and private sectors contributes to the overall professionalism of the labour force, as well as to the innovative performance of the economy.

One of the EU’s key strategies for attracting top researchers from around the world are the grants offered by the European Research Council, the first pan-European funding body for basic research. Most grantees are nationals from the country of their host institution but two countries host a large number of foreign grantees: the UK (426) and Switzerland (237). The smallest share of foreign grant-holders among EU countries are to be found in Greece (3%), Hungary (8%) and Italy (9%). Some nationalities seem to prefer to work abroad rather than at home: around 55% of the Greek, Austrian and Irish grantees are based in foreign countries. The absolute numbers are particularly high for Germany and Italy, with 253 and 178 nationals respectively hosted by institutions abroad. The United Kingdom's future relationship with the European Research Council will be decided by the Brexit negotiations with the EU beginning in 2017.

Almost 600 research institutions from 29 countries – both EU member states and countries associated with the Seventh Framework Programme – have hosted at least one grantee since the European Research Council was founded in 2007. This is symptomatic of a wider trend in Europe. Around 31% of post-doctoral researchers in the EU have worked abroad for over three months at least once in the past 10 years.

Percentage of foreign doctorate-holders in selected countries, 2009. Source: UNESCO Science Report, Figure 2.15, data from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, OECD and Eurostat

A 2014 survey by the European Commission found that European firms contemplating where to relocate their research and development (R&D) considered the United States to be more attractive in terms of market size and growth rate, whereas they preferred countries in the European Union for the quality of their research personnel and the level of public support for R&D via grants, direct funding and fiscal incentives. Firms also cited knowledge-sharing opportunities with universities and public organizations in the European Union as a key criterion.

The case of Switzerland

One in three doctorate-holders in Switzerland were born elsewhere and close to half of research personnel in the private sector are non-Swiss. In 2012, half (51%) of the doctoral students living in Switzerland were international students. Switzerland accounts for less than 0.1% of the world population but hosts 3.1% of all international PhD students in science and engineering, just behind Germany (3.5%), making Switzerland the seventh-most popular destination for this category of student. Most foreigners are of European origin but Switzerland is also a top destination for PhD students from Brazil, Canada, India, the Republic of Korea, Turkey and the USA.

Students and businesses are drawn to Switzerland for the quality of its research infrastructure and high level of commitment to research (3% of GDP), the business-friendly environment and skilled workforce, the fruit of world-class universities and excellent vocational training. In the ten years to 2012, Switzerland saw its world share of triadic patents – those granted simultaneously by the US, Japanese and European patent offices – rise from 1.8% to 2.2%, the greatest leap among high-income countries.

Percentage share of international doctoral students living in individual host countries in 2012. Source: UNESCO Science Report: towards 2030, Figure 2.12, data from UNESCO Institute for Statistics

Even though Switzerland is not a member of the European Economic Area, a bilateral agreement with the EU allows Switzerland to take advantage of the main EU instruments in place for research, including the seven-year framework programmes for research and innovation, the Future and Emerging Technologies programme, the grants of the European Research Council and the Erasmus student exchange programme. In return, Switzerland adheres to the four cornerstones of the EU’s single market: the free movement of people, goods, services and capital.

After the anti-immigration vote in a popular referendum in 2014, there was some doubt as to whether Switzerland would continue to participate in Horizon 2020 after 2016. Shortly after the vote, the Swiss government had informed the EU that it would be unable to give Croatian citizens unrestricted access to the Swiss job market, as this would be incompatible with the ‘yes’ vote in the referendum. The European Commission reacted by excluding Switzerland from research programmes potentially worth hundreds of millions of euros for its universities and suspended negotiations on Switzerland’s participation as a full member of Horizon 2020. The European Commission also suspended Switzerland from the Erasmus student exchange programme. According to the ATS news agency, some 2 600 Swiss students took advantage of Erasmus in 2011 and Switzerland played host that same year to about 2 900 foreign students within the same EU-funded programme. The crisis was resolved after the Swiss parliament adopted a bill in December 2016 that gave priority to Swiss nationals and foreigners registered at Swiss job agencies but stopped short of introducing quotas on EU citizens.

The case of the United States

In the 2013/2014 academic year, over 886 000 international students and their families living in the United States supported 340 000 jobs and contributed US$26.8 billion to the US economy, according to a 2014 report by the National Association of Foreign Student Advisers. The number of US citizens studying overseas was much lower, just under 274 000.

The top five foreign student populations in the United States in 2014 were from China (28%), India (12%) and the Republic of Korea (circa 8%), Saudi Arabia (circa 6%) and Canada (circa 3%), according to the July 2014 quarterly review of the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System published by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.The bulk of these students are pursuing degrees in the following fields: business, management and marketing; engineering; computer and related sciences; and education-related studies. Among those studying science and engineering, three-quarters (75%) had opted for engineering, computer and information sciences and support services, or biological and biomedical sciences. The National Science Foundation’s 2013 Survey of Earned Doctorates compared doctoral degrees awarded to US citizens with those awarded to students with permanent residence and temporary visa-holders. The study found that temporary visa-holders earned 28% of the doctoral degrees awarded in the life sciences, 43% of those in the physical sciences, 55% in engineering, 10% in education, 14% in humanities, and 33% in non-science and engineering fields. These percentages have increased slightly for all fields since 2008.

Historically, a large majority of trainees from overseas who came to the United States have stayed on indefinitely but return migration among foreign students and postdoctoral scholars is now rising. Twenty years ago, around one in 10 Chinese doctoral graduates returned to China after completing their degree but the rate was closer to 20% in 2014 and the trend is gaining momentum. The drivers of this trend are the increasingly competitive US research environment and, in parallel, more opportunities in foreign enterprises for skilled workers. For instance, the scarcity of visas in the United States for skilled workers creates tough competition for those wishing to work in sophisticated US industries; in 2014, the lottery for these visas closed after just one week because it was oversubscribed. US business executives are strongly in favour of increasing the number of visas for skilled workers, particularly in the software industry. At the same time, countries such as China, India and Singapore are investing heavily in building world-class research facilities, a potent lure for US-trained foreign students to return home.

Trends in intraregional mobility

A growing number of regional economic communities around the world are fostering scientific mobility within the region to facilitate scientific integration. Many of these regional economic communities have drawn inspiration from the European Union model.

Association of South East Asian Nations

The Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) has adopted a Plan of Action on Science, Technology and Innovation 2016–2020 which aims to strengthen scientific capacity in member states by fostering exchanges among researchers both within the region and beyond. ASEAN covers a vast, populous region encompassing Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam.

The founding of the ASEAN Economic Community in late 2015 is intended to transform this vast region into a common market and production base. The planned removal of restrictions to the cross-border movement of people and services is expected to spur co-operation in science and technology and, thereby, reinforce the emerging Asia–Pacific knowledge hub. The greater mobility of skilled personnel should be a boon for the region and enhance the role of the ASEAN University Network, which counted 30 members in 2015.

Africa

The continent is currently preparing the groundwork for the African Economic Community, which should be in place by 2028. To this end, regional communities are consolidating ties. The five members of the East African Community (Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda), for instance, formed a common market in 2010. They plan to establish a common currency by 2023 and are developing a Common Higher Education Area that has been inspired by the EU model. In 2015, the East African Community signed a Tripartite Free Trade Agreement with the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa grouping 20 states and the Southern African Development Community grouping 15 states. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has adopted a Policy on Science and Technology (ECOPOST) adopted in 2011 provides a framework for member states wishing to improve, or elaborate for the first time, their own national policies and action plans. It advocates developing a harmonized regional status for researchers.

The development of regional programmes in science, technology and innovation is high on the list of priorities’ of the African Union and regional bodies. Africa's Science and Technology Consolidated Plan of Action (2005–2014) called for the establishment of regional centres of excellence and for a greater mobility of scientists across the continent. The continent’s expanding networks of centres of excellence are now fostering greater scientific mobility. One example is the African Biosciences Initiative. Since 2002, four subregional networks have been created within this initiative, the Biosciences Eastern and Central Africa Network (BecA), based in Kenya, the Southern African Network for Biosciences (SANBio), based in Pretoria, the West African Biosciences Hub (WABNet), based in Dakar, and the Northern African Biosciences Network (NABNet), based in Cairo. Research institutes participating in these networks offer their facilities for subregional use. A second example is the African Centres of Excellence project launched in April 2014. Eight West African governments (Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal and Togo) have received a total of US$150 million in World Bank loans to fund research and training at 19 of the subregion's best universities.

One persistent obstacle to scientific mobility is the difficulty African scientists face in travelling freely around the continent. The question of African countries easing immigration regulations and procedures in order to facilitate the mobility of international experts, and African expatriates in particular, has figured repeatedly on the agenda of African Union summits without ever being resolved. In 2014, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda took a step towards easing travel restrictions by adopting a single tourist visa. Meanwhile, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has launched a common passport to facilitate travel in all 15 member states.

Union of South American Nations

In Latin America, the new Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) has embraced the free movement of goods, services, capital and people around the subcontinent. Modelled on the European Union, it plans to establish a common parliament and currency for its 12 members. Within UNASUR, governments have been discussing the idea of standardizing university degrees in member countries to foster student mobility. UNASUR members account for some of the most popular student destinations in Latin America, with Brazil attracting about 5000 students a year from the region and Argentina and Chile about 2000 each. Half the students at the Institute for Pure and Applied Mathematics in Rio de Janeiro, for instance, come from abroad, mainly from other Latin American countries – and the 50 teaching staff come from 14 countries.

Sources

 This article incorporates text from a free content work. Licensed under CC-BY-SA IGO 3.0 UNESCO Science Report: towards 2030, UNESCO, UNESCO Publishing. To learn how to add open license text to HandWiki articles, please see this how-to page. For information on reusing text from HandWiki, please see the terms of use.

See also

• UNESCO Science Report