IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/cir/cirpro/2013rp-12.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Brain Drain: Why Do Some Post-Secondary Graduates Choose to Work in the United States?

Author

Listed:
  • Brahim Boudarbat
  • Marie Connolly

Abstract

In this study, we examine the phenomenon of the brain drain in Canada, specifically the loss of certain post-secondary graduates to the United States. Our analysis comprises three components: a descriptive analysis of the differences between graduates who stayed in Canada and those who moved to the United States; a multivariate analysis, to identify the determinant factors of the decision to move from Canada to the United States and the decision to return to Canada afterwards; and analysis to explain the wage differentials between stayers and movers. Using the data for the last three cohorts from the National Graduates Survey, we observe that the brain drain remains relatively marginal, affecting 2% of new graduates at most. We also note a slight decrease in the brain drain for the Class of 2005 compared with the Class of 2000 in the first two years after graduation. In addition, we identify a strong movement to return to Canada (some 48% of those who left between 2000 and 2005) or a strong intention to do so (61% of the graduates of 2000 still living in the United States in 2005). Striking differences emerge in connection with certain factors, however, including level of education and field of study. For example, PhDs are by far the most likely to move to the United States. That also holds true for graduates in the fields of mathematics, computer and information sciences and architecture, engineering and related technologies. The wage differences are also high, in the order of 27% to 40% higher for graduates working in the United States, of which only one third can be explained by a variety of observable factors. Finally, we find that the graduates of 2000 who returned to Canada after a stay in the United States earned, in 2005, up to 18% more on average than those who never left Canada, all other things being equal. Canada thus benefits from the brain drain when it is not permanent. Whatever the case, we do not believe that at current levels, the brain drain of post-secondary graduates to the United States requires specific intervention on the part of public policymakers. However, the phenomenon should be monitored on an ongoing basis, as it may evolve in the future.

Suggested Citation

  • Brahim Boudarbat & Marie Connolly, 2013. "Brain Drain: Why Do Some Post-Secondary Graduates Choose to Work in the United States?," CIRANO Project Reports 2013rp-12, CIRANO.
    • Handle: RePEc:cir:cirpro:2013rp-12
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://cirano.qc.ca/files/publications/2013RP-12.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Oaxaca, Ronald, 1973. "Male-Female Wage Differentials in Urban Labor Markets," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 14(3), pages 693-709, October.
    2. Alan S. Blinder, 1973. "Wage Discrimination: Reduced Form and Structural Estimates," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 8(4), pages 436-455.
    3. Finnie, Ross, 2006. "International Mobility: Patterns of Exit and Return of Canadians, 1982 to 2003," Analytical Studies Branch Research Paper Series 2006288e, Statistics Canada, Analytical Studies Branch.
    4. Baker, Michael & Benjamin, Dwayne, 1994. "The Performance of Immigrants in the Canadian Labor Market," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 12(3), pages 369-405, July.
    5. Baldwin, Robert E. & Winters, L. Alan (ed.), 2004. "Challenges to Globalization," National Bureau of Economic Research Books, University of Chicago Press, edition 1, number 9780226036151, December.
    6. David Zarifa & David Walters, 2008. "Revisiting Canada's Brain Drain: Evidence from the 2000 Cohort of Canadian University Graduates," Canadian Public Policy, University of Toronto Press, vol. 34(3), pages 305-320, September.
    7. Helliwell, J.F., 1999. "Checking the Brain Drain: Evidence and Implications," Papers 99-3, Institute for Policy Analysis.
    8. David Neumark, 1988. "Employers' Discriminatory Behavior and the Estimation of Wage Discrimination," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 23(3), pages 279-295.
    9. Ben Jann, 2008. "The Blinder–Oaxaca decomposition for linear regression models," Stata Journal, StataCorp LP, vol. 8(4), pages 453-479, December.
    10. Nicole M. Fortin, 2008. "The Gender Wage Gap among Young Adults in the United States: The Importance of Money versus People," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 43(4).
    11. Michel Beine & Fréderic Docquier & Hillel Rapoport, 2008. "Brain Drain and Human Capital Formation in Developing Countries: Winners and Losers," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 118(528), pages 631-652, April.
    12. Tamás Bartus, 2005. "Estimation of marginal effects using margeff," Stata Journal, StataCorp LP, vol. 5(3), pages 309-329, September.
    13. Abdurrahman Aydemir & Mikal Skuterud, 2005. "Explaining the deteriorating entry earnings of Canada's immigrant cohorts, 1966 - 2000," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 38(2), pages 641-672, May.
    14. Ross Finnie, 2004. "Who moves? A logit model analysis of inter-provincial migration in Canada," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 36(16), pages 1759-1779.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Brahim Boudarbat & Marie Connolly, 2013. "Exode des cerveaux : Pourquoi certains diplômés d'études postsecondaires choisissent-ils de travailler aux États-Unis?," CIRANO Project Reports 2013rp-13, CIRANO.
    2. Huong Thu Le & Ha Trong Nguyen, 2018. "The evolution of the gender test score gap through seventh grade: new insights from Australia using unconditional quantile regression and decomposition," IZA Journal of Labor Economics, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 7(1), pages 1-42, December.
    3. Sonja C. Kassenboehmer & Mathias G. Sinning, 2014. "Distributional Changes in the Gender Wage Gap," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 67(2), pages 335-361, April.
    4. Zhang, Li & Sharpe, Rhonda Vonshay & Li, Shi & Darity, William A., 2016. "Wage differentials between urban and rural-urban migrant workers in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 222-233.
    5. Ronald Bachmann & Mathias Sinning, 2016. "Decomposing the Ins and Outs of Cyclical Unemployment," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 78(6), pages 853-876, December.
    6. Christophe J Nordman & Leopold R Sarr & Smriti Sharma, 2019. "Skills, personality traits, and gender wage gaps: evidence from Bangladesh," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 71(3), pages 687-708.
    7. Dang, Rui, 2015. "Explaining the body mass index gaps between Turkish immigrants and Germans in West Germany 2002-2012: A decomposition analysis of socio-economic causes," Ruhr Economic Papers 580, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    8. Andrej Cupák & Pavel Ciaian & d'Artis Kancs, 2021. "Comparing the immigrant-native pay gap: A novel evidence from home and host countries," EERI Research Paper Series EERI RP 2021/05, Economics and Econometrics Research Institute (EERI), Brussels.
    9. Fortin, Nicole & Lemieux, Thomas & Firpo, Sergio, 2011. "Decomposition Methods in Economics," Handbook of Labor Economics, in: O. Ashenfelter & D. Card (ed.), Handbook of Labor Economics, edition 1, volume 4, chapter 1, pages 1-102, Elsevier.
    10. Ganji, Niloofar, 2019. "Male-female wage differentials in the San Francisco Bay Area," MPRA Paper 95140, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    11. Nguyen, Ha, 2015. "The evolution of the gender test score gap through seventh grade: New insights from Australia using quantile regression and decomposition," MPRA Paper 67586, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    12. Margarita Kiryushina & Victor Rudakov, 2021. "The Gender Gap in Early-Career Wages of Universities' and Vocational Education Institutes' Graduates," Voprosy obrazovaniya / Educational Studies Moscow, National Research University Higher School of Economics, issue 2, pages 172-198.
    13. Sloczynski, Tymon, 2015. "Average Wage Gaps and Oaxaca–Blinder Decompositions," IZA Discussion Papers 9036, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    14. Christophe J Nordman & Leopold R Sarr & Smriti Sharma, 2019. "Skills, personality traits, and gender wage gaps: evidence from Bangladesh," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 71(3), pages 687-708.
    15. Castagnetti, Carolina & Rosti, Luisa & Töpfer, Marina, 2017. "The convergence of the gender pay gap: An alternative estimation approach," Hohenheim Discussion Papers in Business, Economics and Social Sciences 14-2017, University of Hohenheim, Faculty of Business, Economics and Social Sciences.
    16. Kehinde O. Omotoso & Steven F. Koch, 2017. "Gender Differentials in Health: A Differences-in-Decompositions Estimate," Working Papers 201717, University of Pretoria, Department of Economics.
    17. Кирюшина М. А. & Рудаков В. Н., 2021. "Гендерные Различия В Заработной Плате Выпускников Вузов И Учреждений Спо На Начальном Этапе Карьеры," Вопросы образования // Educational Studies Moscow, National Research University Higher School of Economics, issue 2, pages 172-198.
    18. Marco Caliendo & Frank M. Fossen & Alexander Kritikos & Miriam Wetter, 2015. "The Gender Gap in Entrepreneurship: Not just a Matter of Personality," CESifo Economic Studies, CESifo, vol. 61(1), pages 202-238.
    19. Kilic, Talip & Palacios-López, Amparo & Goldstein, Markus, 2015. "Caught in a Productivity Trap: A Distributional Perspective on Gender Differences in Malawian Agriculture," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 416-463.
    20. Brahim Boudarbat & Marie Connolly, 2013. "The gender wage gap among recent post‐secondary graduates in Canada: a distributional approach," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 46(3), pages 1037-1065, August.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Canada; labour market; wages; employment; employment abroad; emigration; human capital; post-secondary education; economic analysis; economic statistics;
    All these keywords.

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:cir:cirpro:2013rp-12. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Webmaster (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/ciranca.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.