Return Migration of Talent: Focusing on International Doctoral Graduates from Japanese Universities

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  • KATO Maki
    Yokohama National University National Institute for Science and Technology Policy

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  • 国際移動をする高度専門人材の滞在地選択：日本の博士留学生を事例とした実証分析
  • コクサイ イドウ オ スル コウド センモン ジンザイ ノ タイザイチ センタク : ニホン ノ ハクシ リュウガクセイ オ ジレイ ト シタ ジッショウ ブンセキ

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Abstract

<p>International migration of highly skilled individuals has been increasing in recent years, similar to the growth in investment in higher education worldwide, and the tendency of countries receiving highly skilled migrants to provide them with preferential treatment. Recent studies on international migration use decent data to produce evidence-based analysis and made major contributions to the field. However, most studies analyzed the situation of researchers primarily in Europe, the United States, or Japan. In contrast, this study targets the younger generation mainly of Asian origin, and investigates factors related to the return migration of international doctoral students who graduated from Japanese universities in 2002-2006. In this study, the results of the empirical analysis indicate that factors influencing return migration of international students after completing their doctoral programs in Japan include stable employment subsequent to their return to their countries of origin and their period of stay in Japan. Having job stability, such as a tenured position at a university, and shorter periods of stay, such as the time required to complete a doctoral program, are major influencing factors of return migration. These findings are similar to the results found in previous studies that target researchers living in developed countries. Although job stability is a common factor for migrants to return to their countries of origin, period of stay in Japan depends on the country of origin. Students of African or Asian origin except those from China and Korea tend to return to their countries of origin, while those from other countries do not. Because factors vary depending on the student's country of origin, future studies need to take this point into consideration. The results indicate that doctoral degree holders have a greater tendency to return to their countries of origin compared with those without such degrees. These results should be interpreted carefully because it could be due to financial reasons or Japan's unique doctoral program system.</p>

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