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Contact: Frances Cox, 202-822-9491

May 5, 2011

Let’s Stop the Brain Drain This Graduation Season

U.S. Advanced STEM Degree Diplomas Should Come with a Green Card for Foreign-born Graduates

Washington, D.C. – After educating foreign-born students in key technical fields, America should retain them for the U.S. innovation economy, said Compete America today, a coalition dedicated to ensuring that the United States has the highly educated workforce it needs to continue to lead in innovation and job creation.  It makes no sense to educate them and then send them abroad to compete against us, a message long advocated by the coalition and one that President Obama highlighted in his State of the Union Address this year.

The latest data on advanced engineering degrees awarded to foreign-born students by U.S. universities provides further support for Compete America’s argument that a green card should be stapled to these diplomas.  According to the American Association of Engineering Societies, foreign-born students received 42 percent of U.S. engineering master’s and 53 percent of U.S. engineering Ph.D.s nationwide in the 2009-2010 academic year.  Across the country:

• Columbia University awarded 58% of engineering master’s and 85% of engineering Ph.D.s to foreign nationals.
• Clemson University awarded 57% of engineering master’s and 50% of engineering Ph.D.s to foreign nationals.
• University of Texas-Dallas awarded 75% of engineering master’s and 80% of engineering Ph.D.s to foreign nationals.
• University of Southern California awarded 57% of engineering master’s and 71% of engineering Ph.D.s to foreign nationals.

Click here to learn about the foreign-born engineers graduating in all states.

“America can not afford to educate the next generation of scientists and engineers and then send them to competitor nations,” said Scott Corley, Compete America Executive Director.  “Congress, don’t let this graduation season pass without reforming the employment-based green card and visa systems to allow U.S. employers to retain and attract top world talent for the benefit of America.  Use employment-based immigration reform to send a message to the rest of the world: America will not risk losing its innovation leadership.”

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Compete America (www.competeamerica.org) is a coalition of corporations, educators, research institutions and trade associations concerned about legal, employment-based immigration and committed to ensuring that the United States has the highly educated workforce necessary to ensure continued innovation, job creation and leadership in a worldwide economy.