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Figure 2-30

Figure 2-31

Figure 2-32

Figure 2-33

Figure 2-34

Figure 2-35

Figure 2-36

Chapter 2: Higher Education in Science and Engineering

Global Higher Education in S&E

The 1990s saw a tremendous increase in international migration of students and highly skilled workers. In particular, migration of students occurred from developing countries to the more developed countries, and from Europe and Asia to the United States. Some migrate temporarily for education and others remain permanently. Some of the factors that influence the decision to migrate are economic opportunities, research opportunities, research funding, and climate for innovation in the country of destination (OECD 2002). The population of individuals ages 18 to 23 (a proxy for college-age population) decreased in Europe, the United States, China, and Japan in the 1990s and is projected to continue decreasing in Europe and Japan (appendix table 2-36 ). This decrease is an incentive for countries to encourage immigration of students from other countries or to increase enrollment proportions of their own college-age population. New efforts are underway to better measure international migration. See sidebar "Developing Internationally Comparable Data on Mobility and Careers of Doctorate Holders."

The United States has, by far, the largest number of foreign students (undergraduate and graduate) of all Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries (figure 2-30 ), although other countries have higher percentages of students who are foreign. In Australia, Switzerland, New Zealand, Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom, 10% or more of students enrolled in higher education are foreign compared with about 4% in the United States (OECD 2004).

First University Degrees in S&E Fields

In 2002, more than 9 million students worldwide earned a first university degree.[14] Students earned more than 3 million of these in S&E fields (appendix table 2-37 ). These worldwide totals include only countries for which recent data are available (primarily countries in the Asian, European, and American regions) and therefore are an underestimation. Asian universities accounted for almost 1.5 million of the world's S&E degrees in 2002, more than 600,000 of them in engineering (figure 2-31 ). Students across Europe (including Eastern Europe and Russia) earned about 930,000, and students in North and Central America earned almost 600,000 S&E degrees in 2002.

The United States has historically been a world leader in providing broad access to higher education. The ratio of bachelor's degrees earned in the United States to the population of the college-age cohort remains relatively high at 33.9 per 100 in 2002. However, a number of other countries/economies, mainly in Europe, also provide a college education to approximately one-third or more of their college-age population. Costa Rica, Denmark, France, Finland, Iceland, Portugal, the Netherlands, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Bulgaria, Latvia, Lithuania, Mongolia, Australia, New Zealand, and Taiwan all have a high proportion of bachelor's degrees to the college-age population (appendix table 2-37 ).

For the past three decades, S&E degrees have constituted about one-third of U.S. bachelor's degrees. In several countries/economies around the world, the proportion of first degrees in S&E fields is higher than in the United States. In the most recent data available, the corresponding figures in Japan (64%), China (57%), and South Korea (47%) were considerably higher. Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Iran, Israel, Eritrea, Ghana, Mauritius, Austria, Finland, France, Germany, Czech Republic, Canada, and Chile also have high proportions of first degrees in S&E fields. Many of these countries/economies, especially in Europe and Asia, have traditionally awarded a large proportion of their first degrees in engineering.

Over the past two decades, the number of first university S&E degrees awarded in China, South Korea, and the United Kingdom more than doubled, and those in the United States and Japan generally increased (appendix table 2-38 ). In Germany, first university S&E degrees increased gradually through 1997 and then declined.[15] Engineering first university degrees have trebled over the past two decades in China and South Korea, and increased greatly in Japan and the United Kingdom, far outpacing growth in engineering degrees in the United States (figure 2-32 ). (See sidebar "Educational Reforms in China.") In natural sciences, the number of first university degrees in the United States has been increasing since 1989 and far exceeds the rising numbers of natural sciences degrees awarded in China, the United Kingdom, Japan, and South Korea.

Global Comparison of Participation Rates by Sex

Among Western countries for which degree data are available by sex, Canada and the United States show relatively high percentages of first university degrees in S&E awarded to women. In many Asian countries, women generally earn about one-third or less of the first university degrees awarded in S&E fields. In 2002, women earned half or more of the S&E first university degrees in the United States, Canada, Portugal, Albania, Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Poland, Slovenia, Mongolia, Bahrain, Israel, Lebanon, and Qatar (appendix table 2-39 ).

In the United States, Canada, Japan, and many European countries, over half of the S&E first university degrees earned by women are in the social and behavioral sciences.

Global Comparison of S&E Doctoral Degrees

Of the more than 125,000 S&E doctoral degrees earned worldwide in 2002, 98,000 (78%) were earned outside the United States (appendix table 2-40 ). Figure 2-33 shows the breakdown of S&E doctoral degrees by major region and selected fields.

In 2003, women earned 39% of S&E doctoral degrees awarded in the United States. The percentage of S&E doctoral degrees earned by women in other countries and areas of the world varied widely. In Western Europe, the percentages earned by women varied from 27% in Germany to 45% in Italy. In Asia, women earned roughly one-fifth of all S&E doctoral degrees (appendix table 2-41 ).

For most of the past two decades, momentum in doctoral S&E programs has been strong in the United States and some Asian and European countries. By 2001, China was the largest producer of S&E doctoral degrees (more than 8,000) in the Asian region. The numbers of natural sciences and engineering (NS&E) doctoral degrees awarded in China, South Korea, and Japan have continued to rise.[16] (Natural sciences include physical, biological, earth, atmospheric, ocean, agricultural, and computer sciences, and mathematics.) (See appendix tables 2-42 and 2-43 .) However, in the late 1990s and early 2000s, NS&E doctoral degrees leveled off or declined in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Germany (figure 2-34 ).

Global Student Mobility

International migration of students and highly skilled workers has expanded in the past two decades and countries are increasingly competing for foreign students. The U.S. share of foreign students declined in recent years while Australia's and the United Kingdom's shares have increased.[17] The United States remains, however, the predominant destination for foreign students, accounting for 40% of internationally mobile students in 2004. The United Kingdom accounted for 18%, Germany for 15%, France for 12%, and Australia for 6% (Institute of International Education 2004).

In addition to the United States, a number of countries worldwide have increased foreign student enrollment in recent years. Foreign student enrollment in the United Kingdom increased in the past decade. The proportion of foreign students studying S&E fields in the United Kingdom has increased, especially at the graduate level, with increasing flows of students from China and India. From 1994 to 2004, foreign graduate students studying S&E in the United Kingdom increased from 29% to 41%. In graduate engineering, foreign student enrollment more than doubled from 9,300 (35% of enrollment) to 20,500 (53% of enrollment) (figure 2-35 ; appendix table 2-44 ). Students from China, Greece, India, and Malaysia accounted for most of the increase in foreign graduate engineering enrollment.

Foreign students accounted for about 27% of the French S&E graduate enrollment in 2003. About half of the 30,000 foreign S&E graduate students in France come from Africa, and Asian students account for another 20%. Although educational reforms in the European Union (EU) are encouraging student mobility among countries, only 3% of all S&E graduate students and 10% of foreign S&E graduate students in France come from other EU countries (appendix table 2-45 ). (See sidebar "Education Reforms in Europe.")

In Japanese universities, more than 84,000 foreign students, mainly from the Asian region, were enrolled at the undergraduate and graduate levels in 2004. More than 50,000 of these students were enrolled in S&E fields. Foreign S&E student enrollment in Japan was concentrated at the undergraduate level (34,000), mostly in the social and behavioral sciences.[18] About 17,000 foreign S&E students were enrolled in Japanese universities at the graduate level, representing 12% of the graduate students in S&E fields. Foreign S&E graduate students in Japan come mainly from China and South Korea (appendix table 2-46 ).

Foreign S&E students accounted for about 6% of undergraduate and 21% of graduate S&E enrollment in Canada in 2001. At both the undergraduate and graduate levels, foreign S&E students are concentrated in mathematics/computer sciences and engineering. Asian countries/economies were the top places of origin of foreign S&E graduate and undergraduate students in Canada. The United States is also among the top countries of origin of foreign students, accounting for 6% of foreign S&E graduate students and 2% of foreign S&E undergraduate students in Canada (appendix table 2-47 ).

International Comparison of Foreign Doctoral Degree Recipients

Like the United States, the United Kingdom and France have many foreign students among their S&E doctoral degree recipients. In 2003, 39% of S&E doctorates from the United Kingdom and 37% of S&E doctorates from U.S. universities were awarded to foreign students (both permanent and temporary visa holders). In both countries, foreign students accounted for more than half of the doctorates awarded in engineering. Foreign students account for about 14% of S&E doctorate recipients in Japan and Germany (figure 2-36 ; appendix table 2-48 ).

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National Science Foundation, Division of Science Resources Statistics
Science and Engineering Indicators 2006
Arlington, VA (NSB 06-01) [February 2006]