Young scientists view emigration in positive light
Published: 4 August 2009
Scientific and research staff constitute a relatively broad group of qualified specialists from various disciplines and subject fields. Foreign migration for other highly qualified groups is considered a somewhat undesirable ‘brain drain’ – especially if the person is a valuable expert in the domestic labour market, such as a physician. However, for scientists, their career can be enhanced through work experience at a well-renowned research institution in another country. The Czech Republic is too small a country to compete in the field of science with the larger countries such as Germany, the United Kingdom (UK) or the United States (US). Therefore, the phenomenon of young Czech scientists working abroad and returning to their country is perceived positively and as making a contribution to Czech science.
Recent research has tried to determine the extent of migration potential among young scientists in the Czech Republic. The research reveals that about 53% of doctoral students have considered leaving the country to work abroad. The main motives are networking, higher salaries, improved foreign language skills, better possibilities for professional development and more opportunities for career advancement when returning.
Context
Scientific and research staff constitute a relatively broad group of qualified specialists from various disciplines and subject fields. Foreign migration for other highly qualified groups is considered a somewhat undesirable ‘brain drain’ – especially if the person is a valuable expert in the domestic labour market, such as a physician. However, for scientists, their career can be enhanced through work experience at a well-renowned research institution in another country. The Czech Republic is too small a country to compete in the field of science with the larger countries such as Germany, the United Kingdom (UK) or the United States (US). Therefore, the phenomenon of young Czech scientists working abroad and returning to their country is perceived positively and as making a contribution to Czech science.
About the survey
In 2007, a survey involving 523 respondents was conducted on the attitudes of doctoral students towards foreign migration. The survey was carried out by the Research Institute for Labour and Social Affairs (Výzkumný ústav práce a sociálních věcí, RILSA), in cooperation with the Faculty of Science of Charles University (Přírodověděcká fakulta Univerzity Karlovy, PřF UK). The survey participants comprised PhD students involved in full-time or combined type studies at one of Prague’s universities. The questionnaire was mainly distributed electronically: some faculties sent it directly to PhD students, while others placed it on their website. A paper version was also made available to schools. A quota sampling method was applied in the survey, taking into account the students’ particular field of study: namely, medical, technical, agricultural and forestry, natural scientific, humanistic or economic studies.
Attitudes towards foreign migration
In terms of the potential for foreign migration among the survey respondents, a considerable proportion of the future doctorate holders confirmed that foreign migration and mobility were a possibility: overall, some 52.8% of the respondents are considering leaving the country to work abroad. In terms of the professional focus, the survey found that opportunities related to working abroad were a particular focus of doctoral students of natural science (63.6%) and medicine (57.4%). A lower migration tendency was detected among respondents from technical and partly also economic scientific disciplines. This may be connected to the fact that representatives of doctoral students from the technical and economic science fields tend to link their life’s career to science and research to a far lesser extent (although economists do not show such definite attitudes in this respect). Moreover, for doctoral students in the technical fields, a lower command of foreign languages, including English, has been detected.
| Specialisation | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Medical | Technical | Agriculture | Natural science | Humanities | Economics | Total | ||
| No | Number | 20 | 98 | 26 | 28 | 43 | 32 | 247 |
| % within specialisation | 42.6% | 50% | 65% | 36.4% | 43.4% | 50% | 47.2% | |
| Yes | Number | 27 | 98 | 14 | 49 | 56 | 32 | 276 |
| % within specialisation | 57.4% | 50% | 35% | 63.6% | 56.6% | 50% | 52.8% | |
| Total | Number | 47 | 196 | 40 | 77 | 99 | 64 | 523 |
| % within specialisation | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | |
Notes: ‘No’ refers to respondents who are not considering working abroad; ‘Yes’ refers to those who are considering working abroad.
Source: RILSA, 2007
From the perspective of the attractiveness of specific destination countries, the UK, the US and Canada feature most prominently. These are followed by Germany and Austria, countries which are considered particularly attractive by respondents from the humanities.
Of the respondents who expressed an interest in working abroad, the majority indicated that they would do so only on a short-term basis, eventually returning to the Czech Republic: some 35.3% of the respondents stated that they would work abroad for no more than two years, while 32.4% indicated that they would work in a foreign country for between three and five years. Only 13.1% of the survey respondents stated that they would work abroad either for intervals ‘longer than five years but not permanently’ or on a permanent basis.
Motives for leaving country
The respondents cited a range of motives for choosing to work abroad. The reasons most commonly mentioned were as follows:
obtaining international knowledge and contacts – cited by 90.6% of the respondents;
higher financial remuneration (83%);
improving foreign language skills (82.2%);
better opportunities for professional development in the given field, such as in high or modern technologies, or workplace equipment (80.8%);
better opportunities for career advancement after returning to the Czech Republic (76.4%).
As part of the survey, the respondents were also asked whether they would be willing to work abroad beyond their qualification level. About one third of the respondents answered ‘yes’ or ‘probably yes’ to this question. Doctoral students in the medical fields showed less willingness to work beyond their qualification level, while the opposite was the case for the students of agricultural science.
Commentary
Based on the results obtained, it can be assumed that the doctoral students considering working abroad generally perceive migration as a natural, positive phenomenon, which can enhance their professional career on their return to the Czech Republic. Nevertheless, as the research only examined the intentions of young scientists, it is difficult to determine how many of them will go on to realise their plans in real life. Moreover, it should be noted that the research was carried out in the economic boom period in 2007, when expenditure on science and research was continually rising in the Czech Republic. It remains to be seen what impact the economic recession will have on this field, particularly given the increased potential for spending cuts in science and research.
Reference
Vavrečková, J., Baštýř, I., Michalička, L., Brachtl, M.,Vlach, J., Drbohlav, D. and Dzúrová, D., Postavení vědy a výzkumu v ČR; riziko odchodu vědců, výzkumných a vývojových pracovníků z ČR do zahraničí. Souhrnná studie. (in Czech, 506.9 KB PDF) [The position of science and research in the Czech Republic; the risk of the outflow of scientists, researchers and developers from the Czech Republic abroad. Summary study], Prague, RILSA, 2007.
Jana Vavrečková, Research Institute for Labour and Social Affairs (RILSA)
Eurofound recommends citing this publication in the following way.
Eurofound (2009), Young scientists view emigration in positive light, article.
