Understanding Country Differences: Predicting the Effect of Financial and Labor Market Conditions at Home and in the U.S. on International Doctoral Recipients’ First Labor Market Destination

This study used the Survey of Earned Doctorate, World Bank economic data of the student’s home country, and Hierarchical Linear Modelling analysis to examine the effects of financial factors and home-country macroeconomic indicators on international doctoral student’s labor market destination. This study found that wealth disparities and economic opportunities in the home country impact on international doctoral student outcomes. We find that higher GNI per capita was associated with decreased likelihood of remaining in the United States. We find that higher unemployment rates in the home country significantly increased the likelihood of choosing to remain in the United States. The study also identified factors impacting international doctoral recipients in the United States across regions and economies of the home country.

Contributions of Chinese doctoral recipients from foreign universities to agricultural economic research and education in North America and China

PurposeThis paper traces the timeline and milestones of Chinese graduate students in agricultural economics and related fields at foreign universities, with an emphasis on North American universities, since the early 1980s, and assesses the contributions of Chinese doctoral recipients from foreign universities to agricultural economic research and education in North America and China.Design/methodology/approachData from department and college websites, associations of agricultural economics, university libraries and databases of theses and dissertations and selected agricultural economic journals in English and Chinese are used to attain the above purposes through graphical and bibliometric analyses.FindingsFirst, the numbers of Chinese doctoral recipients and tenure-track and tenured faculty in agricultural economics at North American universities have increased steadily and significantly. Second, Chinese scholars in North America have achieved tremendous success in agricultural economic research via high-quality publications, prestigious awards, editorship of top journals, leadership in professional organizations, etc. Third, more Chinese doctoral recipients overseas have increasingly returned to China and are playing important roles in China’s agricultural economic research, education and international collaboration. Fourth, the publications of overseas Chinese scholars in Chinese journals and those of their counterparts working in China on topics beyond China are relatively limited and more collaboration may enhance the global impacts of Chinese agricultural economists.Research limitations/implicationsThis research is limited by data availability and quality and the data problems are discussed in the paper.Originality/valueThis is likely the first study to assess the contributions of Chinese doctoral recipients from foreign universities to agricultural economic research and education in China and abroad.

Graduation and Academic Placement of Underrepresented Racial/Ethnic Minority Doctoral Recipients in Public Health Disciplines, United States, 2003-2015

Objectives: Given public health’s emphasis on health disparities in underrepresented racial/ethnic minority communities, having a racially and ethnically diverse faculty is important to ensure adequate public health training. We examined trends in the number of underrepresented racial/ethnic minority (ie, non-Hispanic black, Hispanic, American Indian/Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander) doctoral graduates from public health fields and determined the proportion of persons from underrepresented racial/ethnic minority groups who entered academia. Methods: We analyzed repeated cross-sectional data from restricted files collected by the National Science Foundation on doctoral graduates from US institutions during 2003-2015. Our dependent variables were the number of all underrepresented racial/ethnic minority public health doctoral recipients and underrepresented racial/ethnic minority graduates who had accepted academic positions. Using logistic regression models and adjusted odds ratios (aORs), we examined correlates of these variables over time, controlling for all independent variables (eg, gender, age, relationship status, number of dependents). Results: The percentage of underrepresented racial/ethnic minority doctoral graduates increased from 15.4% (91 of 592) in 2003 to 23.4% (296 of 1264) in 2015, with the largest increase occurring among black graduates (from 6.6% in 2003 to 14.1% in 2015). Black graduates (310 of 1241, 25.0%) were significantly less likely than white graduates (2258 of 5913, 38.2%) and, frequently, less likely than graduates from other underrepresented racial/ethnic minority groups to indicate having accepted an academic position (all P < .001). Conclusions: Stakeholders should consider targeted programs to increase the number of racial/ethnic minority faculty members in academic public health fields.