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Permanent Visas and Temporary Jobs: Evidence from Postdoctoral Participation of Foreign P h D s in the U nited S tates
Author(s) -
Lan Xiaohuan
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
journal of policy analysis and management
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.898
H-Index - 84
eISSN - 1520-6688
pISSN - 0276-8739
DOI - 10.1002/pam.21639
Subject(s) - graduation (instrument) , demographic economics , position (finance) , political science , labour economics , advertising , business , economics , engineering , finance , mechanical engineering
About 75 percent of U . S .‐trained, noncitizen P h D s in science and engineering work in the U nited S tates after graduation, and 54 percent of those who stay take postdoctoral positions. The probability of postdoctoral participation is substantially higher for temporary visa holders than for permanent visa holders because of visa‐related restrictions in the U . S . labor market. To identify the causal effects of visa status on entry into a postdoctoral position, this paper uses a unique shock to visa status generated by the C hinese S tudent P rotection A ct of 1992. Eligibility for the act is used as an instrumental variable for visa status. Two‐stage least‐square estimates show that permanent visa holders are 24 percent less likely to take postdoctoral positions than temporary visa holders. The effects of a permanent visa vary considerably across research fields, but for most fields, it reduces postdoctoral participation significantly.