The Increasing Importance of Immigrants to Science and Engineering in America: NFAP Policy Brief

Abstract

Immigrants have played an increasingly important role in contributing to science and engineering advancements in America, as demonstrated by their awards, research, entrepreneurship and education. This analysis finds that while historically immigrants have always made important contributions to the country, objective measures indicate those contributions have increased significantly since the 1960s, when major restrictions on immigration were lifted, and, in particular, over the past 20 years, as immigrants have found important niches in science and technology fields.The research illustrates that the right laws can play an important part in whether a country benefits from increased globalization, particularly rising educational achievement in India, China and elsewhere. The passage of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, which eliminated the discriminatory national origin quotas and opened the door to Asian immigrants, and the Immigration Act of 1990, which increased employment-based green card numbers, were key factors in enhancing the ability of America to assimilate talented individuals from around the world into our culture and economy. While some of the rise in indicators like immigrant Nobel Prize winners reflects an overall increase in the reputation and capability of American institutions and researchers post-1960, a greater openness to immigration helped make the United States the leading global destination for research in many different science and technology fields, including computers, cancer research and many others.