High-skilled labour mobility in Europe before and after the 2004 enlargement

Abstract

The extent to which international high-skilled mobility channels are forming is a question of great importance in an increasingly global knowledge-based economy. One factor facilitating the growth of high-skilled labour markets is the standardization of certifiable degrees meriting international recognition. Within this context, we analysed an extensive high-skilled mobility database comprising roughly 382 000 individuals from five broad profession groups (Medical, Education, Technical, Science & Engineering and Business & Legal) over the period 1997-2014, using the 13-country expansion of the European Union (EU) to provide insight into labour market integration. We compare the periods before and after the 2004 enlargement, showing the emergence of a new east-west migration channel between the 13 mostly eastern EU entrants (E) and the rest of the western European countries (W). Indeed, we observe a net directional loss of human capital from E ! W, representing 29% of the total mobility after 2004. Nevertheless, the counter-migration from W ! E is 7% of the total mobility over the same period, signalling the emergence of brain circulation within the EU. Our analysis of the country -country mobility networks and the countryprofession bipartite networks provides timely quantitative evidence for the convergent integration of the EU, and highlights the central role of the UK and Germany as high-skilled labour hubs. We conclude with two datadriven models to explore the structural dynamics of the mobility networks. First, we develop a reconfiguration model to explore the potential ramifications of Brexit and the degree to which redirection of high-skilled labourers away from the UK may impact the integration of the rest of the European mobility network. Second, we use a panel regression model to explain empirical high-skilled mobility rates in terms of various economic 'pushpull' factors, the results of which show that government expenditure on education, per capita wealth, geographical proximity and labour force size are significant attractive features of destination countries.

Multiscale impact of researcher mobility

“…And researcher mobility between two countries is positively correlated with international student mobility in the opposite direction, indicative of the formation of cross-generational brain circulation channels [ 49 ]. Complementing these findings is an analysis of high-skilled migration within Europe over the period 1997–2014, showing that countries with higher government expenditure on education also make significantly more attractive destination countries [ 4 ].…”

“…Electronic supplementary material, figure S1(D) provides a schematic of the separation of the analysis into three observation periods: R is the number of researcher profiles analysed per T : R 1 = 4124, R 2 = 9362 and R 3 = 13 457. The variable window size accounts for the growth of the profession, and the latter period is chosen to occur after 2004 so to account for the increased international mobility following the EU enlargement [ 4 , 16 ].…”

“…This reorganization of collaboration networks at the individual level can have far-reaching implications at the national and global scale. A case example is how East–West migration imbalance within Europe following the 2004 enlargement of the European Union (EU) [ 16 ] negatively impacted rates of international collaboration; it is not unlikely that high-skilled migration in response to Brexit will have a similar effect on international collaboration patterns in Europe [ 4 ].…”

“…While researcher relocation remains a prominent conduit for knowledge transfer, researchers can now choose from a variety of virtual alternatives to explore new research environments and collaborations. And while the professional prospects and call of adventure associated with relocation may be alluring to some, there are nevertheless risky trade-offs associated with physical relocation that require careful assessment of local versus non-local socio-economic, family, work and funding opportunities [ 1 – 4 ]. This common dilemma factors into the cost of human and social capital investment in science, which is rather substantial and continues to grow with the globalization of the scientific endeavour [ 1 , 5 ].…”

Ten simple rules for international short-term research stays

“…Short-term research stays (from a few weeks to a few months), which do not involve a change of employer or affiliation, are the main form of international mobility [ 3 ]. This type of “brain circulation” [ 4 ] increases collaborations, creates networks, improves career prospects, facilitates the generation of high-impact publications, gives access to international funding, and nourishes ideas through exposure to different methods and scientific skills [ 5 – 7 ]. In this article, we present 10 simple rules for better and more productive experiences of international scientific mobility, which might be helpful for scientists in all stages of their careers, particularly for MSc and PhD students [ 8 ].…”