Global mobility of the recent STEM postdoctoral workforce registered in ORCID

Abstract

Postdoctoral researchers contribute to scientific, technological, and societal innovations under the supervision of academic faculty and domain experts. Their international movements facilitate the diffusion of knowledge and thus are important for research and development. To understand postdoctoral mobility at a global scale, this paper analyzes self-reported career trajectories of postdoctoral researchers by leveraging Open Researcher and Contributor ID (ORCID). Significant movements of postdoctoral researchers are identified by inferred gender in six STEM fields. The U.S. and European countries are major destinations for the first postdoctoral research position across the selected fields, while a few Asian countries are also significant destinations for male Asian postdoctoral researchers in Engineering. Relatively more females stayed in a single country for a doctoral degree and two consecutive postdoctoral research positions, and relatively more males returned to the country of a doctoral degree after completing their first postdoctoral training in the U.S., compared to another gender.

Citizenship privilege harms science

“…Together, these factors make travel and migration beneficial for researchers' careers -especially if that movement is to or between global north countries. Indeed, one study indicates that 82% of researchers who move between countries for their first postdoc are destined for the global north 8 . The United States is the most common destination, but the United Kingdom, Germany and Switzerland are also popular 8,9 .…”

“…Indeed, one study indicates that 82% of researchers who move between countries for their first postdoc are destined for the global north 8 . The United States is the most common destination, but the United Kingdom, Germany and Switzerland are also popular 8,9 .…”