International competition for PhDs and postdoctoral scholars: What does (and does not) matter

We explore factors that lead students and postdoctoral scholars who train outside their native country to come to the United States rather than go to a third country for study. We use data collected by the authors in 2011 as part of the GlobSci project of research-active scientists working in 16 countries. Our research suggests that public policy plays an important role in attracting the foreign born to study in a country and that the United States is a magnet for foreign students and postdocs precisely because the United States has excelled in creating a strong educational and research environment. Students who come to the United States appreciate these strengths and score factors that are proxies for the research environment higher than students who go to most other countries for training