Abstract

In the United States, there is a community of successful Black immigrants from various different countries, with some diasporas housing some of the most educated demographic groups. Among US immigrants, Blacks are more likely to be retained in the US and become citizens. Previous research suggests that political reasons, the availability of career opportunities, better health conditions, and general home-country dynamics causes Black immigrants to migrate to the U.S. As they are educated and could contribute substantially to their home countries’ development, this raises many questions. Why are many of them staying here when their training could benefit their home-country? Is the type of academic degree pursued a major factor? We intend to take data from the Survey of Earned Doctorates to explore this question, then follow up with a mass collaboration data collection of Black immigrants with Ph.Ds. across the U.S. We hypothesize that degrees leading to hire by large organizations with Western-competitive salaries will repatriate more than degrees that do not lead to the same paying caliber. The findings from this study would provide information that could improve the US immigration policy and help African/Caribbean countries to retain their highly skilled workers.

Principal Investigators