KU News Release

KU economist, doctoral student win grant to study immigrants’ impact on U.S. labor

LAWRENCE — A doctoral student in economics from the University of Kansas and her dissertation adviser have received a grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation to study the impact of highly skilled immigrants on the U.S. economy.

H. “Serena” Huang from Taiwan and Donna Ginther, associate professor of economics, received one of five grants awarded by the Sloan Foundation to support creative research on the U.S. workforce and labor markets in science and engineering.

The $38,900, one-year grant will help Huang in her analysis of data collected by the National Science Foundation to determine the impact foreign-born scientists, engineers and health practitioners, such as nurses, have on the U.S. economy.

“Most research on immigration focuses on the impact of low-skilled immigrants on our economy,” Ginther said. “Immigration is really important for the sciences” but few studies have been conducted to determine what effect immigrants with at least a bachelor’s degree may have on the U.S. economy.

Huang said that her preliminary results show that in growing science and engineering industries immigrant workers do not lower wages for U.S.-born workers.

In occupations that are stable or shrinking, the results can be different. In these occupations — fields such as life sciences, physical sciences, some areas of engineering and business — immigrants can depress wages.

One part of Huang’s study focuses on the impact of foreign-educated nurses on health care. She noted a trend in fewer falls reported “in units with a higher percentage of foreign nurses.” Even after looking at control factors such as the type of unit, staffing and education levels, years of experience and geographic region, Huang found that “a 1 percent increase in the share of foreign nurses correlates with three fewer falls per 1,000 patient days.”

Huang’s own interest in the impact of immigrants on the economy grew from her experiences as the teenage daughter of a visiting professor of philosophy at Pittsburg State University. “I saw reports in the media about immigrants taking jobs from Americans,” and was puzzled, Huang said. “I knew there were outstanding scholars at universities making important contributions.”

When she came to KU after graduating from Pittsburg High School, Huang majored in economics and earned a bachelor’s degree in 2004 and a master’s degree in 2006. As a graduate student, she has worked with Ginther, who encouraged Huang to study her questions about the value of highly skilled immigrants on the U.S. economy.

Her dissertation is titled “What is the Impact of Science and Engineering Immigration on the U.S. Economy?” She is the daughter of Frank Huang and Helen Lee of Taiwan.

Ginther directs the Center for Economic and Business Analysis at KU’s Institute for Policy and Social Research. Ginther is recognized as a national expert on women pursuing academic careers and scientific labor markets. Ginther has received research funding from the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health and the Kauffman Foundation. In the fall, she will co-direct a new seminar on educational inequality for KU’s Hall Center for the Humanities.

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