Contact: Rob Ostrander 202.224.7627 Shana Stribling 202.224.0309
Wednesday, April 12, 2006

COLUMBIA, MO – U.S. Senator Kit Bond today hosted a roundtable with students, professors and other campus organizations on his efforts to prevent the loss of U.S.-educated international students with degrees in science, engineering and math to foreign companies and countries. Last week, Bond introduced an amendment to immigration legislation to prevent high-tech graduates being forced out of the country, a change necessary for the United States to keep its competitive edge in the global economy.

“The United States demands invention and innovation to succeed,” said Bond. “This success requires our country to have the best and brightest minds fueling new products for U.S. workers to manufacture. It is U.S. workers who lose out when employers can’t get the high-tech graduates they need to compete with foreign companies in the 21st century economy.”

Bond stressed that scientific advancement is vital for the United States to retain its global competitive edge. Despite the nation’s need for students graduating with master’s, PhD or post-Doctoral degrees in science, technology, engineering or math (STEM), the number of U.S. citizens pursuing STEM degrees is down while other countries are up. Last year, China graduated over 600,000 new engineers, India 350,000 and the U.S. only 70,000.

Keeping children interested in math and science is an essential component of reversing this trend, said Bond. Bond has long supported increasing the U.S.’s investment in its students, including support for doubling the budget of the National Science Foundation and support for programs like the NASA Education Resource Centers (ERC). Encouraging more U.S. children to go into science and math is not enough and will not produce enough scientists and engineers to meet the current demand of U.S. companies, said Bond.

Instead, U.S. universities are meeting the U.S. economy’s needs with foreign students who are earning 30 percent of the doctorates in engineering and 50 percent in math and computer sciences. Unfortunately, Bond pointed out, outdated visa requirements for international students are costing the United States many of these best and brightest. Visa rules now force many of these highly sought after high-tech graduates out of the country before U.S. firms have a chance to hire them or the graduates have an opportunity to start a business here and hire American workers.

Bond’s legislation, supported by universities across Missouri, strengthens and builds on language currently in the Senate immigration bill that updates U.S. immigration law to meet the needs of the 21st century economy and workers. Changes to visa requirements in the Senate bill would allow PhD STEM graduates of U.S. universities up to one year after graduation to be placed with a U.S. company in their field of study and allows graduates who were placed with a U.S. company to be eligible for permanent residency and give them the time they need to process their application for permanent residency.

Bond’s legislation goes a step further by specifically including master’s and post-PhD students, not just PhDs. Bond said this change would ensure inclusion of valuable engineering and computer science students, who traditionally go only as far as a master’s degree, and research scientists pursuing advanced work in biology and bio-medical engineering through post-doctoral studies programs.

Also, Bond’s language expands the bill’s scope from covering only STEM students on F-visas to including STEM students on J-visas as well. Bond explained that while most students are on F-visas, many STEM students (up to 25 percent of total international graduate degree STEM students in Missouri universities) pursue post-doctoral studies on J-visas. Changes also include exempting J-visa STEM graduates from the J-visa requirement to return to their home country for 2 years after conclusion of their program. Current statute already provides a waiver of this requirement for medical doctors. Bond said it should be extended to STEM post-PhD students.

“Association of American Universities (AAU) greatly appreciates Senator Bond’s efforts to improve the visa process for international students graduating from U.S. universities with advanced degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM),” said AAU interim president John Vaughn. “The United States and the University of Missouri are in a global competition to attract and retain top-notch international students. AAU believes Senator Bond’s leadership will make it possible for some of the world’s most talented students to come, study, and work in the U.S. and Missouri.”