EC Hopes to Reverse Brain Drain

{WantNoCacheVal} EC Hopes to Reverse Brain Drain RICHARD STEVENSON LONDON—Stanford University wanted to create a program in organic geochemistry. Simon Brassell, a young research fellow at Bristol University, was looking for a better career opportunity. Unfortunately for Europe, it was a good watch: Brassell is now an associate professor of applied earth sciences and geology at Stanford. That combination of plentiful resources overseas and tight budgets at home has meant a continuing brain drain of the region’s scientific talent. Some 6,800 researchers left Europe for the United States between 1982 according to one study, and it is often the brightest and most ambitious who depart. A period of post-doctoral work overseas has long been seen as a natural career progression for young research scientists; today’s problem is to get them back once they’ve finished their training. The European Commission plans to spend $200 million over the next five years to reverse that flow by enabling its members to provide research opportunities on a par with the rest of the world. A study published last year by the Royal Society and the Fellowship of Engineering showed that the most common reasons for emigration were better career opportunities abroad and career restrictions at home, followed by higher salaries (particularly among university scientists and engineers) and better research facilities. More than half of U.K. scientists who emigrated during 1975-85 went to the United States; only a quarter stayed within Western Europe. The growing number of biomedical researchers going abroad is of particular concern and was addressed in a recent report by the House of Lords’ science and technology committee. No Room at Top But Europe has a long way to go to retain scientific talent, When the 33-year-old Brassell moved to Palo Alto last April, Stanford made availablesome $100,000 to equip his laboratory Brassel hopes the new program eventually will provide work for up to eight graduate students, and an additional faculty position. “My potential was severely limited in England,” Brassell said. Britain can fund only one sizable research team in such a specialized subject, he noted, and he could foresee a bottleneck of senior academics blocking his path to a full professorship for at least 10 to 15 years. The situation is similarly bleak in medicine. Cohn Blakemore, head of the physiology department at Oxford University, estimates that about 100 medical scientists depart each year. Of equal concern is that many talented researchers fail to return home after having left the country for short-term jobs abroad. Low pay is certainly one deterrent. A new survey by Britain’s Royal Society of Chemistry shows that the median salary of a Ph.D. chemist in the late 20s is $22,200 In the United States, the same chemist can expect $40,000. “it is already getting difficult to find a medical director for medium-sized companies,” said Tony Chandler, managing director of Talentmark, a London-based recruitment consultant. A reservoir of British physicians available to work for drug companies in continental Europe has evaporated, he said, and many English-speaking scientists find the United States more congenial. Although the situation is complicated somewhat for physicians because of the opportunity for private practice, Chandler said that industry is having an equally difficult time grooming chemists and biochemists for top administrative posts. The EC’s plan, which went into effect January 1, will concentrate on helping younger researchers find advanced training opportunities. it offers research assistance and grants for advanced courses to encourage them to complete their training in another member state of the European Community, and encourages projects between laboratories in different countries. Preliminary efforts in 1985-87 brought together 2,550 research scientists on 346 joint projects. By 1992 the Commission hopes to have up to 8,000 scientists (5 percent of Europe’s scientific population) moving among the organization’s 12 member nations. Stevenson writer for Chemistry in Britain.

EC Hopes to Reverse Brain Drain

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