This evidence report is based on the key findings of collated sources of evidence on the international mobility of researchers, especially in relation to their entry to the UK, published between 2013 and 2023.
The aim of this report is to centralise the existing evidence on international mobility, showing the impacts and trends as well as any gaps in knowledge. As indicated by the UK government’s Research and Development (R&D) People and Culture Strategy, the UK’s research system is renowned for its strong collaborative nature and has long excelled at attracting international researchers.
Key findings tell us of the importance of international mobility to researchers, countries and organisations, and may give useful pointers for the continued development of the UK’s strategies to attract and collaborate with international researchers.
This report has been formed with contributions from across governmental departments and with the input of organisations from across the research and innovation sector. For definitions of all terms used in this report, see the ‘methodology’ section.
In the 2023 update, new evidence has been added that was published over the last year, and old evidence has been removed due to the time that has lapsed since it was published. The report has the same structure, and the new evidence has been spread throughout the report to create this updated version.
Section 1: 2023 update
Since the first publication of this evidence report, there have been several changes to the UK research and innovation (R&I) landscape. Most notably the UK has agreed to associate with the EU’s research and innovation programme Horizon Europe. This development has been warmly welcomed by the research sector, and means that the UK can build on its long track record of mutually beneficial participation in previous EU schemes to maximise the opportunities that membership of Horizon Europe provides.
The new Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) was also created in 2023 to deliver on the government’s ambition to make the UK a science and technology superpower. The government launched the Science and Technology Framework, containing 10 key actions to make the UK a science and technology superpower by 2030, including the creation of an ‘established competitive advantage in attracting international talent to the UK’. The delivery of these actions will be overseen by the National Science and Technology Council.
During the last year the UK government increased its visa offer, including reform of the Innovator visa. It also implemented uplifts to the cost of all visas. Work and visit visas have increased in cost by 15%, family visas, settlement, and citizenship by 20%, and student visas by 35%. The cost of the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS), payable at the same time as visa fees, is set to increase by 66% (see UK Immigration Fees, House of Commons Library).
In this iteration of the evidence report, UKRI have added new evidence on international researchers in business (see ‘What makes the UK attractive’ section) following an evidence-gathering exercise into how UK R&D intensive businesses interact with the immigration system, highlighting the challenges and opportunities they face. We have also added more information on international students, short-term mobility, and evidence from the UK-wide survey of the Research and Innovation Workforce 2022 released earlier this year.
Section 2: Summary - the importance of international mobility
The benefits of international mobility for both countries and research organisations are well evidenced, and to match the UK’s ambitions for R&D, the UK must retain and extend its position as a collaborator and destination of choice (R&D People and Culture strategy).
By building a reputation as the go-to research partner of choice, the UK will also supercharge its domestic research by attracting greater levels of foreign investment and talent (The UK’s role in global research: how the UK can live up to its place in the world). This highlights how important it is for the UK to maintain a competitive talent offer.
The prestigious reputation of the UK’s research organisations also plays a significant role in attracting international researchers (Highly skilled migration and the negotiation of immigration policy: non-EEA postgraduate students and academic staff at English universities), along with the highly skilled technician workforce who provide essential support to research (Impact of Brexit on the technical workforce at Russell Group universities).
The UK is seen to provide international researchers with transparent and merit-based career progression, scoring above average in comparison to other European countries in terms of the career opportunities offered to academics (MORE4 study).
However, as the government’s R&D People and Culture Strategy and the UK Innovation Strategy note, to maximise the social and economic benefits of our investment in R&D across all parts of the UK, we need a sector that is able to attract, retain and grow a workforce with the right skills and in the right numbers.
Section 3: Introduction
The UK research population has been steadily rising over the last ten years. It will need to continue to grow to meet its research ambitions by 2030, which is unlikely to be possible through domestic supply alone.
While life in the UK appears to be an attractive proposition for international researchers, it is important that this interest is converted into relocation decisions to realise the UK’s ambitions (R&D People and Culture Strategy).
| Year | Total researchers (FTE) | Total R&D personnel (FTE) |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 256,585 | 350,766 |
| 2011 | 251,358 | 356,258 |
| 2012 | 256,156 | 356,484 |
| 2013 | 267,699 | 377,343 |
| 2014 | 276,584 | 396,281 |
| 2015 | 285,855 | 414,539 |
| 2016 | 291,103 | 423,815 |
| 2017 | 295,842 | 444,619 |
| 2018 | 306,578 | 465,681 |
| 2019 | 316,296 | 475,093 |
Table 1: Between 2010 and 2019, the UK saw a 23% increase in the number of full-time equivalent researchers and a 35% increase in total R&D personnel including technicians and support staff. Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
Demographics of the researcher workforce and mobility patterns
International mobility can be defined in several different ways, as international experiences can vary by duration, purpose, the number, and frequency of moves, and when moves occur within a researcher’s career. Studies also take different approaches to the researcher groups analysed, as well as whether movements are considered relative to the country of birth or to other reference points such as nationality, country of highest degree and educational attainment, or country of first research publication.
Within the UK-wide survey of the Research and Innovation Workforce 2022 undertaken by BEIS and DSIT (BEIS’ predecessor the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy), an in-depth insight into the R&I workforce in the UK is given which covers members of both the innovation and research and development workforces. With regards to international mobility specifically, 14% of respondents were non-British citizens (in line with previous estimates of 15%), and a further 11% held dual citizenship.
More than half of respondents (52%) reported having worked outside the UK over the course of their career in R&I, and a further 32% had considered doing so. When asked about their plans for the next five years, 57% said that they might strongly consider or already have plans to work outside the UK.
Investment and interventions in the research sector
To attract and retain researchers, the UK government has implemented a range of interventions.
In February 2020, the Global Talent Visa (GTV) was introduced, enabling promising researchers and their teams to obtain long term visas at speed, including technology and methodology experts. This scheme has since been expanded and improved to widen eligibility. A 2022 Home Office evaluation of the visa scheme found that the visa had played a role in making the UK more attractive as a place to live and work, though it did also suggest that there is more to do in publicising and promoting the GTV and in ensuring that there is sufficient provision of uncomplicated information available.
The GREAT Talent Campaign launched in 2021 offers an overview of information about living, moving to, and working in the UK for international research and tech talent. The site is part of a larger campaign focused on international talent attraction. At launch the campaign focused on attracting talent from Brazil, India, South Africa, and the US. The campaign is led by DSIT.
In October 2020, UKRI also extended eligibility for the doctoral training programme to international students and the UK government introduced the new Graduate visa route in summer 2021.
International mobility and collaboration
The studies in this evidence report all suggest that international mobility and collaboration is essential to research and innovation. International collaboration is key to career development and enables researchers to:
- access additional, often specific, expertise
- gain new perspectives on research
- build relationships with others in the field
Indeed, a survey of more than 1,200 fellowship and grant recipients from the UK National Academies found that international collaboration and mobility is integral to life as an active researcher across all disciplines and at all career stages (The role of international collaboration and mobility in research). The study also noted that short- and long-term international mobility are common in the careers of researchers and are undertaken for a variety of reasons.
As well as attending conferences, researchers make short-term international trips (of less than a year) to visit collaborators, either established or potential, and to carry out independent research. Short-term trips are considered to be becoming more frequent as part of the role of a researcher. More than half of respondents (58%) reported that at some point during their career they had spent a sustained period of a year or more working abroad. This was most commonly reported as something which participants had undertaken at post-doctoral stage (51%).
Impacts of global mobility and collaboration on researchers
The impact of global mobility and collaboration on a researcher can be significant. Over 80% of survey respondents said their international contacts and network strongly increased or increased as a result of their entire mobility experience. Over 75% of survey respondents said their advanced research skills increased or strongly increased as a result of their entire mobility experience. Respondents also perceived strong positive effects on recognition in the research community, career progression and the quality and quantity of research outputs.
Increased and strongly increased effects of entire mobility experience on the research career in 2019 (for the EU28 member states):
- job options outside academia (46%)
- progress in salary and financial conditions (50%)
- understanding or applying Open Science approaches (53%)
- quality of life of you or your family (55%)
- national contact or network (56%)
- ability to obtain competitive funding for basic research (59%)
- job options in academia (61%)
- number of co-authored publications (68%)
- collaboration with other (sub)fields of research (70%)
- quantity of output (71%)
- overall career progression (71%)
- quality of output (72%)
- recognition in the research community (73%)
- advanced research skills (77%)
- international contacts or network (83%)
(Source: page 261 of the MORE4 Europe study ‘Support data collection and analysis concerning mobility patterns and career paths of researchers, survey on researchers in European Higher Education Institutions’, 2021)
Section 4: What makes the UK attractive
Motives for PhD student and researcher mobility
The drivers of mobility for researchers and PhD students differ slightly. Researchers appear to be motivated by career-oriented and value networking, autonomy, and opportunities for development over funding opportunities and pay. PhD students are more opportunity-oriented and focus on the availability of funding and positions.
The numbers show major contributing motives for PhD researcher mobility within the EU (MORE4 study):
- international networking (87%)
- research autonomy (85%)
- working with leading scientists (83%)
- career progression (81%)
- access to research facilities and equipment (74%)
The numbers below show how mobility motivates major contributing motives indicated for PhD researcher mobility within the EU (MORE4 study):
- availability of research funding (80%)
- availability of suitable PhD positions (78%)
- international networking (75%)
- working with leading scientists (74%)
- research autonomy (73%)
Why the UK is an attractive place for researchers and scientists
A Home Office evidence review found the following motivations and drivers for international researchers and scientists are significant when choosing a destination country. Evidence on the extent to which the UK meets these drivers is presented below.
Career opportunities
A large-scale study of EU researchers (of over 2700 mobile researchers) found that career progression was the most commonly cited single reason for international mobility among PhD students and researchers in all post-PhD career stage within Europe. The MORE4 study follows earlier surveys in identifying research funding and the availability of positions as the largest barriers to researcher mobility. It terms these areas ‘enablers of attractiveness’ which, if improved, will support greater international mobility for those interested in it (MORE4 study).
A survey of international academics from 17 countries also found that higher salaries played an important part in attracting highly qualified academics from abroad (The Early Career Paths and Employment Conditions of the Academic Profession in 17 Countries).
The UK generally scores well in terms of career progression in comparison to other European countries. A MORE4 study found that 80.4% of researchers surveyed agreed that career progression is sufficiently merit-based in the UK and 81.2% of researchers suggested that career paths are transparent (MORE4 study).
Research infrastructure
A large survey of researchers working in higher education in countries around the world found that funding from research organisations is perceived to be the most important enabling factor for researchers who move to live abroad (International Movement and Science: A survey of researchers by the Together Science Can campaign).
Analysis of small-scale case studies of relocating academic staff found that the prestigious reputation of the UK’s research organisations was a significant factor behind choosing the UK to migrate to for work-related reasons (Highly skilled migration and the negotiation of immigration policy: non-EEA postgraduate students and academic staff at English universities).
High-quality peers and the opportunity to build networks and collaborative relationships
The quality of the working conditions influencing scientific productivity, such as working with leading researchers and long-term career perspectives (for instance, a tenure track model), research autonomy and the balance between teaching and research, are the main drivers of attractiveness of jobs in research: factors that drive the decision of researchers to become mobile.
The MORE2 study found that researchers were willing to offset some financial benefits, such as pay, in exchange for better quality working conditions that support scientific productivity. These conditions were typically linked to working with leading scientists, long-term career perspectives, research autonomy and the balance between teaching and research (MORE4 study).
Findings from a study with fellows and grant recipients of the National Academies highlighted that participants’ reasons for short-term travel commonly included travelling to meet collaborators and to develop networks (The role of international collaboration and mobility in research).
Moreover, the UK has a highly skilled technician workforce who provide essential support to research and the ability to work with the best technicians is an attractive prospect to researchers. In Russell Group universities, most technicians (64%), are skilled to NQF level 6 or above with 88% of EU technicians and 89% of non-EU technicians holding this higher level of qualification (Impact of Brexit on the technical workforce at Russell Group universities).
Barriers
To continue to attract international researchers to the UK the evidence suggests the following areas could be improved to enhance the UK’s offer to international researchers.
Immigration system and visas
The cost (UK science and immigration: why the UK needs an internationally competitive visa offer) and length of the UK visa process (International Movement and Science: A survey of researchers by the Together Science Can campaign) are obstacles to relocation for researchers. Internationally, differences in entitlements and immigration rules in destination countries may influence researcher mobility.
The length of the visa process in the UK presents an issue for many researchers, particularly for early career researchers. A quarter of researchers from Africa and Asia report difficulties in obtaining a visa that affect relocation (International Movement and Science: A survey of researchers by the Together Science Can campaign).
A Home Office evidence review also indicated that one of the most frequent difficulties experienced by international researchers and scientists was the complexity and length of application forms (International Movement and Science: A survey of researchers by the Together Science Can campaign).
A study by the European Commission, Directorate-General for Education, Youth, Sport, and Culture on mobility flows of researchers in the context of the Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions showed that the ‘ease or difficulty in securing work and residence permits can influence incoming mobility flows’. Additionally, ‘excessive bureaucracy was identified as one of the key factors curbing researchers’ mobility’.
An updated Royal Society analysis on visa costs (which was undertaken in August 2021 before the latest visa fee increases) showed that total upfront costs are higher in the UK than all other countries in the analysis. Across the study group, UK costs are two to five times higher than the international average when included in the calculation of upfront visa costs, and up to ten times higher when the UK is excluded from this calculation.
When excluding the UK from the international average, UK costs are up to ten times higher. The analysis also found that, with the IHS, the GTV is the most expensive visa compared to similar research visa routes for other leading science nations, when comparing both upfront costs paid by the applicant as well as total upfront costs (for instance, costs paid by both applicant and employer). A Wellcome Trust report indicated that these costs are making the UK less attractive compared to its competitors (The UK’s role in global research: how the UK can live up to its place in the world).
These costs can include application fees, fees for dependents, the IHS (the IHS is charged upfront for each visa year applied for) and may include costs associated with applying for citizenship (UK science and immigration: why the UK needs an internationally competitive visa offer).
The Home Office Global Talent visa evaluation report also found that the annual IHS was not viewed to be as fair as other fees, while costs for dependants were thought to be too high. These could possibly present a barrier to applications.
With regards to shorter term mobility arrangements specifically, The Royal Society developed a report which found that the application process for a Visitor visa specifically can be complex. The report also noted issues with timelines for international researchers, stating ‘delays in the Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS), required for researchers of certain nationalities coming to the UK to work in areas deemed sensitive, is another issue of visa timelines. One interviewee remarked that, for them, the service standard was almost always met, but that ATAS was the single biggest cause of delays’ (The borders of science).
For further discussion on ATAS, please see the ‘Methodology’ section.
Funding
The MORE studies consistently indicate that research funding is perceived to be one of the biggest barriers to mobility. In 2019, the UK scored just below the EU average for researchers’ individual satisfaction on the availability of research funding, significantly lagging behind Germany, Switzerland, and the Netherlands (MORE4, main study).
MORE4 data also suggests that both PhD students and researchers perceive funding for mobility and finding a suitable position to be significant mobility barriers.
Personal or family reasons
The MORE4 study found that personal and family reasons were the most frequently cited barriers to mobility by responding PhD students. The MORE4 survey also echoed earlier findings that single researchers and those without children are more likely to be mobile than those in a couple or with children. A larger proportion of researchers surveyed in MORE4 cited family reasons as a potential or actual barrier to international mobility than in previous survey.
Barriers and opportunities facing R&D-intensive businesses recruiting internationally
People working in research-related roles in business tend to be less well-defined and more difficult to reach. Therefore, most analysis has focused on academic researchers, despite a larger (and growing) proportion of UK researchers who work in businesses.
In recognition of this gap, UKRI commissioned a large-scale, three-phased evidence gathering exercise to understand how R&D-intensive businesses interact with the UK immigration system, as well as identifying the barriers and opportunities they face. The findings of this evidence gathering exercise are laid out below.
Recruitment practices of R&D-intensive businesses
R&D businesses do consider themselves to be international in their recruitment practices, to the point where some believe their organisation relies on the ability to bring in international talent.
Businesses hire internationally for some of the same reasons as public sector research organisations:
- diversity of experiences and perspectives
- access to a larger pool of specialist skills
They also hire for some reasons that are more specific to industry:
- expanded business networks for those that operate across multiple countries
- representativeness of client base
Nearly all (97%) organisations surveyed employ non-UK nationals. The most recruited from regions are Europe (58% of organisations), Asia (27%), North America (16%), and Africa (11%).
Businesses tend to seek individuals with highly specialised technical skills that they feel are challenging to secure from the domestic workforce. While some hire early to mid-stage career candidates, the focus is predominantly on recruiting senior-level employees. More senior professionals are felt to bring specific experience and expertise.
Three in five businesses are interested in utilising short-term exchanges or collaborations to recruit from overseas.
Experiences of R&D-intensive businesses when using the immigration system
Businesses are divided as to whether the UK’s immigration system meets the needs of their organisation, but among all, there is widespread agreement that overseas recruitment is a significant task for their HR or relevant teams and one that involves a large amount of administrative burden and liaison with candidates. This is exacerbated by a perception that the Home Office lacks due process to make these procedures streamlined. In particular, companies feel at a disadvantage for not having a single point of contact at the Home Office to whom they can refer for questions or troubleshooting.
Barriers to mobility when recruiting staff are broadly similar to those in the public sector:
- time to complete process and administrative burden (37%)
- cost of recruitment (36%)
- complexity, including clear information (35%)
- costs to individuals (19%)
The cost of sponsoring individuals across visa types is felt to be a real strain. Smaller businesses in particular feel hindered by the cost and time required and, as a result, sometimes feel the need to make choices about where to advertise jobs. There is appetite for global consistency regarding pay for spouse, dependent or health surcharges related to these.
There is also concern over the long lead time for applicants from overseas, whereby candidates are awaiting results for several months and often drop out of the process in the meantime. 74% of 49 businesses noted the IHS specifically impacted their ability to recruit international researchers.
The GTV is seen as easier to use than any visa types except ICT or Global Business Mobility (58% easy vs. 19% difficult).
Among all businesses sampled, there is felt to be a palpable decrease in the degree to which the UK is seen as an appealing place to live and move. A number attribute this to changes post-Brexit, namely, that the UK is thought to be less accessible, particularly but not exclusively for candidates from the EU. In addition to administrative complexity for both employer and applicant, some mentioned what they viewed to be a deterring historical track record, whereby the UK has become less open to foreign nationals living and working in its borders.
50% of businesses rely on their internal HR team to navigate the immigration system, and 43% make use of the Gov.uk pages. Smaller businesses in particular can struggle to navigate the system without resorting to expensive external advice. Multinationals often have dedicated teams to help and hence need to outsource less.
Barriers to living in the UK 2022
Findings from DSIT’s UK-wide survey of the R&I workforce in 2022 show that respondents view the biggest barriers to living in the UK to be the following (UK-wide survey of the Research and Innovation Workforce 2022):
- level of pay and benefits, or maintaining your standard of living (30%)
- immigration and visa requirements (24%)
- finding adequate accommodation (15%)
- availability of suitable opportunities to advance your career (14%)
- working hours (14%)
- transfer of pension or other benefits (12%)
- finding suitable care or education for dependents (11%)
- ability of family members to live or work in the UK (11%)
- lack of research facilities or infrastructure (10%)
- workplace discrimination and harassment (10%)
- other financial consideration, including cost of relocation (10%)
- UK culture (9%)
- maintaining contact with your professional network (6%)
- qualification requirements (2%)
- language requirements (1%)
25% responded that nothing had made it difficult for them to work in the UK.
Section 5: Impact of international mobility and collaboration
In addition to improving the attractiveness of the UK to international researchers, it is important to acknowledge the significant impact that international mobility and collaboration have on both research organisations and countries.
One of the most widely recognised indicators of the impact of research is the field-weighted citation impact (FWCI) of research publications (What is field-weighted citation impact?). See ‘limitations of the evidence base’ for a discussion of this metric.
There is evidence that international collaboration is positively correlated to the citation impact of research publications, and FWCI is sometimes used as a proxy for measuring the impact of international mobility and collaboration (The benefits of scientific mobility and international collaboration). In addition ‘evidence shows that research involving at least one international partner has greater impact than those with only national collaborators’ (The UK’s role in global research: how the UK can live up to its place in the world).
In 2018, 55% of UK publications were the result of international collaboration and since 2010 the UK has had a larger proportion of its research among the most widely cited in the world than any other comparator (International Comparative Performance of the UK Research Base).
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) concluded that publications by incoming researchers to the UK have a 13% higher FWCI than those of UK-based researchers who are not mobile. However, the FWCI of researchers who return to the UK and of researchers who leave the UK for another country does not differ significantly from those who stay in the UK. The OECD also notes that researchers who stay in their home country are more likely to publish in journals deemed to be of lower prestige (OECD Science, Technology and Industry Scoreboard).
Impact of inward and outward mobility on organisations
Mobility, both inward and outward, is a vital tool in developing relationship-building collaborations, which may in turn generate income for the research and innovation sector. The skills and knowledge of mobile and internationally collaborating researchers bring reputational and performance benefits for UK organisations.
Mobility can also offer financial benefits to research organisations. Access to a global talent pool may help institutions hire good quality researchers who match the desired (rare or unique) research skills and knowledge (Research Issues in the International Migration of Highly Skilled Workers: A Perspective with Data from the US). This in turn aids in overcoming bottlenecks in research or production, leading to increased economic activity.
Additionally, links and ideas which develop through international mobility can translate into research grants from domestic or international sources. This may help diversify funding streams, providing opportunities not previously open to UK researchers (according to British Academy research).
The British Academy noted that European research collaboration activities have raised the profile of UK higher education institutions, meaning that UK universities perform strongly in university rankings which supports future opportunities for collaboration.
The University of Cambridge noted:
The presence of international researchers (non-UK EEA and non-EEA alike) aids ‘brain circulation’ and helps drive up the citation weight impacts of our British researchers. Being able to freely access talent from the EEA has been a significant advantage in this respect.
Impact of international mobility and collaboration on countries
Global mobility also creates significant benefits for both host countries and countries of origin. The risk of ‘brain drain’ is often used to argue against increased global mobility in research, but this evidence review shows that it is more accurate to talk of ‘brain circulation’, as the movement of researchers back and forth helps knowledge to circulate worldwide.
It is not always the case that countries of origin experience a loss, as researchers tend to retain productive links with their home countries and may also return home bringing back additional skills (International mobility of researchers: A review of the literature commissioned by Royal Society).
Increased availability of highly skilled workers and export opportunities for technology can increase R&D and economic activity. However, Regets (2007) suggests that this could also have possible negative consequences, such as a decreased incentive for resident researchers to seek higher skills, and the potential for technology to be transferred to competitors (Research Issues in the International Migration of Highly Skilled Workers: A Perspective with Data from the US).
Enabling UK-based researchers to undertake short periods of time overseas is beneficial to the UK’s soft power, helping to establish and reinforce bilateral and multilateral R&I relationships between countries but also beyond (UK Research and Development Roadmap: A response from the British Academy).
Section 6: Areas for future research
While this report sets out many of the key dimensions in global mobility, there are areas where there is limited information, and future evidence-gathering exercises should aim to help reduce these gaps in evidence. Since the previous iteration, we have conducted an evidence gathering exercise to better understand international researchers in business (as above).
Effect of immigration rules
More evidence is needed on the effect of the Home Office immigration rules on international researchers’ attitudes to, and experiences of, mobility (International mobility of researchers: A review of the literature commissioned by Royal Society).
It is worth noting, however, that an OECD report found that visa restrictions can have statistically negative effects on both scientist flows and collaborations, decreasing them by as much as 50% (Which factors influence the international mobility of research scientists?).
Orazbayev notes that administrative barriers to mobility are also associated with reduced bilateral knowledge flows, and to ‘achieve a faster convergence to the frontier of knowledge requires the lowering of immigration barriers, not just in the knowledge-importing countries (developing), but also in the knowledge-exporting (developed) countries’.
There is also room to explore in more detail how researchers use various UK visa routes in order to understand what is working particularly well, or less well. This could be done through research with UK visa holders, or with people who have experience of more than one visa over time, to compare experiences and views more directly.
Demographics and global mobility
Little is known about the demographics of globally mobile researchers, and evidence is needed on the effectiveness of equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) policies in this area. Compiling and contributing to an evidence base in this area could help guide policy, such as efforts to increase ‘family-friendliness’ of academia (International mobility of researchers: A review of the literature commissioned by Royal Society). Over the next year, UKRI will take steps to address this gap.
Social implications of global mobility
There is a lack of evidence around the social implications of global mobility, both on a personal level for researchers and in terms of research outcomes. Most studies focus on benefits to the economy, or to researchers’ careers or their academic output and forming of new networks. The advantages of mobility have chiefly been assessed in terms of publications, which do not present a full account of the benefits to society that research provides (International mobility of researchers: A review of the literature commissioned by Royal Society).
Research funding schemes
There is limited evidence on the impact research funding schemes have on fostering international mobility and little comparative evidence of how different countries support and promote international mobility (International Comparative Performance of the UK Research Base).
Global mobility patterns
Future analysis could examine the impact of researchers’ mobility patterns on career progression across career stages and disciplines, or the extent to which short-term mobility is equal to long-term mobility in terms of impact on career progression or recruitment opportunities.
International student mobility
The evidence report focuses more on the mobility of postdoctoral researchers and contains less evidence on international student mobility due to the higher availability of evidence on the postdoctoral research workforce.
The newly released report published jointly by Universities UK International (UUKi), the Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI) and Kaplan International Pathways in collaboration with London Economics, reveals ‘the growing importance of international students to local economies throughout the UK. The report shows the economic benefit of international students rose from £31.3 billion to £41.9 billion between 2018 to 2019, and 2021 to 2022. On average, each of the 650 parliamentary constituencies in the UK is £58 million better off because of international students, equivalent to approximately £560 per member of the resident population (The costs and benefits of international higher education students to the UK).
UKRI is supporting Universities UK in conducting an evidence gathering exercise to understand the non-monetary value of international postgraduate students to the UK research base. We aim to include these findings in the next iteration of the evidence report.
Next steps
This report aims to increase understanding of the global mobility of researchers (including the barriers and motivations to do so), to highlight the impacts of mobility and identify where the gaps in knowledge are. This centralised summary of evidence on global mobility will act as a shared point of reference in the sector, to help provide the basis for evidence-based policy proposals and stances.
UKRI publish an annual update to this evidence report with the aim of providing a succinct snapshot of the current evidence on international mobility, along with a summary of the evidence that assesses how attractive the UK is to international researchers. We encourage you to contact the team if you have any suggestions for evidence to include, or if you have any other feedback.
Limitations of the evidence base
While the evidence used in this report sketches a picture of the international mobility of researchers, the studies included in this summary have some limitations:
Due to the variation in defining international mobility, it is difficult to draw general conclusions about the prevalence of international mobility, and it should be noted that the strength of some studies used in this review is limited.
While the evidence base points to the reported benefits of international mobility and collaboration, it is difficult to quantitatively measure the impact of international mobility on research performance.
While there is evidence to suggest that progression and job opportunities are an important motivation for moving to the UK, the sample sizes of these studies were very small and geographically limited.
It is difficult to quantify the impact that high visa fees (including the IHS) have on attracting and retaining international talent, as to do so, we would require knowledge of individuals who have turned down an offer to come to the UK.
Similarly, this review did not find many studies that looked at the international mobility of research team members and specialists (for example, technical, or methodological experts, language specialists, professionals in engineering, data science and so on).
The impact of international mobility is difficult to measure, and the most widely used measurement (FWCI) is narrowly defined and not inclusive of the wide range of research outputs and impacts – as a signatory to the 2013 San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA), we are mindful of how inappropriate metrics can give rise to perverse incentives.
Within this report we have primarily focused more on long-term mobility. To help understand the picture for short-term mobility arrangements, the Royal Society published an analysis of short-term visa costs and processes in the UK and other leading science nations.
The report notes that shorter term visas pose different barriers to mobility. For instance, they can be highly bureaucratic, time-consuming, and may sometimes disproportionately refuse visitors from the Global South, including scientific visitors. It finds that this could have the effect of discouraging scientific visitors and leading conference organisers to consider hosting scientific events outside the UK.
References
- DSIT/ BEIS. (2021): Research and Development (R&D) People and Culture Strategy.
- DSIT (2023): Science and Technology Framework.
- McKinney, CJ., Meade, L., Sturge, G., Barton, C. (2023): UK Immigration Fees.
- DSIT/ BEIS. (2022): UK research and innovation workforce survey 2022 report
- Wellcome Trust. (2020): The UK’s role in global research: how the UK can live up to its place in the world.
- European Commission, Directorate-General for Research and Innovation (2021): Support data collection and analysis concerning mobility patterns and career paths of researchers: survey on researchers outside Europe.
- DSIT/ BEIS. (2021): UK Innovation Strategy: leading the future by creating it.
- Royal Society. (2019). UK science and immigration: why the UK needs an internationally competitive visa offer (PDF).
- Gordon R. McInroy, Catherine A. Lichten, Becky Ioppolo, Sarah Parks and Susan Guthrie (2018): International Movement and Science: a survey of researchers by the Together Science Can campaign.
- Elizabeth Mavroudi, Adam Warren (2013): Highly skilled migration and the negotiation of immigration policy: non-EEA postgraduate students and academic staff at English universities.
- Russell Group (2017): Technical workforce and Brexit: impact of Brexit on the technical workforce at Russell Group universities
- ECD (2023), Researchers (indicator). doi: 10.1787/20ddfb0f-en. (Accessed on 20 September 2023)
- Rachel Worsley, Mark Matthews, Charlotte Peel, Alice Sarkany, Kirsty MacLeod (2022): Global Talent visa evaluation: exploring experiences of the Global Talent visa process – wave 1 report.
- Royal Society, British Academy, Royal Academy of Engineering, and the Academy of Medical Sciences (2017): The role of international collaboration and mobility in research (PDF).
- A. Bennion and W. Locke (2010): The early career paths and employment conditions of the academic profession in 17 countries.
- European Commission, Directorate-General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture, R. Dėlkutė, J. Nikinmaa, M. Pupinis et al.: Study on mobility flows of researchers in the context of the Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions: analysis and recommendations towards a more balanced brain circulation across the European Research Area final report.
- Fragomen LLP (2022): Summary of visa costs analysis 2021 (PDF)
- Royal Society (2023): The borders of science: making UK visas work for short-term researcher mobility.
- Scopus (2022): What is field-weighted citation impact?
- Marcio L Rodrigues, Leonardo Nimrichter, Radames J B Cordero (2016): The benefits of scientific mobility and international collaboration.
- DSIT/BEIS. (2019): International comparison of the UK research base 2019.
- British Academy (2020): UK Research and Development Roadmap: a response from the British Academy.
- RAND Europe (2017): International mobility of researchers: a review of the literature.
- Silvia Appelt, Brigitte van Beuzekom, Fernando Galindo-Rueda and Roberto de Pinho (2015): Which factors influence the international mobility of research scientists?
- Sultan Orazbayev (2017): International knowledge flows and the administrative barriers to mobility.
- London Economics (2023): The benefits and costs of international higher education students to the UK economy.
- Mark C. Regets (2007): Research issues in the international migration of highly skilled workers: a perspective with data from the US.
Methodology
The evidence report is based on literature reviews and data between 2010 and 2021. These sources were identified through online searches, engaging with various organisations for guidance and utilising existing UKRI data providers, such as the Higher Education Statistical Agency (HESA).
It aims to summarise the latest evidence on the above research questions from the identified sources and will be updated as new information and data becomes available. A variety of sources have been used from reputable sources (for example, OECD, EU commission and Elsevier) which are listed above. Any analysis done internally has been quality assured.
Evidence that is over ten years old has been removed to ensure that the evidence accurately reflects the landscape. An exception to this rule is if the point made by the evidence source is not specific to that time period, and is useful from a general perspective on R&D mobility.
Definitions
The Immigration Health Surcharge: the surcharge is an upfront cost paid as a part of the visa application and grants the visa holder access to free health services in the UK. The surcharge is calculated based on the length of visa being applied for.
Definitions based on the International Comparative Performance of the UK Research Base report
‘Migratory mobility pattern’: researchers who stay abroad or in the UK for two years or more.
‘Transitory mobility pattern’ or ‘temporary mobility pattern’: researchers who stay abroad or in the UK for less than two years.
Definitions based on OECD Glossary of Statistical Terms
‘Researchers’: professionals engaged in the conception or creation of new knowledge, products processes, methods, and systems, and in the management of the projects concerned.
‘Research personnel’: all persons employed directly on research and development [activities], as well as those providing direct services such as research and development managers, administrators, and clerical staff.
‘Technicians’: persons whose main tasks require technical knowledge and experience in one or more fields of engineering, physical and life sciences, or social sciences and humanities. They participate in research and development (R&D) by performing scientific and technical tasks involving the application of concepts and operational methods, normally under the supervision of researchers. Equivalent staff perform the corresponding R&D tasks under the supervision of researchers in the social sciences and humanities.
Definition derived from What is Field-weighted Citation Impact from Scopus
‘Field-weighted citation impact’: the ratio of the total citations actually received by the denominator’s output, and the total citations that would be expected based on the average of the subject field.
UKRI stance on key topics
The UK immigration system must support the attraction, retention and development of those who lead, undertake and support research and innovation. This includes mobility – inward and outward – for both long-term migration with routes to indefinite leave to remain and short visits for knowledge exchange, conferences, training, and research collaboration.
Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS)
We recognise the importance of the Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) security screening programme in protecting the outputs of the UK’s research base. However, it must operate with clear guidelines and should not result in research being delayed through slow responses to applications. We are supportive of the Russell Group’s efforts in actively leading on collating and sharing information demonstrating the delays and uncertainties caused to their members by the scheme, and we regularly feed in additional evidence and cases we identify.
Visa costs
The immigration system should act as a facilitator to mobility rather than a barrier. Evidence from both the research sector and government suggests that UK visa costs are high compared to competitor nations, with the immigration health surcharge a particular barrier to attracting global R&I talent. We are aware of these challenges and work with the Government to continue to improve our approach to attracting global talent to the UK.
International postgraduate (PGR) student mobility
We have previously focused solely on international employee mobility. In the last year we conducted an evidence gathering exercise to understand the scale and impact of mobility issues facing international students, and subsequently to identify if we should take a formal role in international PGR mobility. Recognising the successful work of other sector bodies in international student mobility policy, we will be taking a primarily convening role in international PGR mobility.
Field-weighted citation impact (FWCI)
The impact of international mobility is difficult to measure, and the most widely used measurement (FWCI) is narrowly defined and not inclusive of the wide range of research outputs and impacts. As a signatory to the 2013 San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA), we are mindful of how inappropriate metrics can give rise to perverse incentives.
What UKRI is doing
Improving the evidence base on global mobility through our Global Mobility evidence report: this is designed to act as a single point of reference for R&I mobility policymakers across the sector and government, highlighting key trends, impacts and opportunities for improvement.
We operate a strand of, and are deeply involved in the development of, the Global Talent visa. The Global Talent visa was introduced in 2020 to enable fast-tracked visa for R&I personnel. There have been thousands of endorsements made through the UKRI operated route since. We also operate a Temporary Worker Government Authorised Exchange visa scheme (UKRI GAE) for international researchers to facilitate short-term mobility between countries. We are ambitious about expanding both schemes to increase access for talented researchers and innovators.
We are partners to the UK’s GREAT talent campaign and website to promote and facilitate mobility of research and innovation experts to the UK through providing information on funding and visas in clear language.