The Daily. Friday, August 27, 1999

1995 graduates who moved to the United States

About 1.5% of the more than 300,000 men and women who graduated from a Canadian post-secondary institution in 1995 moved to the United States after graduation. Despite this relatively small proportion, those who moved tended to be high-quality graduates in certain key fields.

Just over 4,600 post-secondary graduates from the class of 1995 were living in the United States as of the summer of 1997. By the time of the survey in March 1999, about 830 (18%) of these graduates had moved back to Canada.

Just over half (51%) of those who moved had a university bachelor's degree while 25% were college graduates. Another 15% had a master's degree and 8% held a doctorate. In contrast, among graduates who stayed in Canada, 7% had a master's degree and only 1% had a doctorate.

Except among PhD graduates, the proportion of graduates who moved was relatively small at every level of study. In fact, 12% of PhDs and 3% of master's graduates moved to the United States. Fewer than 2% of bachelor's and college graduates from the class of 1995 relocated.

Nearly half of the graduates who relocated to the United States ranked themselves near the top of their graduating class in their field of study. Even after taking level of study into account, those who left were more likely to have received scholarships or other academic awards than their counterparts who stayed.

According to the survey, graduates who moved were highly successful in the U.S. labour market. Graduates who moved to the United States, such as health professionals and computer programmers, were better able than their counterparts who remained in Canada to find work in high-skill occupations that paid well.

Note to readers This release is based on results from the Survey of 1995 Graduates Who Moved to the United States. The survey was conducted in partnership with Human Resources Development Canada in March 1999. The survey covered post-secondary graduates from the class of 1995 who moved to the United States between graduation and the summer of 1997. Those who were exclusively American citizens who returned to the United States after studying in Canada were not included. Interviews were conducted with 531 graduates who moved to the United States to obtain information on their characteristics, reasons for relocating, education and work experiences, and plans for the future. These people were representative of the just over 4,600 graduates from the class of 1995 who moved. This release examines 1995 graduates who moved to the United States. The movement of graduates to other countries, or of foreign students and graduates who came to Canada, was beyond the scope of the survey.

Among the 1995 graduates still living in the United States in March 1999, about 4 in 10 planned to return to Canada, 3 in 10 did not plan to return and about the same proportion were not certain. Approximately 44% of the graduates still in the United States as temporary residents planned to obtain permanent residence status within two years.

More than half who left did so for work-related reasons

In addition to economic forces, social factors played a compelling role in motivating some people to move. More than half of the 1995 graduates who relocated (57%) did so for work-related reasons and another 23% for education purposes. Approximately 17% relocated for marriage or relationships, and by far the majority of these people were women.

Among the 2,600 or so graduates who moved primarily for work, the factors that drew them most often involved opportunity. Many graduates were lured by greater availability of jobs, either in a particular field or in general. College and university graduates in health-related fields were most likely to have left for work-related reasons, as limited job opportunities in Canada made looking south for careers much more attractive.

The other major draw concerned pay. Nearly four in 10 graduates who relocated mainly for work cited higher salaries as a factor that drew them south. Notably, few graduates explicitly mentioned lower taxes.

Not surprisingly, graduates who moved got higher pay than those who remained in Canada. After taking inflation and purchasing power parity into account, the median annual earnings of Canadian bachelor's graduates working in applied and natural sciences jobs in the United States was $47,400, considerably higher than the $38,400 median among their counterparts in Canada. The gap in salaries between bachelor's graduates in health occupations upon arrival in the United States and those who remained in Canada was similar.

Graduates who were working in occupations related to natural and applied sciences in the United States had the highest salaries. This group (consisting largely of scientists, engineers, computer systems analysts and programmers) was earning a median annual salary of $76,300 at the time of the survey in March 1999.

Most graduates who had a prearranged job found work in the United States using traditional job-search methods: 28% responded to advertisements, 21% used personal contacts and 20% sent out resumés or applications on their own. Finding a job through on-campus recruitment programs or job postings (12%) was less common and being contacted directly by a U.S. employer or head-hunter was rare.

More than one-third of working graduates who left were in health occupations

Of the graduates who were working upon arrival in the United States, over one-third were in health occupations (36%) and one-quarter worked in engineering and applied sciences (26%).

Among 1995 university graduates specifically, 20% of those who left had a degree in the health field compared with only 8% of university graduates who remained in Canada. Individuals who had a university degree in engineering and applied sciences accounted for 13% of those who left compared with 7% of those who stayed.

Health professionals comprised an important part of the graduates who moved to the United States. Nearly one in five of those who left worked as a nurse south of the border. Profound changes were occurring in the health care sector in Canada at the time that the class of 1995 was entering the labour market. Were it not for these circumstances, the size and nature of the outflow of graduates to the United States might have been quite different.

U.S. destinations that attract the most graduates

Nearly one-half of the graduates who moved to the United States ended up in a handful of states. Texas was the top destination, accounting for just under 16% of the graduates who relocated. California accounted for 11%, New York 10% and Florida 8%.

Among the 360 or so PhD graduates who left, about 26% went to California.

Just over half (57%) of the college and university graduates who relocated to the United States left from Ontario. In contrast, Ontario accounted for 41% of 1995 college and university graduates who remained in Canada.

Approximately 11% of the graduates who left were last living in Quebec. In contrast, 28% of post-secondary graduates who remained in Canada obtained their diploma in Quebec. Language factors may have accounted for this relatively small proportion that moved to the United States.

The publication, South of the border: Graduates from the class of '95 who moved to the United States (81-587-XIE) is now available free on Statistics Canada's Web site, www.statcan.ca. A paper copy of the publication (SP-136-09-99) is also available through the Public Enquiries Centre (fax: 819-953-7260), Communications Branch, Human Resources Development Canada.

For general information about this release, contact Scott Murray (613-951-9035). For data, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact Jeff Frank (613-947-3905; fax: 613-995-6006; j.frank@prs-srp.gc.ca), Centre for Education Statistics.