Thursday, April 22, 2004
Larry Summers on visas
I have blogged in the past that the U.S. could risk losing its edge in innovation by making the visa process difficult for foreign students. All the data seems to indicate that international student arrivals in U.S. universities have been dipping (I treat the numbers with some skepticism) over the past year or two. Its a well known fact that American students generally tend to shy away from the sciences, engineering and from advanced degrees in these subjects. Combine the two and we could potentially be looking at a situation where the innovation system in the U.S. begins to get affected, apart from the financial hit these universities are taking from the lower enrollment of foreign students of course.
Former Treasury Secretary and current president of Harvard, Larry Summers, has now joined the voices expressing concern over the lower enrollment rates among foreign students. By virtue of his past and his present, Larry Summers has the closest thing to a bully pulpit in American academia. Hopefully, his opinions will ensure the issue gets a wider hearing and will help amend laws in a way that strikes a balance between legitimate security concerns and the well-being of the academic community.
Former Treasury Secretary and current president of Harvard, Larry Summers, has now joined the voices expressing concern over the lower enrollment rates among foreign students. By virtue of his past and his present, Larry Summers has the closest thing to a bully pulpit in American academia. Hopefully, his opinions will ensure the issue gets a wider hearing and will help amend laws in a way that strikes a balance between legitimate security concerns and the well-being of the academic community.
