International 'Leapfrogging': The Global Expansion of Higher Education

A new study is out with some enlightening data on matriculation and graduation rates for higher education around the world. You can find the original study here.

A study for the National Bureau of Economic Research explores the impact of what the author -- Richard B. Freeman, an economist at Harvard University -- calls the "human capital leapfrogging in the huge populous developing countries." The shift generally (and in particular for science and technology degrees) has important implications for higher education in the United States. . . . "In the face of global competition it is difficult to imagine the U.S. maintaining the dominance it has had in the latter part of the 20th century (just as it is difficult to imagine the U.S. maintaining its dominance of the global economy). But barring some horrific policies or events I would expect U.S. universities to continue to among the world’s leader in higher education into the foreseeable future and thus to keep attracting high skill immigrants to the country."