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Immigrant Nobel laureates lead the way
Marie Curie (1867-1934), the French-Polish scientist who won the Nobel Prize in physics in 1903, and in chemistry in 1911.
Since 1969, when the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences was first awarded, the majority of Nobel prizes have gone to institutions in the United States. However, the scientists behind the cutting-edge research have often been expatriates from all over the world. Out of the 281 laureates who were exclusively affiliated with the winning US institutions, eighty-seven were born abroad, according to the Nobel Prize Foundation.
This trend can be observed in other countries as well. Since 1969, fifteen out of forty-fiveÌý laureates representing institutions in the United Kingdom were born abroad. The largest number of foreign laureates can be found in Switzerland, with eight foreign-born laureates to seven Swiss-born laureates. Countries whose institutions made it to the top ten without the help of immigrant scientists are Japan, with fifteen homegrown laureates, and Sweden, with eight.Ìý
The high percentage of immigrant and expat Nobel prize winners can mainly be attributed to research institutions attracting scientists from across the world. According to the 2021 UNESCO Science Report, the G20 countries accounted for almost eighty-nine per cent of the world’s researcher population (in full-time equivalents).Ìý
The biggest shares can be found in the European Union (23.5 per cent), China (21.1 per cent), and the US (16.2 per cent). In some cases, the researcher population has grown faster than research expenditure, resulting in a struggle for project funding. This could lead to a brain drain.
Read more:
Refugee scientists: Quiet pioneers dedicated to discovery, The UNESCO Courier, October-December 2017
Ìý
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Since 1969, when the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences was first awarded, the majority of Nobel prizes have gone to institutions in the United States. However, the scientists behind the cutting-edge research have often been expatriates from all over the world. Out of the 281 laureates who were exclusively affiliated with the winning US institutions, eighty-seven were born abroad, according to the Nobel Prize Foundation.
This trend can be observed in other countries as well. Since 1969, fifteen out of forty-fiveÌý laureates representing institutions in the United Kingdom were born abroad. The largest number of foreign laureates can be found in Switzerland, with eight foreign-born laureates to seven Swiss-born laureates. Countries whose institutions made it to the top ten without the help of immigrant scientists are Japan, with fifteen homegrown laureates, and Sweden, with eight.Ìý
The high percentage of immigrant and expat Nobel prize winners can mainly be attributed to research institutions attracting scientists from across the world. According to the 2021 UNESCO Science Report, the G20 countries accounted for almost eighty-nine per cent of the world’s researcher population (in full-time equivalents).Ìý
The biggest shares can be found in the European Union (23.5 per cent), China (21.1 per cent), and the US (16.2 per cent). In some cases, the researcher population has grown faster than research expenditure, resulting in a struggle for project funding. This could lead to a brain drain.
Read more:
Refugee scientists: Quiet pioneers dedicated to discovery, The UNESCO Courier, October-December 2017
Ìý
Back to main article
21 September 2021
Last update:20 April 2023
