Foreign STEM Graduate Students Should Indeed Be Given Green Cards Essay

Foreign STEM Graduate Students Should Indeed Be Given Green Cards - Essay Example According to the article â€Å"Senators introduce immigration reform to increase STEM visas† the writer discusses a bill by a bipartisan group of senators, who want to modernize the STEM visa awarding system and increase the number of students awarded. They argue that legal migration is not only good for developing science and technology but it also creates employment making it good the economic growth in the long run (Cox). To illustrate this, the writer quotes, Rubio and Hatch who estimated that while over 120,000 jobs in computer engineering are created each year, less than 40,000 students graduate in the field in the same period. He argues that while it might seem unpatriotic to hire outsiders for the many jobs, it is the more logical choice since the vacancies are mostly in the private sector, as such; the choice is either America brings in engineers from outside or the firms will be forced to relocate abroad. He also claims that removing the cap on the number of STEM stu dents who can be given visas will encourage American students to apply for the program because they former will facilitate educational improvements. The points made herein are very practical and realistic, ultimately, restricting the entry of STEM students will force private firms to relocate in search of labor since the few in America will be insufficient and likely expensive. Secondly, the article by Rodney Adkin emphasizes the need for America to increase the number of STEM professionals, he decries the fact that only 5 per cent of the workers in America are employed in science and engineering. Ironically this field is responsible for around 50 % of the economy, the sites, Sequoia; a supercomputer developed by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, with an extraordinary computing power, and which is the work of STEM professionals. For America to make such progress in a larger scale, it critical that students are motivated to pursue the STEM subjects, this can be done by creating and maintaining enthusiasm for science among school children from an early age. Like the first article, the writer is convinced that America cannot be competitive on the global and even local market without an investment in STEM professionals, their methods of achieving an increase in STEM however differ. Adkins solutions include motivating children and ensuring that women and minority groups are encouraged to get into the programs, these solution albeit workable are long term and do not prove direct solutions in the near future. He does, however, mention that students from countries like China and Japan mostly study the STEM courses; this strengthens the assertion of the first article that we need to make use of foreign students by allowing them to live and work in the states. That way, with more professionals, the children Adkins wants to be inspired will have more mentors, and the foreign nationals will set the pace for Americas wishing to join the field in posterity.