Press Release
October 16, 2008
Contact: Michelle Mittelstadt
202-266-1910
mmittelstadt@migrationpolicy.org

Immigration: Data Matters
MPI and PRB Release Guide to Finding and Using Most Accurate Data

WASHINGTON – The Migration Policy Institute, along with the Population Reference Bureau, today released a new pocket guide that shows the public how to find and use some of the most accurate and up-to-date immigration-related data compiled by government and non-governmental sources.

The guide, Immigration: Data Matters, which offers links to U.S. and global immigration data sources, is available both in print and online at www.migrationpolicy.org/pubs/2008DataGuide.pdf.

In an era when immigration has become such a polarized topic — and people are trying to understand how immigration is shaping the U.S. population, communities, the economy, and educational and labor systems — it is imperative to have access to high-quality data.

Whether one is a policymaker, journalist, academic or interested citizen, finding credible data to better understand immigration’s impacts can be a challenge at times. Immigration: Data Matters contains a select collection of resources and website links with accurate, recent data on a number of immigration-related topics, including:

• Immigrant population estimates in the United States
• Illegal immigration
• English proficiency
• Immigrant children
• Education
• Immigrants in the labor force
• Health
• Income and poverty
• Refugees/asylees

The guide also includes a helpful explanation of the limitations that various data sources may contain and provides other useful resources as well as a glossary of commonly used immigration terms. 

For more information or to request a copy of the data guide, please contact MPI Communications Director Michelle Mittelstadt at mmittelstadt@migrationpolicy.org or 202-266-1910. The guide can also be found online at www.migrationpolicy.org/pubs/2008DataGuide.pdf.

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The Migration Policy Institute is an independent, non-partisan, non-profit think tank in Washington, D.C. dedicated to analysis of the movement of people worldwide. MPI provides analysis, development and evaluation of migration and refugee policies at the local, national and international levels.