Leaving Money on the Table: The Persistence of Brain Waste among College-Educated Immigrants
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Highlights
As of 2019, 2 million college-educated immigrants were underemployed in the United States, with race, English proficiency, and legal status the key predictors of this brain waste.
- As of 2019, 21 percent of college-educated immigrants were unemployed or working in jobs below their skill levels, compared to 16 percent of U.S.-born graduates—costing nearly $40 billion annually in forgone wages.
- Black and Latino immigrant college graduates face the highest underemployment rates; regression analyses show Black immigrants are about 54 percent more likely to be underemployed than White immigrants.
- Limited English proficiency is the strongest single predictor of brain waste; 55 percent of those with very limited English were underemployed, compared with 15 percent of fully proficient speakers.
With rising job vacancies and a workforce and society that are aging, the United States already has a reservoir of human capital that is not fully tapped: The millions of U.S.-born and immigrant college graduates who are in jobs requiring no more than a high school credential or who are unemployed. This human capital, if well leveraged, could bring important benefits to the U.S. economy, local communities, and the workers themselves.
Nonetheless, few strategic efforts have been made to address this skill underutilization, often referred to as "brain waste." Its effects fall particularly hard on Black and Latino college graduates, whether immigrant or U.S. born, as this report details.
Using U.S. Census Bureau data, this report analyzes state and national factors linked to brain waste, with particular attention to the stark patterns of racial and ethnic disadvantage that emerge in underemployment trends. It also discusses how place of education, English-language proficiency, legal status, and profession may predict the likelihood of skill underutilization for highly educated immigrants.
The report concludes with recommendations for federal and state policymakers and other stakeholders to improve credentialing and other barriers that prevent immigrants and the U.S. born from working at their skill level.
Table of Contents
1 Introduction
2 Trends in the U.S. College-Educated Population and Workforce
3 The Persisting Challenge of Brain Waste
A. The Extent of Brain Waste
B. Key Factors Linked to Brain Waste
4 State Trends in Immigrant Underemployment
5 Concluding Thoughts
About the Global Skills and Talent Initiative
Anchored in the premise that immigration policy must be part of a broader skills and talent strategy, the Initiative has a particular focus on employment-based immigration and the supports that can help immigrants apply their full range of educational and professional skills.
About the U.S. Immigration Policy Program
The U.S. Immigration Policy Program provides analysis of U.S. immigration pathways, the impacts of enforcement and other policies, and the characteristics of immigrant populations.
About the National Center on Immigrant Integration Policy
The Center is a national hub connecting policymakers, educators, community leaders, and service providers with evidence-informed policy research, technical assistance, and data to advance effective immigrant integration at U.S., state, and local levels.
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