In a follow-up to a study conducted in 2005, researchers at Duke University have released a report disputing the notion that American engineering training is falling behind that of China and India. The earlier study found that the massive numbers of engineering graduates reported by China and India were inflated.

This report, called “Where the Engineers Are,” says that even though China and India do collectively graduate 12 times more engineers than the U.S.,that does not translate into a shortage in this country. Researchers surveyed 58 American corporations that outsource some engineering jobs. The respondents said they were able to fill 80 percent of the engineering jobs at their firms within four months.

Nearly 40 percent reported that their American-trained engineers were more productive and produced higher quality work. Another 40 percent said they kept more-technical engineering jobs in the United States, instead of sending them abroad.

Outsourcing will continue to grow, the researchers concluded, but not because of a deficiency in U.S. workers. Rather, they said, companies send jobs overseas because it “gives them economic and competitive advantage.”

SOURCE: Chronicle of Higher Education, 30 March 2007 (p. A44)
WEBSITE: http://chronicle.com/weekly/v53/i30/30a04401.htm