Course description
We live in a new age of mass migration, one in which highly skilled individuals represent a substantial and increasing share of international mobility flows. Migration rates for the tertiary educated are higher than for the rest of the population, and generally increase with further education and especially for STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) students and workers.
The size and share of the phenomenon has resurrected the interest of both scholars and stakeholders in the possible connections between migration and innovation. What once was a niche research theme in economic history is nowadays treated by several other disciplines in both humanities and the social sciences. It also ranks very high on the policy agendas of local and national governments, and on the strategic agendas of R&D-intensive multinationals and research universities worldwide, both of which increasingly contribute to the phenomenon. For example, rich countries engage in a veritable “global race for talent”, with the aim of attracting STEM students and workers in their universities, public laboratories, and companies; while the least developed countries fear of being deprived of the scientists, engineers, and medical doctors on which they have heavily invested (brain drain). The course will discuss these and other issues, and how different disciplines have contributed to our understanding of one or another.
Before doing so, however, the students will be introduced to the empirical and theoretical fundamentals of migration economics. In particular, the course will be organized as follows:
PART I
• General revision of the basic economic and statistical notions used in the course (one class only)
• Historical and current international migration trends, with special emphasis on the periodization of the last two centuries (“the first era of mass migration”, “the backlash”, “the new era of mass migration”)
• Simple economic theories of migration determinants (“pull” vs “push” factors)
• Simple theories of migrants’ positive vs. negative self-selection (Roy-Borjas model)
• Simple theories and historical or economics evidence on the impact of migration onto the labour markets (wages and unemployment)
PART II
• The positive impact of migration on international trade and capital flows
• Migrants’ destination countries and the diffusion of scientific and technological knowledge in destination countries
• Migrants’ countries of origin: brain drain versus brain gain
• Migration-induced diversity in cities and organizations, and its effects on innovation
One additional class may cover the R&D outsourcing strategies of R&D-intensive multinationals, whose subsidiaries in emerging countries contributing to channel global talent in the international migration circuit.
The following YouTube videos give a glimpse of the contents and general message of the course:
• The Economist – How migration could make the world richer, Nov 2019 (last visit 16/5/2020)
• Wired UK – The international power couple: London and migrant entrepreneurs, Jan 2018 (last visit 16/5/2020)

Learning outcomes of the course
At the end of the course, students will be aware of the fundamental facts concerning migration and highly skilled migration (consistency and direction of flows, impact on employment, wages, scientific knowledge and innovation, in both home and host countries), as well as of the theories explaining them. They will also be familiar with the main official sources of policy reports and data, including unstructured ones (patent archives, scientific archives…). Finally, they will be able to discuss the viewpoints of different stakeholders (large companies, universities, local authorities, national policy-makers, and public opinion at large), in both the home and host countries of migrants, with respect to the impact of migration on innovation.

Teaching and evaluation methods
1. All the course material (slides, readings, data) will be made available before the start of the course on the Moodle platform. The readings will be listed at the end of each slide set, and come in three categories:
(i) COMPULSORY: short and very short dissemination articles and blog entries by academic researchers, accessible to students from all backgrounds; alternatively, subsections of equally accessible survey papers or handbooks
(ii) OPTIONAL: the research papers underlying the compulsory readings; students with some background preparation in economics and/or applied statistics may wish reading them
(iii) SOURCES: the book chapters and research papers used by the instructor to prepare the slides; this material is just for reference, but all students are welcome to use it for in-class discussions

2. Frontal classes (lectures) and in-class activities (discussion of readings) will be alternated regularly. The first two weeks of courses will consist entirely of lectures, to be delivered online live by Zoom (video records will be made available on the Moodle platform). Starting the third week, the in-presence lectures will be recorded and made available on the Moodle platform. Class discussion will not be recorded, nor video-attendance by remote students will be possible; these students will be asked to send short videos and slides with their discussion of readings.

3. Lectures will be based on slides and concentrate on either the key stylized facts to be retained or the basic theoretical elements to be understood.

4. In-class activities will consist in discussing either (i) the lecture-related materials (to make sure students read them instead on just relying on slides) or, at the end of the course, (ii) the student’ presentations, based on materials searched by the students themselves, on topics of their interest. Notice that:
o Discussions of (i) will be an individual activity (Q&A in class).
o The production of essays and the discussions of (ii) will be conducted by small groups.
o Students with data handling skills will be given the opportunity to work on data from public sources or provided by the lecturer.

5. Activities (i) and (ii) will also serves as the basis for evaluation, according to the following weights and parameters:
(i) 70% - Contribution to in-class activities: Did the student go through the readings? Did she/he prepare for the discussion items? Did she/he come up with original questions/remarks?
(ii) 30% - Slides-based presentation (15minutes) of the topic of choice

Syllabus
Historical and current migration trends
Basic economic and econometric notions (recap)
Migration determinants: basic models and related evidence
Self-selection and return migration
Labor market effects in destination countries: theory
Labor market effects in destination countries: evidence
Migration, trade and foreign direct investments
Migration and innovation diffusion /1: Modern Europe
Migration and innovation diffusion /2: Science in XX century
Brain drain vs brain gain
Migration, cultural variety, and innovation
Special topic: Migration policies and public attitudes (tbc)

Required preliminary knowledge: none, but some basic notions of economics may help