Purdue News

April 26, 2004

Purdue offers model for stemming 'brain drain'

by Martin C. Jischke

Although the state economy is showing signs of rebounding, "brain drain" remains a critical concern in that too many professional workers remain unemployed and too many graduates in high-tech fields from Indiana colleges are leaving the state.

According to a 1999 study administered by the Indiana Fiscal Policy Institute's Human Capital Retention Project, Indiana ranks among the lowest in the nation in the retention and employment of Indiana college graduates, nearly 30 percent below the national average.

The best long-term solution to this problem is for Indiana to expand its economy and increase job opportunities for well-educated people. Purdue students tell our career counselors that they like living here, but they won't stay if the good jobs are elsewhere. In the shorter term, we have to make sure that college graduates are well-informed about job opportunities in the state and that Indiana employers understand what it takes to hire bright, young people in a global job market.

Purdue University is doing its part to stop the departure of young, well-educated people. Thanks to a $3.5 million, three-year grant from Lilly Endowment Inc., Purdue has established a comprehensive plan to stem "brain drain" – from investing university resources to establish internships, to fostering entrepreneurs and creating new high-tech businesses– that will entice college graduates to remain in state. This plan, called Opportunity for Indiana, involves the entire Purdue system, including each regional campus. Its goals are:

• to provide Purdue students with internships at high-tech Indiana companies,

• to subsidize teams of interns,

• to increase the number of startup companies through business planning competitions,

• to provide support for startup companies,

• to support entrepreneurship training workshops,

• to provide statewide access to Purdue's entrepreneurial support programs, and

• to assist Indiana communities in recruiting startup companies to their regions.

These initiatives give Indiana a much better chance of keeping college graduates in the state once they have completed their degrees.

The Interns for Indiana initiative, in particular, directly involves students. Under the auspices of Purdue's Discovery Learning Center in Discovery Park, Purdue can identify students for internships, prepare them with educational assistance from the Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship, make appropriate connections with companies, and eventually assess the outcomes of these efforts to help grow our state economy.

Other means through which Purdue links students with potential employers are annual high-tech job fairs, sponsored by the Purdue Research Park and Purdue's Technical Assistance Program. Attended by more than 1,200 students each of the past five years, the Technical Assistance Program fair offers representatives from companies throughout the state the opportunity to meet with students looking for future employment in fields such as technology, engineering, agriculture and the sciences. The Purdue Research Park fair links professionals with more than 50 high-tech firms located in the park.

Another way in which Purdue is reaching out to professionals who are searching for gainful employment is through a free job fair for white-collar workers, which will take place at Purdue on Thursday, May 27. Thanks to a unique partnership between Purdue and the Indiana Department of Workforce Development, employers from approximately 50 Indiana companies – including several high-tech companies from the Purdue Research Park – will be present to accept resumes and meet prospective employees. A special invitation is issued to Purdue graduates who have worked out of state for five years or more.

Through these job fairs, internship programs, high-tech business startups and other job creation initiatives, Purdue already is realizing results. The Southern Growth Policies Board's Southern Technology Council named Purdue one of its elite 12 universities for economic development. University Business magazine named the Purdue Research Park the biggest and best business incubation program in the country. Purdue also helped launch technology centers in Merrillville, Hammond, Kokomo, Fort Wayne, Shelbyville, Columbus and Anderson, with more on the way.

Perhaps the most telling statistic is that almost 84 percent of Indiana residents who graduated from Purdue with bachelor's degrees in 2002 are still in Indiana. Students are staying because their job prospects have expanded.

Strategic thinking breeds success. It is working for Purdue, Indianapolis and Indiana. But we still have much work to do. With continued support from the state Legislature, Lilly Endowment Inc. and visionary corporate leaders who believe in the future of Indiana, we can put a "plug" in the "brain drain" and keep our best and brightest right here at home.

Martin C. Jischke, who came to Purdue in August 2000, is the university's 10th president. He can be reached at (765) 494-9708.