Increase in Foreign-Born US University Doctorates

In the October 29 issue of Chemical and Engineering News, there is a short article by AW indicating that foreign-born US doctorates are up. A National Science Foundation (NSF) study found that in 2010 40% of doctoral graduates in science and engineering and health from US universities were foreign-born, compared to 17% in 1961 to '70.

The article did not question why there was such an increase in foreign-born students, but I can suggest why.

A tremendous amount of taxpayer money is spent by various US government agencies in grants to universities for research and development. This allows ample funds to various University professors and a considerable amount of this filters off to graduate students. Foreigners are generally more astute in looking for bargains than are US citizens, and students realize they can come to the US for advanced education at relatively low cost.

I have no objection to education of foreign students, but I do not believe it should be done on US taxpayer funding. Let's get rid of the government agency grants to universities and see how much practical R&D will be funded at universities expense and how that affects foreign-born graduate school attendance.

In-State College Tuition for Illegal Aliens?

The question is periodically raised as to whether the children of illegal aliens are entitled to lower in-state college tuition at various state colleges and universities.

These "children" are neither aliens nor immigrants. They were born in the United States and based on traditional law, they should be considered potential citizens, as is any other child born in the US. On that basis, they should be entitled to lower in-state tuition, if they have lived in the state.

Unfortunately, that conclusion is wrong, because we have started from an incorrect assumption.

The incorrect assumption is that there should be an in-state tuition and an out-of-state tuition. The rationale for the two different tuitions is that the taxpayers of the state have financially supported in-state colleges and universities, and therefore, the state taxpayers and their children, are entitled to lower in-state tuition.

However, the fact is that state taxpayers should not be financially supporting colleges and universities through state governments. The nature of higher education with its system of professors and physical campuses is such that no socialization is required.

State government financial support of colleges and universities should be eliminated. States have enough problems handling the already established and at least partially justified social requirements, such as minimal help for the poor, maintenance of roads and bridges, police and fire, etc..

Therefore, the solution is simple. Stop all state funding of colleges and universities. This would eliminate any justification for a tuition difference. In addition, the colleges and universities would become more efficient through competition, when state government funding is eliminated. Competition can be further increased by completely eliminating any federal funding for colleges and universities as well. Education is a business and should stand on its own feet without subsidization.

Eliminate Federal R&D Grants to Colleges and Universities

An article by Carmen Drahl in the October 22 issue of Chemical and Engineering News covers 2010 academic research and development spending trends.

Research and development spending by colleges and universities in 2010 was $58.3 billion. Of that amount, US taxpayers contributed $36.5 billion or 63% of the total. That is in itself atrocious. How can the federal government justify dumping $36.5 billion of taxpayer funds into such a pie-in-the-sky operation as academic R&D? The answer is that it is a political expenditure primarily in an effort to obtain information to support government ideology, which would justify an increase in government control through higher taxes. An example is to try to connect carbon dioxide emissions to a fear of global warming, so that carbon dioxide emissions can be taxed.

However, it gets worse when we see that total academic R&D in 2010 increased 6.1% over the previous year, while the federal component increased 12.1%.

I call on Congress to do the right thing for the Republic and the taxpayers in general by eliminating government grants to colleges and universities for academic R&D. Any necessary R&D required by the federal government, such as improvement of military operations, should be done internally. However, control would also obviously be necessary on that process as well.

The primary function of colleges and universities is for education of students. In that process, students need to be educated in methods of conducting research, and research projects would be necessary. However such research projects should be decided on by the universities themselves, with their own money, rather than tainted political money from the federal government.