The relation of education and R&D to productivity growth

This paper considers the relation of education and of scientific and technical knowledge developed through R&D to labor productivity growth within the medium term. It is unique in using a total capital approach that includes both private and public physical, human, and knowledge capital formation and in use of a medium term model for determining productivity growth that includes both demand side and supply side effects. Empirical results for the U.S. and 14 other major OECD nations for 5-yr time periods from 1955 through 1980 find education as measured both by the average educational attainment of the labor force and by the percentage of advanced level graduates who bring technology to bear on production to be significant determinants of productivity growth. Gross investment in physical capital also transmits the R&D and has a positive influence, as do higher utilization rates and the technology transfer associated with lower initial productivity levels.     

‘Making the grade’: a grounded theory explaining the student experience of Asian and Middle-Eastern postgraduates in a British university

The aim of this study was firstly to describe the experiences of international students living and studying in a UK university, to understand and explain their responses to those experiences and to make recommendations to stakeholders in the light of the findings. The research found that international students’ two biggest concerns are their English language skills and their detachment from domestic students. International students were surprised at the size of the challenges they faced and worked hard to bridge the gap between their academic and sociocultural skills and those needed in the UK. International students provided emotional, practical and academic support to each other, but the academic support they offered to each other was not always reliable. International students engaged in a process of identity change during which they gained the skills they needed to be academically successful. Recommendations in regard to the academic and pastoral support of international students are made.