[Reading Science] Lessons from China's Qianren Project Success

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] "China's Thousand Talents Plan has attracted researchers back to their hometowns, boosting research outcomes."

This is the headline of an article selected as an online headline by the international academic journal Nature on the 5th. It cited a paper recently published in the scientific journal Science by the National Natural Science Foundation of China.

The paper investigated the research performance of about 300 overseas-educated scholars who obtained foreign doctoral degrees between 2012 and 2014 and returned to China benefiting from the Thousand Talents Plan. The results showed that these returnees ranked within the top 15% among U.S. researchers with similar career lengths in terms of publications during the five years before their return. This indicates success in attracting outstanding scientists. However, among those who declined and remained abroad, many were elite top 10% researchers who already received excellent financial and resource support, making them less susceptible to such incentives.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Most notably, the returnees demonstrated relatively higher research performance after returning compared to those who stayed in the U.S. Returnees published 27% more papers than those who remained abroad. They published an average of one paper per year, including in top 10% journals by citation impact. Returnees were also more likely to be first authors, indicating they received support to be appointed as principal investigators and build independent research careers. Of course, China’s talent recruitment policies have been suspected by the U.S. and other countries as “technology theft.” Since the Trump administration implemented the “China Initiative” in 2018 to prevent talent and technology outflow, such efforts have effectively ceased. The program was notorious for “milking” invited foreign scientists by firing them as soon as their usefulness was deemed over.

This offers many lessons for South Korea as well. South Korea is currently facing a worsening shortage of science and technology talent due to declining birth rates and population aging. The key point is that thanks to China’s abundant manpower and financial support, returnees produce far more research output than their peers who remain overseas in countries like the U.S.

What about South Korea? With serious population aging and low birth rates, securing science and technology talent has become an emergency. Yet no one seems concerned that gifted prodigies who were outstanding domestically in their youth go to study in the U.S. and do not return. Let’s call this an “individual choice” for now. The solution is to create an environment where scientists can conduct free and creative research stably in a comfortable setting to attract them. It is a world where researchers from all over the world can be gathered regardless of race or nationality.

However, South Korea is still unfriendly even to foreign students who come here eager to learn. A representative case is when institutions such as the University of Science and Technology (UST) and other advanced science and technology education institutions appealed to the government late last year to ease restrictions on long-term residence visas (F2) and permanent residency issuance for foreign students. South Korea invests heavily in the future, ranking second in the world in research and development (R&D) budget based on gross domestic product (GDP) this year. Talent is as important as financial resources. Efforts to nurture and attract talent comparable to China’s Thousand Talents Plan are urgently needed.