Emily McCauley
March 1999
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Abstract
Migration is an important focus of population geography. It is also a concern of state and city officials; understanding the patterns of migration and the reasons for it are keys to efficient planning. Students that obtain baccalaureate degrees are thought to be an asset to the community and state. The loss of those "brains" is a concern of cities and states whose viability depends on educated citizens. Despite this concern in Oklahoma, research is lacking in the arena of the 'where' and 'why' of student's locational choices after receiving a baccalaureate in Oklahoma. This study focuses on the 'where' and 'why' and also examines graduates' general perception of Oklahoma. Keywords: migration, college graduates, push-and-pull factors.
Problem Statement
Migration is an important focus of population geography. It is also a concern of state and city officials; understanding the patterns of migration and the reasons for it are keys to efficient planning. Most studies of migration examine a sub-population; the emphasis of this research is the migration of graduates of the University of Oklahoma. A great deal of investigation has been conducted on United States internal migration patterns including student migration to universities and colleges. Attention has also been given specifically to student migration to Oklahoma for higher education. Studies of PhD migration out of Oklahoma shed light on the issue as well. Students that obtain baccalaureate degrees are thought to be an asset to the community and state. The loss of those "brains" is a concern of cities and states whose viability depends on educated citizens. Despite this concern in Oklahoma, research is lacking in the arena of the 'where' and 'why' of student's locational choices after receiving a baccalaureate in Oklahoma.
Literature Review
Americans are considered some of the most mobile people in the world. Seven million Americans migrate within the United States each year (Manson and Groop, 1996). Migration is either forced or voluntary and driven by push-and-pull factors. Voluntary migration, as in the case of America, occurs "when people decide moving is preferable to staying, when the difficulties of moving seem more than offset by the expected rewards" (Jordan-Bychkov and Domosh, 1999). Push factors are usually the impetus for a move resulting from dissatisfaction with the current location. The most common push factor is economic (Jordan-Bychkov and Domosh, 1999). Of those that move, young adults are most likely to migrate (Mondale, 1992). Collegians are one of the most mobile sub-populations in America. "Estimates indicate that approximately 20 percent of the United States students cross state boundaries to attend the institution of their choice" (Hamm, 1972).
Migration between states is constantly fluctuating and geographers are just beginning to find that "abrupt changes in the U.S. migration system may now be normal rather than exceptional" (Manson and Groop, 1996). The changes in general migration Oklahoma has experienced can illuminate certain trends. From 1980-1993, "Cluster 5 states (N=9) [AK, ID, MT, WY, UT, CO, OK, TX, LA] clearly were the most volatile, with migration efficiencies swinging from strongly positive to strongly negative and then back to positive within a 13 year period. Presumably, it was the cyclical nature of the energy industry that fueled some of these gyrations in such states as Oklahoma" (Manson and Groop, 1996). In 1993, Oklahoma had an overall migration effectiveness of 3.6 " (Manson and Groop, 1996). Before the 1970s, the West South Central region [AR, LA, OK, TX] was following a steadily increasing trend of retaining students for PhDs. 10.9% of students remained in this region for their PhD in the 1920s. This grew to 52.9% in the 1960s (Harmon, 1971).
Migration has a long history of study. E.G. Ravenstein described the relationship between migration and distance in 1885 as an inverse relationship where migration decreased as distance increased (Hamm, 1972). Another aspect of migration theory deals with population; S.C. Dodd in 1950 ascertained the interaction principle in which "interaction (migration) varies directly with the product populations (a measure of the maximum number of possible contacts) and inversely with some function of distance" (Hamm, 1972). S.A. Stouffer and E.C. Isbell researched the effect of intervening opportunities in the 1940s and suggested that the distance of migration is inversely proportional to opportunities between the original location and the intended destination (Hamm, 1972). "Some cultural ecologists see migration in a different light, as a biological species seeking to fill every possible niche…In other words, certain individuals among us may be preconditioned genetically to strike out into new lands and places, a compulsion not grounded in any rational consideration of push-and-pull factors" (Jordan-Bychkov and Domosh, 1999).
As American society seems to become increasingly placeless and rootless, the influences and reasons for migration are worthy of renewed study, especially in the case of college graduates. Are some college graduates striking out with little regard for the common push-and-pull factors? Do most respond to the prerequisite of dissatisfaction and respond to the common push factor of economics? These are some of the questions this research explores.
Objectives
The objectives for this study are:
Methods
Migration Effectiveness
An overview of the "brain drain" in Oklahoma is given by the calculation of the migration effectiveness. Migration effectiveness is a measure of retention or non-retention. It is a percentage ratio of net migration to total migration with a range of -100 to 100. E = (N/T) * 100.
Questionnaire
A one-page questionnaire was developed for all students enrolled in Senior Capstone Experience courses in the spring semester of 1999 at the University of Oklahoma. The following questions were asked:
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