Science and Engineering Workforce Project

The Science and Engineering Workforce Project (SEWP) based at the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) is a network of labor economists and other researchers studying the professional development, deployment, and productivity of scientists, engineers, and highly skilled technical workers. Set up in 2001 with funding from the Sloan Foundation, the SEWP is directed by Professors Richard Freeman and Daniel Goroff of Harvard University. Current research foci for the Science and Engineering Workforce Project include: wage levels and stipend policy, education and recruitment, graduate student unionization, career choices and trajectories, scientific competition and collaboration, funding mechanisms and incentives, as well as international development and immigration reform. In addition to conducting basic research on such topics, the SEWP seeks to provide government, business, and labor with objective and timely analyses of scientific workforce issues. Network members meet each semester for this purpose with government officials, industrial leaders, and scientists.