According to opinion polls, far from everyone knows in our country what a “brain drain” is. Less than 90% of Russians have heard something about it, and only about 60% know for sure what it is. Meanwhile, this issue is important and serious, because this process significantly affects the most diverse spheres of society.
A “brain drain” is a global outflow (emigration) of scientists associated with negative changes in a country. Since the beginning of the nineties, when the Soviet government collapsed miserably, and in Russia there was a crisis, especially manifested in the economic spheres, a significant part of certified doctors, researchers and other representatives of the scientific world decided to change their place of residence, going to other countries. Thus, in less than 10 years, the number of specialists has halved. The brain drain continues today. Perhaps not so actively, but its results are quite noticeable.
However, the crisis is a common cause that does not fully form the picture of the current problem. The consequence of the negative economic situation in the country was that the state allocated the main funds of the budget to the development of other areas, forgetting about the scientific branches. Thus, there was practically no money that would be sufficient for the normal existence of the research world (not to mention the possibility of new discoveries and support for innovation). And the “brain drain” began to occur because foreign countries were ready to offer scientists not only a sufficient amount of financial resources, but also a decent social existence.
The country's intellectual level is not so much a quantitative as a qualitative indicator. And the problem of the “brain drain” is that qualified personnel, who are citizens of Russia and are able to bring significant benefits to their homeland, are engaged in research activities abroad. The percentage of such people of the total number of scientists is approximately 80. The remaining 20 can theoretically and practically make real scientific revolutions. The discoveries made by them can significantly accelerate technological progress, bringing Russia to a new level of development.
They tried to correct the negative trend in various ways. For example, in some countries, according to the Institute for Labor Research, it was officially forbidden to emigrate highly qualified teachers and doctors. However, even considering this fact, people found ways to change their place of residence.
The brain drain has several directions. It is not necessary to go abroad. Quite often, promising scientists or students who graduate from high schools decide to retrain by working, for example, in the service sector. The so-called “leak of ideas” is not uncommon either: scientists do not leave the country, they simply sell their projects and ideas to foreign customers. In addition, very often Russian researchers collaborate with employers from other countries. But there is only one reason - the state does not want or cannot provide the scientific sector with enough finance. That is why the problem of "brain drain" today is one of the most urgent.
