While many experts in Israel worry about a “brain-drain problem”, more than 3,000 researchers who worked abroad are currently looking for employment in domestic higher-education institutions. The Contact Center for Israeli Researchers, founded by the Israeli Academy of Sciences and Humanities, will hold a specialized job fair on Thursday to connect between academic institutions seeking researchers.
The center, founded in 2007, aims to integrate researchers back into the local academic community. It provides the academics notice of available positions and a forum for discussing their difficulties. According to the center, the major obstacles preventing academics who wish to return are the widely-different modes of conduct between Israeli and foreign institutions, the bureaucracy, and the lack of transparency.
According to figures released by the center, more than 500 researchers - from the US, Canada, and Europe - found homes in Israeli universities since its founding. Currently, the center has 3,027 registered researchers expressing interest in returning to Israel.
The center’s figures showed the Hebrew University has taken in the most researchers - 90 - including 16 in the last year, while Tel Aviv University accepted 73 in total, 14 in the previous year; Ben-Gurion University has adopted 63 and the Technion 53.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on December 24, 2015
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