Story: Society

The brain drain

The brain drain

Young New Zealanders leave in great numbers to experience the wider world. Many return, but some stay overseas, giving rise periodically to concern that the country is losing its best and brightest. With the introduction of a student loans scheme, many graduates left to earn more money and repay their loans more quickly. The government was initially reluctant to admit that the outflow was anything more than had been happening for years but, as this cartoon shows, it eventually acknowledged that the loans scheme was contributing to a ‘brain drain’.

Using this item

Alexander Turnbull Library
Reference: H-616-029

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

All images & media in this story

How to cite this page:

John Wilson, 'Society - Modern society', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/cartoon/2535/the-brain-drain (accessed 28 March 2024)

Story by John Wilson