Spatial Sorting of Immigrants Across Urban and Rural Areas in the United States: Changing Patterns of Human Capital Accumulation Since the 1990s

The spatial sorting of immigrants by educational attainment is a persistent feature of immigrants' location choice, with highly educated immigrants being more likely to reside in metropolitan areas than less educated immigrants. Compared to the native-born population, migrants from abroad have a larger share of persons without a high school degree but also a larger share of persons with a graduate or professional degree. This almost U-shaped distribution is due to US immigration policies that favor family unification but also make special provisions for high-skilled workers. Between 1996 and 2005, the annual share of persons obtaining permanent resident status on the basis of employment varied between 9% and 22% only, whereas a majority of green card recipients were relatives of US citizens or permanent residents. The education variable stratifies between three levels: no high school diploma, high school diploma and possibly some college, and at least a bachelor's degree.