Foreign-born US scholars produce more publications than those born in the United States, but are less satisfied with their work lives, says a study in the Journal of Higher Education (D. Kim et al. J. Higher Educ. 82, 720–747; 2011). Furthermore, foreign US faculty members who earned their undergraduate degrees in other countries are more productive than those who did so in the United States — but they are also less satisfied. The study gauged productivity on the basis of the number of research papers published over five years, using data from the US National Science Foundation's 2003 Survey of Doctorate Recipients. The authors speculate that only the “best and brightest” foreign scholars secure US faculty posts; or perhaps non-US scholars have better undergraduate training, especially in the sciences and maths.