zlacker

It's an explanation but not a very simple one. It requires the immigrant to have chosen a career while in their country that would offer them more prospects once they emigrated. But then, why immigate instead of choosing a career that would be profitable and respectable in their country in the first place?

I think a simpler explanation is that people choose a career in their countries for whatever reason (that I don't know and can't speculate about) then when demand for their skills rises, they may find that emigrating is a better choice than staying at home- for instance, because salaries are better abroad.

That would be a simpler explanation for why more women in IT professions are immigrants to the UK (and possibly the US, though I'm not sure): they got the skills, there's job offers, they go abroad and take the offers.