The Effect of R&D Investment on Graduate Student Productivity: Evidence From the Life Sciences

This study examines the role of graduate training and R&D investments on research productivity by focusing on the effect of federal funding for early‐career graduate students. We employ a difference‐in‐differences research design drawing upon a sample of high‐quality life science graduate students who either are award recipients or honorable mentions of the prestigious U.S. National Science Foundation's Graduate Research Fellowship Program. We find that a $91,000 grant over three years has a limited, yet positive impact on the awardee's productivity. These effects are driven by the sample of graduate students without publications prior to applying for the fellowship.