According to a 2011 study by the British Council, international students are choosing to study abroad more often now than ever. The benefits are clear; becoming immersed in a new culture is the best way to learn a new language and adapt to cultural context. It also provides valuable life lessons, exposing students to new situations and people from different cultures and backgrounds, which in-turn, could one day make them more desirable as employees.
So with students more than anyone realising the benefits of migrating, where is it that they’re most likely to go?
1. Germany
According to the same study, Germany is the number one spot that international students migrate to. This may be down to the wide selection of courses taught entirely in English, a tempting factor that allows those from around the world to study in Germany, regardless of whether or not they can speak German. The study, which ranked Universities on factors such as support policies, quality of degree subjects and how widely the degrees are recognised, found Germany to be one of top destinations in the world for supporting students. Universities which ranked highly include Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg, located in Baden-Württemberg which was ranked in the top 50 universities in the world. Technische Universität München (ranked 54th) and Freising-Weihenstephan are also renowned for their support programmes and low tuition fees. This ensures that overseas students do not pay any more to study there than at home and sometimes will pay even less.
2. Australia
Australian universities were once known to recruit Asian students without competition, however this began to decline at the start of the decade due to rising competition in the US and Canada. To combat this, the AU government were quick to introduce lowered costs, improved accommodation and an integrated study and living experience in order to help Australia resume its place as one of the top destinations for international study. World ranking tables have also made Australia a desired location for students. The Times Higher Education rankings of the world’s top 200 universities The Australian National University 42nd in the world with The University of Sydney placed 49th.
3. The UK
Despite a reported drop in the number of international students currently studying in the UK, it still stands as one of the most popular destinations for international students. Between 2012-2013 the Higher Education Funding Council for England estimated that there were over 300,000 international and EU students studying within the UK. The benefits of UK migration are clear – firstly the quality of the UK education system and the fact that standards are recognised worldwide. Secondly, there is the advantage of learning English, the most valuable business language in the world. Three of the UK’s Universities also feature in the top 10 of The Times World University Rankings 2014-2015. The University of Oxford was voted as third in the world, followed closely by the University of Cambridge as fifth and the Imperial College of London at joint 9th place with the highly prestigious Yale, in the US.
Other top ten student destinations include China, Malaysia and the US. With so much choice available, it’s no wonder that thousands of students around the world are now choosing to study outside of their own countries.
