More Dutch students going abroad for studies, internships

More and more Dutch students are going abroad to get their diploma, for part of their studies, or for an internship, according to a study by Nuffic. The number of students going abroad for their entire diploma doubled in ten years. And those going abroad for part of their studies or an internship increased by a fifth in five years.

“A study or internship abroad is of great value to Dutch students. They develop skills for the internationally orientated labor market where they end up after their studies,” said Nuffic researcher Anneloes Slapdel-Henschen. “Internationally competent students are also better equipped for the multicultural society and the cooperation across national borders that is necessary for solving global challenges.”

In 2019, the most recent figures available, 20,000 Dutch students went abroad for their entire diploma. They studied in 98 different countries, almost twice as many as ten years ago. Belgium, the United Kingdom, and the United States were the most popular destinations.

According to researcher Soaradh Favier, Belgium has been Dutch students' most popular study destination since 2015. “This may be due to the language, the low tuition fees, the availability of accommodation, and the accessibility of programs like (veterinary) medicine, dentistry, and psychology.”

Most of the Dutch students didn’t travel very far for their studies. Three-quarters remained within the European Economic Area. And despite the number of Dutch students getting their diploma abroad doubling, the Netherlands is still well behind the European level on this front. With a diploma mobility of 3 percent, the Netherlands is well below the European average.

When it comes to students going abroad for part of their studies or an internship, there are no precise figures on the total number. The researchers, therefore, looked at the number of Dutch students going abroad with an Erasmus+ grant. According to the researchers, an estimated one-third of all students who go abroad for part of their studies do so with an Erasmus+ grant.

In the 2018-2019 study year, the latest figures available, over 14,000 Dutch students went abroad with an Erasmus+ grant, 31 percent for an internship and 69 percent for part of their studies. That is an increase of 20.7 percent compared to 2014. The most popular destinations were Spain, the United Kingdom, and Germany.

“Although the Netherlands lags behind at the European level in terms of diploma mobility, the opposite is strikingly true in terms of study credit mobility: the Netherlands ranks first in Europe in this respect,” the researchers said.