Major trends in student mobility in continental Europe

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What is continental Europe? 

In the keynote, 19 countries located in Eastern Europe are included in the term continental Europe. They are divided in four sub-groups: Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan), the Western Balkans (Albania, Bosnia Herzegovina, Kosovo, Northern Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia), the Caucasus (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia) and finally the other countries (Belarus, Moldova, Russia, Ukraine and Turkey). 

Key figures of mobility in continental Europe

• 669,000 students chose a degree-granting mobility scheme from continental Europe in 2021, i.e. 10% of all mobile students worldwide.
• 93% of students in this area leaving in mobility stay in Europe (62% towards Europe outside EU and 31% towards the EU).
• Student mobility increased by 20% over five years, a slightly slower rate than worldwide mobility growth (+25%).
• Russia is the first destination, with 30% of students in the region.
• Uzbeks are the most mobile group in the area, with a rocketing increase of outward mobility from the country (+164% in three years).
• France welcomed 22,380 students from the region in 2022-2023. This is 6% of all foreign students in the country.
• 2/3 of students from continental Europe in France are women.
• About 3/4 (73%) of students from Western Europe in France are registered in a university, a share much higher than the average of foreign students in France (64%).
• 2/3 of students in Continental Europe registered in a university are enrolled in a Licence course, more than the average of foreign students in a university (52%).
• Among students from the region with a job, 53% found their job in France, 37% in their country of origin and 10% in another country.

The keynote provides an overview of the mobility of students from these countries, which has been disrupted by the outbreak of war in Ukraine and its impact on university cooperation. It details the mobility of students from these countries to France in order to shed light on the courses that are already attracting their interest and those that still need to be made better known. It analyses the post-graduation integration of students from the region, revealing the benefits they derive from their training in France, their successful integration into the French and foreign labour markets and their above-average propensity to stay in France after their studies. These are all factors that can be exploited to better promote France as a study destination.