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Global opportunities: The ever-increasing demand for international graduate education
New destinations
The variety of viable study destinations for international graduate students is now very different from just five years ago. Governments across Asia, Europe and North America view the recruitment of Masters and PhD students as an essential part of their immigration and human resources policy and have established strategies to ensure that many more students than ever before are aware of the advantages of studying in their country. Evidence from QS Research underlines how diverse the range of countries for prospective international graduate students now is, with 45 countries routinely considered as choices by those responding to the QS Applicants Research in 2008. The table below lists the top 10 most popular countries for Masters or PhD study.
Most popular study destinations for graduate study
Rank Country Interest (percentage preference)
1 USA 80
2 UK 63
3 Canada 38
4 Australia 28
5 France 25
6 Spain 20
7 Singapore 16
8 Germany 16
9 Switzerland 15
10 Italy 13
Source: QS Research 2008
Although the top four destinations of the USA, the UK, Canada and Australia are now well established as the most popular countries for international graduate study, it is significant that European countries dominate the remaining spots in the top 10. Since the widespread implementation of the Bologna Accord’s reformation of Europe’s higher education systems, it is much easier for international students to understand both the level of the qualification they hope to pursue and what it will qualify them to do. Coupled with economically priced tuition fees, improved student facilities, the ability to work whilst studying and an increasing number of graduate degree programs taught in English, the attraction of Europe for international students is easy to understand.
On top of more international graduate students finding Europe’s universities attractive for their Masters or PhD programs, a number of countries themselves are taking the matter of attracting students more seriously than ever. Attractive marketing campaigns, with comprehensive listings of all programs offered in English, new and extended scholarship opportunities and a closer link between graduate degrees and the local labour market are all features of initiatives launched, for example, by the Danish and Norwegian Governments in recent months. This is undoubtedly a positive trend for students, making the decision-making process more transparent and easier for those considering an international program simply by virtue of the fact that more accurate information is available to them. Whether available through new websites, course searches, education fairs or advertising, officially sanctioned information can be a vital platform from which to choose your study destination.
A greater range of other subjects, such as administration, biological sciences and psychology is becoming more porular.
Changing subjects
Whilst the majority of international students continue to pursue Masters and PhD programs in subject areas that are most directly linked to employment opportunities after graduation, there is evidence of subtle shifts in the popularity of some subjects over others. The table below illustrates the differences in subject preferences as expressed by those students attending one of the QS World Grad School Tour education fairs in 2006 and 2007.
Top 10 subject areas for graduate study
| Subject | Interest in 2007 (%) | Interest in 2006 (%) |
| Finance, accountancy,management & economics (FAME) | 31 | 41 |
| Science, technology, engineering& mathematics (STEM) | 19 | 22 |
| International relations | 5 | 5 |
| Communications & media | 4 | 5 |
| Administration | 4 | n/a |
| Law & legal studies | 4 | 4 |
| Biological sciences | 2 | n/a |
| Education & training | 2 | 3 |
| Psychology | 2 | n/a |
| Languages | 2 | 2 |
Source: QS Research 2008
With more than 55,000 prospective students indicating a subject preference, the evidence suggests that the interest in finance, accountancy, management and economics is waning and a greater range of other subjects, such as administration, biological sciences and psychology is becoming more popular.
