Stay in the loop! Subscribe to our mailing list
The Higher Education Information System (HIS), a Hannover based company specialised in higher education research and development, did a survey for the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research. According to the survey, conducted among 7 000 students, German international student mobility increased from 23 to 26 percent between 2007 and 2009. The results also show that the highest level of mobility occurs when a stay abroad is integrated into the course of studies as an exchange programme or through joint courses of universities in different countries. The average length of a stay abroad is six months. Western Europe is still the favourite destination of German students.
The goal set by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research is to significantly raise international mobility of German students by funding DAAD programmes that support dual degrees and programmes with integrated studies abroad. In the medium term, DAAD and the ministry target a share, as high as 50 percent, of German students to gain international experience in their first degree, be it through studies abroad, language courses or internships.