The DAAD has just released the 2006 issue of Wissenschaft weltoffen, its annual report on the international attractiveness of German higher education and research. Wissenschaft weltoffen, started in 2001, is in many ways modeled on IIE’s Open Doors publication. Other ACA members, such as the NUFFIC, undertake similar exercises to track developments in student mobility into and out of their countries (BISON Monitor).

Key findings from Wissenschaft weltoffen 2006 (which contains data from 2004) include:

• The number of foreign students in German higher education remained almost unchanged in comparison to 2004, at roughly 246 000. Of these, however, about a quarter were educated inside Germany (Bildungsinländer) and had thus not become mobile to study in Germany.
• The share of foreign of all students in Germany stood at 12.6%, a relatively high rate by international comparison. However, the share of foreign graduates stood at only 8.5% of all students, indicating some loss along the way.
• China, Bulgaria, Poland and the Russian Federation are the most important source countries. While the inflow of students from developed countries is stagnating, that from emerging economies is still on the rise.

Those interested in a comparison of international student flows into and out of Europe might want to consult EURODATA, published by ACA earlier this year.