Multiple benefits of international students – Survey

International students appear to have significant positive impacts on host institutions and countries as well as on host economies, according to a survey commissioned by the German Academic Exchange Service, DAAD.

The survey, carried out by the Prognos AG consultancy company and funded by Germany’s Ministry of Education and Research, demonstrated that student mobility has significant impacts on the economy both in terms of consumer spending and with regard to graduates working in host countries later on.

The German results were compared to those of The Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Switzerland and Spain in the survey.

In 2011, there were 160,702 international students in Germany. They spent a total of €1.531 billion (US$2.09 billion) on consumption, a value higher than those of the other countries looked at.

This expenditure resulted in €400 million worth of fiscal revenue. In other words, each international student contributed €2,500 to the public budget. This value added resulted in effects on employment, yielding a total of 22,000 new jobs.

The positive effects of student mobility were significantly higher than initial outlay, too.

Public investment in international students already pays for itself if 30% of the graduates stay on and work in Germany for at least five years.

Setting out from the above number of students, the direct annual value added is €53,000, and there is an additional €17,100 from consumer spending.

Germany’s Education Minister, Christian Democrat Johanna Wanka, stressed that international students were welcome in Germany because they contribute to the exchange of knowledge, ideas and insights.

“But the survey also shows us that they provide very tangible economic benefits,” Wanka remarked. “They invest, consume, pay tax and safeguard jobs. Recruiting students from all over the world and retaining them in Germany on graduation requires investment in our higher education system, investment that quickly pays its way.

“This is why both the federal and the state governments have set themselves the goal of further increasing international student numbers.”

DAAD president Professor Margret Wintermantel agreed that investing in brains from all over the world was a worthwhile venture. But she stressed that mobility had positive effects regardless of whether students returned to their home countries after graduating or chose to stay in Germany.

“Returnees can provide skills that are useful in their home countries while they can also act as friends and ambassadors for Germany,” Wintermantel explained. “But those who stay here form a bridge offering both sides benefits in terms of trade and cultural exchange.”

* Michael Gardner Email: michael.gardner@uw-news.com