The total number of foreign students enrolled in degree programmes in the Czech Republic increased by 8.1% in 2020. The highest year-on-year increase is evident among students from Russia, India and Iran.
The latest data from the Czech Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports for 2020 shows that the number of students with non-Czech citizenship had risen from 46,351 students in 2019 to 50,121 students in the last year (figures from December 31st, 2020). Currently, there are nearly 300,000 students at the Czech public, state, and private higher education institutions, out of which the international students in degree programmes make up for over 17% of the student body.
When we take a look at the list of the top ten source countries, the number of students from Russia, India, and Iran increased by more than 20%, while Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and Belarus recorded more than 10% growth.
“We assume that the possibility of distance enrolment to study and also start of the online classes may have contributed to the increase in the number of international students”, Lucie Durcová from the National Agency for International Education and Research explains. “Thanks to that, students who had to deal with, for example, complications with traveling to the Czech Republic due to COVID-19 measures and restrictions, were able to begin their studies.”
On the other hand, a drop in the number of short-term exchange students occurred, especially due to difficult travel opportunities. Compared to 15,813 students who came to the Czech Republic for a short-term study stay in 2019, there were only 9,740 in 2020. It means a decrease of almost 38%.
A similar trend is evident in Czech students aiming to study outside of the Czech Republic. The number of students traveling abroad for short-term study stays had dropped from 10,429 in 2019 to 6,808 in 2020, which means a decrease of almost 35%.
By: Czech National Agency for International Education
