Education Monitor 2025: Germany leads the way in STEM subjects and attracts international students

November 28 2025

The 2025 edition places particular emphasis on STEM education (science, technology, engineering and mathematics). With 35.5% of students enrolled in STEM subjects, Germany achieved the highest figure in the EU in 2023 and has already exceeded the EU target of 32% by 2030. In 2023, 249,340 international students from non-EU countries graduated in the EU, an increase of 18.2% since 2020, particularly in bachelor’s (+20.5%) and master’s programmes (+21%). Of these, 19.0% were in Germany. The figure for Germany is particularly high for the proportion of graduates from India (37.6%). University graduates from the USA and China also chose to study in Germany at an above-average rate. Relative to the total number of university graduates, Luxembourg, Malta and Estonia lead the EU comparison, each accounting for over 10% of graduates from non-EU countries in 2023.

The results in detail:

Proportion of STEM students in a country comparison

The proportion of STEM students in the EU ranges from 13.9% in Malta to 35.5% in Germany. Germany, Finland (35.3%) and Greece (33.7%) have already achieved the EU target, while 12 Member States are still below 25%. Across the EU, more than half of all STEM students study engineering, manufacturing and construction, and around one in four study natural sciences, mathematics or statistics. One in five study ICT, with large differences between countries; the proportion varies from 8.8% in Italy to 37.7% in Luxembourg.

International mobility in the EU

Between 2020 and 2023, the EU-wide international mobility rate fell to 11% (including 4.4% for obtaining a degree and 6.6% for credit mobility) of the approximately 4 million university graduates, well below the EU target of 23% for 2030. According to the European Commission, data limitations may underestimate actual progress.

Mobility varies greatly between countries: Luxembourg (80.7%) and Cyprus (27.8%) meet the EU target, Germany stands at 9.9% (link), while Poland, Italy and Slovenia are below 5%. Higher educational qualifications are associated with higher mobility, ranging from 3.3% for short courses, 9.7% for bachelor’s degrees, 14.9% for master’s degrees to 18.8% at doctoral level.

Credit mobility usually takes place through EU programmes such as Erasmus+, but 46% of short study visits or internships are also organised independently; in some countries (Latvia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania and Cyprus), EU programmes are almost the only option (>97%).

International students from non-EU countries in the EU

In 2023, 249,340 international students from non-EU countries were studying in the EU, an increase of 18.2% since 2020, mainly in bachelor’s (+20.5%) and master’s programmes (+21%). The three largest destination countries – France (32.3%), Germany (19%) and Spain (7.5%) – together attract 58.7% of all students; France alone attracts 32.3%, Germany 19.0% and Spain 7.5%. Poland and Italy each account for around 6%, the Netherlands and Ireland around 4%, while all other EU countries attract less than 3% each.

Asia is the most important region of origin with 37.3%, led by China (11.1%) and India (7.7%), followed by Africa (26.3%). Most students from Africa (70.9%) choose to study in France. France and Germany are also the most important destination countries for students from China (32.6% and 27.5% respectively), while Indian students mainly study in Germany (37.6%), Ireland (14.4%) and France (13.1%). Other significant countries of origin are Ukraine (4.6%) and the USA (2.8%), with half of Ukrainian students studying in Poland and half of students from the United States spread across Germany (19.8%), Ireland (15.1%) and France (15.6%). Other countries of origin on the American continent account for 13.6%, with just under half of this group obtaining their degree in Spain (37.4%) or France (19.5%).

Relative to the total number of their university graduates, Luxembourg (189.2), Malta (143.2) and Estonia (107.5) lead the EU comparison, with over 100 non-EU graduates per 1,000 university graduates. At the lower end of the scale are Italy (27.6), Croatia (22.7) and Greece (3.0). At EU level, the figure rose from 49.8 in 2020 to 57.1 in 2023, with almost all Member States recording growth, albeit at varying rates.

Strategies for attracting international students

EU countries are pursuing different strategies to attract more international students. In Germany, visa and admission requirements have been relaxed, the recognition of qualifications has been improved, and language courses, housing support and counselling are offered. Estonia is adapting curricula and launching advertising campaigns, while Slovakia is increasingly opening its universities to foreign students. Greece is setting up centres for academic and administrative support, and in Cyprus, two public universities are now allowed to offer bachelor’s degree programmes in foreign languages, albeit for a fee.

Country report Germany

According to the country report for Germany, the proportion of university graduates among 25- to 34-year-olds rose by 10.3% between 2015 and 2024. At 39.9%, the proportion is below the EU average (EU-wide: 44.1%), which is attributed, among other things, to the strength of the dual vocational training system in Germany. The EU target is 45% by 2030. The gender gap is 5.6% in favour of women (EU-wide: 11.2%). In 2024, one in six university degrees among 25- to 30-year-olds was vocationally oriented. The report also looks at developments in the area of internationalisation, in particular the increasing proportion of international students among university graduates in Germany and the proportion of university graduates in Germany who have participated in learning mobility, with reference to sources from the DAAD, IW, Eurostat and the UOE data collection.