To Come Home or to Stay in Europe after Mundus? Results of a Survey on
Mundus Students’ Plans
José Luis Bernal Agudo, Tatiana Gayán Jiménez,
Justyna Hadaś, Urszula Wittchen
Introduction
This chapter presents the results of a survey on the plans of current Mundus students.
The study covers both qualitative and quantitative analysis, and complements two other pieces
of research carried out within the project: the phenomenological study of seven return cases,
and the qualitative analysis of the impact on careers at home of the graduates of European
joint master’s programs. All three investigations look for brain gain for the sending countries
resulting from the Erasmus Mundus programme.
The survey in a form of an online questionnaire was carried out in the period April–
June, first in 2008, and then in 2009. A total of 225 students responded to the questionnaire,
and vast majority of them (94.22%) represented countries of emerging and developing
economies: Albania, Argentina, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Botswana, Brazil, Cameroon, China,
Colombia, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guatemala, India, Indonesia, Iran, Ivory Coast,
Kenya, Korea, Lebanon, Malaysia, Mexico, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, the Philippines,
Russia, Serbia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, and Vietnam. Only 13
respondents were from countries of advanced economies: 3 from New Zealand, 2 from
Taiwan, 3 from Canada, and 5 from the USA). Students of the following 29 Erasmus Mundus
Master Courses (EMCCs) took part in the survey, thanks to the assistance of their course
coordinators:
1. ALGANT, International integrated Master course in Algebra, Geometry, and Number
Theory
2. AMASE, Joint European Master Programme in Advanced Materials Science and
Engineering
3. CROSSWAYS, Crossways in European Humanities
4. EMAE, European Master in Applied Ecology
5. EMCL, European Masters in Clinical Linguistics
6. EMIN, Economics and Management of Network Industries
7. EMMAPA, Erasmus Mundus Master in Adapted Physical Activity
8. EMMS, Joint European Master’s Programme in Materials Science
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9. EJMWCM, European Joint Master in Water and Coastal Management
10. EMMA, Journalism and Media within Globalisation: The European Perspective
11. EuMI, European Master in Informatics
12. EUROAQUAE, Euro Hydroinformatics and Water Management
13. EUROMIME, European Master in Media Technology for Education
14. EM-ABG, European Master in Animal Breeding and Genetics
15. EMPCL, European Masters Program in Computational Logic
16. VINTAGE, International Master of Science: Vine, Wine and Terroir Management
17. MAE, Master of Applied Ethics
18. MA LLL, European Master’s in Lifelong Learning: Policy and Management
19. MsGT, Master of Science in Geospatial Technologies
20. ME3, European joint Masters in Management and Engineering of Environment and
Energy
21. MEEES, Masters in Earthquake Engineering and Engineering Seismology
22. MEEM, Mechanical Engineering Erasmus Mundus Masters
23. MONABIPHOT, Molecular nano- and bio-photonics for telecommunications and
biotechnologies
24. OPSCITECH, Optics in Science and Technology
25. SAMHC, Advanced Masters in Structural Analysis of Monuments and Historical
Constructions
26. SUTROFOR, Sustainable Tropical Forestry Erasmus Mundus Masters
27. QEM, Models and Methods of Quantitative Economics
28. VIBOT, European Master in Vision and Robotics
29. MBIO, Master of Bioethics
As well as being asked explicitly about their future plans, the respondents were
questioned regarding the factors that influence students from developing countries to study
abroad, and the factors which affect their decision to either return home or to remain in the
host country on completion of their studies. Among the factors influencing the respondents’
own decisions, the role of family obligations, acquaintance with examples of successful career
development of previous Erasmus Mundus graduates, and awareness of brain drain will be
analysed. The survey also investigated respondents’ visions of life and work in the more
distant future.
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Students’ plans after completing Erasmus Mundus Master’s Courses
“Life is about taking opportunities that make you grow”, wrote a Colombian student
enrolled in the European Master’s in Clinical Linguistics, in the first words of his comment on
the question “What are your plans after completing your Mundus Course?” Erasmus Mundus
does create such opportunities, letting its graduates succeed personally, but also significantly
contributing to the development of their home countries, and to the benefit of their people—if
they choose to return home. Mundus students consider the following possible options: 1) to
go back home, when they have a stable job there, or else the opportunity to start a professional
career, knowing that they may be needed and sought more at home than in Europe, 2) to stay
in the EU to improve their skills and advance their professionalism in an environment offering
better resources and working conditions, or 3) to work for an international NGO. Another
option—to pursue a career in the USA was mentioned only by one respondent of non-US
origin. Apart from choosing from four defined options (“I will return home”, “I will stay in
the territory of the European Union”, “I will neither return home nor stay in the EU—please
give details of your plans”, “I do not know yet”) respondents had an opportunity to share their
deliberations in the open questions of the questionnaire, revealing arguments for and against
their decisions, exposing their hesitations and the external factors determining their plans—
such as family pressure, the situation at home and in EU countries, the prospects for their
specific specializations and professions. A Taiwanese student considers two options with their
advantages: “For staying in the EU: This will continuously broaden my views, either
culturally or professionally. Furthermore, if I work in Europe for 2 or 3 years after graduation,
I can gain some working experience and skills which are not easily attainable in my home
country. I believe this will be quite useful even after I return to my home country. For staying
at home country: This is mainly a personal reason. I want to return to my home country, since
our family members have close relationships, and I do not want to be too far away from them”
(QEM, Models and Methods of Quantitative Economics). An Indian engineer sees himself
working in the future for an organization “which serves the world in solving the problems of
environment and developing sustainable energy systems”, and adds, “I think this master’s is
for global welfare and currently so much of the research work regarding energy and
environment is going on in Europe. EU institutes are interested in providing global solutions
to the energy and environmental systems. So my desire will be fulfilled by working with them
in good conditions” (ME3, European joint Masters in Management and Engineering of
Environment and Energy). Uniquely, another Indian engineer has a plan to go the US: “I feel
USA provides a better environment for innovation and implementation of novel ideas. Thus,
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the research I do will be recognized by academia and industry, which will be an incentive for
me to do further research” (MEEM, Mechanical Engineering Erasmus Mundus Masters).
The first three tables below present some introductory quantitative results that will be
commented on below. A detailed analysis of students’ answers to the open questions of the
questionnaire, complements and explains these and further quantitative results.
Table 1. Intention to return home (all respondents).
Before beginning Mundus studies, did an intention exist to
YES
NO
76.34%
23.66%
return home upon graduation?
Table 2. Students’ plans after graduation (all respondents)
I will return I will stay in
Students’ current plans.
I have other
home
the EU
I don’t know
plans
30.77%
26.24%
37.56%
5.43%
Table 3. Planned time of return (respondents who declared the will to return home).
Planned time of return of those who wish According to intentions According
to return home:
before starting studies
current plans
immediately after getting the diploma
19.88%
23.37%
diploma
18.71%
19.02%
in the first year after getting the diploma
16.96%
14.13%
later
44.44%
43.48%
to
in the first three months after getting the
a) Plans to stay in Europe
Before starting Mundus studies, three quarters of the surveyed students had the
intention to return home upon graduation. The percentage of pre-Mundus intentions to stay in
Europe (table 1) is a little smaller that of the students’ current plans (table 2), but not
significantly enough to say that life in Europe has affected their previous plans. Students
chose from four time options, as illustrated in table 3. A choice of one of the two first options
may indicate a return intention, and this embraces the option of staying in Europe for up to
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another three months, a period that may act as a buffer, a time for closing issues, for some
actions not yet done, for having a look for possible opportunities in Europe, but without a
strong intention to stay there. Around 14% of students plan to stay in Europe after graduation
for a period of up to one year (but longer than three months), and 43% intend to stay for a
longer time. From the latter group’s answers to open questions, it is known that the majority
intend to stay between two to five years to get some work experience.
The largest group of those who intend to stay in Europe (61%) would like to obtain a
doctorate (table 4), usually in the framework of Erasmus Mundus. Others want to continue
their academic education by enrolling in a doctoral course in one of the EU higher education
institutions, mainly those involved in the EM consortia. Such a possibility often occurs as a
consequence of excellent performance during Master’s studies. Some students applied and are
waiting for the results, while some respondents have already received doctoral scholarships.
Many reasons for choosing such an option were noted in the answers to the open questions of
the questionnaire.
Table 4. Plans of students (respondents who declared the will to stay in the European
Union).
Specific plans of those who want to stay in the European Union:
Percentage
Doctoral studies
61.00%
Further studies but not at the doctoral level
3.50%
Work at university
23.00%
Work outside university
1.00%
Travelling
3.50%
Other plans
8.00%
Those who have chosen an academic career and plan to undertake PhD studies intend
to stay for longer periods in EU countries. This way they can deepen their expertise,
accumulate more skills, get greater international exposure, and do more networking in order
to better serve their home societies and economies in the future. The following citations
illustrate students’ hope that a longer stay in Europe will improve their professional
recognition and guarantee them a good position after they return: “My main reason to stay in
Europe for several years after graduating from the course is to have a real insight into the
implementation of my specialization in Europe (especially in the country where I’m pursuing
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the study now), so that later on, I can implement/adopt the approaches in my country” (EuMI,
European Master in Informatics, M, 23, Indonesia); “After this programme, I wish to stay in
EU another three years, just want to gain more experience and build myself more mature, not
only for career purposes” (QEM, Models and Methods of Quantitative Economics); “I will
come back to my country after two years, to consolidate the practical foundation. This is
important for major recognition and my professional perspectives” (EUROMIME, European
Master in Media Technology for Education). The plan of staying several years is also chosen
in cases where a student’s home country is not at the moment able to use in practice the
know-how obtained by them abroad in highly specialized areas: “It may take decades to bring
my country at the level to be ready to implement the knowledge which I have gained in
Europe. That’s why I want to get experience and become strong enough to be able to bring
change in my country” (EUROAQUAE, Euro Hydroinformatics and Water Management, F,
25, Pakistan).
Respondents who want to stay in Europe hope to get a suitable job soon after course
completion, to add practical experience to the knowledge gained during studies, something
they cannot expect in their own countries: ”I want to involve in some of the conservational
projects (natural resources) which help me to get priceless professional experience” (EMAE,
European Master in Applied Ecology, India); “I want to achieve excellence in my field so it is
only possible in case of stay in Europe” (EUROAQUAE, Euro Hydroinformatics and Water
Management, Pakistan). A Vietnamese student, like many coming from low-income families,
is encouraged by his family to remain and find a job: “My family thinks I have more chances
to develop my career in Europe than in home country” (MsGT, Master of Science in
Geospatial Technologies, Vietnam).
Some respondents described their plan to stay in the territory of the EU rather vaguely,
as in the case of this Indian student: “I cannot say about these things at this point of time. But
I would like to stay here, to learn and to enjoy and continue getting acclimatized with
different people and culture under EU which is far away and far different from where I was
born and brought up”. The answers of the majority of students presented a variety of well
thought-out reasons. For example, the quest for academic excellence motivates a student from
New Zealand studying a Master’s in Vision and Robotics: “I would like to stay in the EU, as
many of the universities here have much more experience in my specialization, and there are
many more opportunities to obtain funding and attend events”; and Venezuelan engineer
studying advanced materials science similarly states, “I want to work in research on the
materials science (especially within the field I like, which is biomaterials). It is more
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developed in European universities than in my home country”. It happens that the
specializations which students study on EM courses are not developed in practice in their
home countries. Interestingly this concerns not only highly advanced technological subjects,
but also humanities: “The Mundus course has opened many new avenues of interest,
especially in the area of research and education, and the support for work related to this field
seem to be far stronger in Europe. India for the past few years is perceived as increasingly IT
oriented, but not much value is attached there to the arts” (CROSSWAYS, Crossways in
European Humanities). Some students believe strongly that a job and career opportunities are
waiting for them in Europe, once they have their European Master’s qualification: “I chose
the EU because the facilities are very good here, the people are very nice and getting a
research job in my field is not difficult. Career and business opportunities are very good”
(VIBOT, European Master in Vision and Robotics); “I am too much time out of job market—
two years in Brazil without work is too much. So, if I go back now I will not have a job. In
Europe there are a lot of opportunities for engineers, and if I get experience here in the future
I could come back to my country and maybe work in the same company” (AMASE, Joint
European Master Programme in Advanced Materials Science and Engineering); “I am
planning to stay and work in the EU. The reason is a possibility to push up my professional
and international experience along with very good background in civil engineering supported
with my bachelor degree (civil engineering) and master’s degree (hydroinformatics and water
management) gained in the EU” (EUROAQUAE, Euro Hydroinformatics and Water
Management, Serbia). For some students, the lifestyle they tested in Europe makes them more
willing to absorb a bit more of European culture at the same time as getting work experience:
“I would like to stay in the European Union because I like the European way of life and I find
here more opportunities for professional development (EMMS, Joint European Master’s
Programme in Materials Science)”; “First of all, job opportunities—in Europe I believe I will
have much broader possibilities of job positions. Secondly, I really like living in Europe!”; “I
feel I can still learn much more not only about technical knowledge for my professional
performance but also about lifestyle and culture in the EU. I would love to enjoy for at least
few years more the opportunity to live in the EU” (name of Master’s course not given, F, 30,
Colombia).
Respondents who want to stay in Europe hope to get a suitable job soon after
completing their course, and to add practical experience to the knowledge gained during
studies, something that they cannot expect in their own countries. Nevertheless, as the table 5
indicates, not many students were offered jobs during the course of their studies. But for some
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of them, a job developed from an internship organized by the Mundus course, or was found
through the Erasmus Mundus Alumni and Students Association (EMA). This is, for example,
the case with a Chilean student of EUROMIME, European Master in Media Technology for
Education, who is involved in the EMA Jobs Team: “I got a job in France related to the
Master. So I can apply my knowledge in Europe and try to make contacts to my home country
too”.
Table 5. Received proposal to work in the EU (all respondents).
Have you received a job proposal or a real
chance of getting an interesting job in the EU
yet?
Percentage
NO
82.87%
YES
17.13%
Some 37.5% of respondents answered that they still do not know whether they will
stay or return after completing studies. In their cases, the decision depends on the work
opportunities they can find in the EU, or on the success of the PhD applications they have
submitted to European HEIs. This group also includes those who see two options open to
them: “I would like to return to my work, but without discounting the possibility to return to
the EU if there is a suitable job or further study opportunity” (VINTAGE, International
Master of Science: Vine, Wine and Terroir Management, New Zealand); “I would like to live
in my country as well as in Europe. The question is to find a job, here or there, that involves
academic research and a kind of work with social questions (like immigration in Europe and
hunger or poverty in Brazil)” (CROSSWAYS, Crossways in European Humanities).
In the case of a few African students there was a desperate desire to establish
themselves in Europe due to unpromising prospects or even hostile situations at home. Eritrea
and Ethiopia are examples of this: both countries face a bleak future unless they can find a
way to end their conflict and, more importantly, give to their citizens a full opportunity to
realize their hopes for a better life, respecting human rights, and enjoying peace and freedom:
“The political environment in Eritrea is becoming worse and worse and the only university
that we had in the country is not functioning at this time. In addition to this, when I was
leaving the country for the Mundus programme I faced a lot of problems because no one is
allowed to leave the country for scholarship (MSc or PhD). Since I left the country on my
own way, I will not be able to go back. Even if I want to go back, I will be in trouble. I will
also be in trouble for my ‘faith in Christ’ because of the religious persecution going in the
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country. My family wants me to stay abroad for my security and for my future career. This is
because they know what would happen to me if I went back to Eritrea” (MsGT, Master of
Science in Geospatial Technologies, M, 27, Eritrea); “I will not get a job in my country. If
yes, only one with a quite a low salary” (MsGT, Master of Science in Geospatial
Technologies, M, 27, Ethiopia).
The table below refers to the preferences of those students who wish to study at
doctoral level, and shows that the majority would like to continue undertake such study in
European HEIs.
Table 6. Plans to continue at PhD studies (respondents who wish to study at doctoral
level).
Students’ preferences as to the place of PhD studies:
In the EU
73.60%
At home
8.43%
Elsewhere
17.98%
The largest group of those who intend to stay in Europe would like to do a PhD in the
framework of Erasmus Mundus, and then only after completing it to go back home to serve
their country people with their higher qualifications. Others want to continue their academic
education by enrolling at a PhD course in any of the EU higher education institutions, mainly
those involved in EM consortia. Such a possibility often occurs as a consequence of excellent
performance during Master’s studies. Some students applied and are waiting for the results,
while some already received doctoral scholarships. In the surveyed group many reasons are
cited for choosing such an option. One is the academic excellence of the research institutions,
something not available at their countries: “Since this field really enhanced my knowledge
and skills and I’m pretty sure that I would had never be able to get a chance to learn these
skills elsewhere around the world, so it’s a good time to apply for a PhD; finish it up and then
decide whether to return home or stay in the EU” (EMPCL, European Masters Program in
Computational Logic, M, 25, Pakistan); “European universities are well recognized for their
technical brilliance in the field of computer vision. Thus, if offered I would certainly pursue
my PhD here” (VIBOT, European Master in Vision and Robotics, M, 31, India). Another
motivation is exemplified by the following statement of one of the Bangladeshi students—
coming back with “only” a master’s degree would not have a significant impact on either
one’s career or on the situation in the home country: “I need to implement my achieved
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knowledge in a place where both me and my organization can benefit, though I am from a
developing country. It’s very difficult for me as a Master’s graduate to get a job in a position
where I can contribute my knowledge, but if I can do PhD as well as a postdoc, maybe I
would get better position, and it would be easier for me to contribute my better knowledge for
develop the animal life and productivity in developing countries”.
Nearly 26% of respondents declared that they would go back home immediately after
receiving their diplomas, many with the aims of contributing to the development of
knowledge, of new areas of competence, of effectiveness and modernization of their home
country’s services and policies, and generally to contribute to economic growth or the wellbeing of their compatriots. In all probability, at least some of the middle-aged Mundus
students will return home—those who have had previous successful practice in stable
positions in their home country. With these strong backgrounds, complemented by expertise
gained during their studies at prestigious European universities, they are likely to be eager to
return, both in order to support their home institutions, and to join their families left at home:
“I have family and I want to live with them. In addition I can also get a job in my country, and
I would like to serve there. Getting a job in Europe is also very difficult” (SUTROFOR,
Sustainable Tropical Forestry Erasmus Mundus Masters, F, 41, Indonesia); “I have a job back
home, a teaching post, and I took this course to enhance my professional capacity as faculty in
my university, so that I will be able to be part of the administration in my home university,
and I will be able to establish ties with European universities for further professional
development of other faculty members” (MAE, Master of Applied Ethics, M 33, Philippines).
Some students admitted that they will be forced to come back home due to their failure
to find a job or further study opportunities in the EU: “Right now I don’t have anything in
hand and my visa expires, hence I have to return home” (India); “First I was thinking to do a
PhD, but now since I haven’t found it I would like to work, preferably in my country, even if
the conditions are not the best” (Venezuela). Several respondents perceive their home
countries to be able to offer them better opportunities and conditions than those they can find
in Europe. This group of respondents represent countries as different as Peru, Vietnam, Russia
and the USA: “I prefer to return home because I think that I will have better opportunities
with such a degree than in any part of Europe. Immigration is a also a factor because it is not
that easy to find a good job and settle the immigration status” (CROSSWAYS, Crossways in
European Humanities, Peru); “I know my country well, so I am likely to have greater chance
to find a job or being successful there in the future” (EUROAQUAE, Euro Hydroinformatics
and Water Management, Vietnam); “First of all, I will obtain a PhD degree at my Russian
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university which will permit me to work there later. Actually, Russia needs young specialists
in materials science” (AMASE, Joint European Master Programme in Advanced Materials
Science and Engineering, Russia); “It will be beneficial for me to return home because I will
be a management specialist in a developing field so I can have a good career start”
(EJMWCM, European Joint Master in Water and Coastal Management, F 28, Russia); “I have
better chances of getting funding for further schooling and/or getting a job in my home
country. I am also tired of dealing with European bureaucracy” (EMAE, European Master in
Applied Ecology, United States of America).
Numerous respondents who declared they would return home do so for personal or
family reasons. Some left their spouses and children behind: “I am married and have a
daughter. They are waiting for my return”; while the younger long for their companies:
“Although I’m happy to have had this time abroad, I miss my friends and being able to fully
communicate with everyone around me”; “I want to go back to my country as I have not gone
home in two years, and meet people, families and friends”. Many respondents stated that they
just “prefer to live at home”. Purely personal reasons pulling students back home are only
mentioned rarely, and they are usually connected with existing jobs and career opportunities
at home: “I am married and my husband is living in India so I will join him back. India is in a
big phase of development and this is the country where most of the opportunities exist, so it is
good to return”. The lack of such opportunities in the EU, is also sometimes mentioned: “The
reason to return is both having a new daughter, and not having welcoming experiences at
either location I studied”. Interestingly, a Canadian 23-year old student reasons that “it is
more ‘convenient’ for me to return home”—such an approach is very different from that of
students from poor countries; usually they have to stay abroad and struggle for a better future,
despite the fact that they would presumably prefer to live a more “convenient” life at home.
The biggest group of those who plan to return declared the aim to contribute to
building their national capacity through the transfer of knowledge gained in Europe. Coming
back with Erasmus Mundus degrees will give them an opportunity to start or to continue their
professional careers in their home countries, but only if they find their labour markets or
governments in need of specialists in sectors which are relevant to their educational
background, and only if they can be offered attractive remuneration. From among the
specializations taught by courses participating in the survey, the most promising for future
careers at home in the opinion of students from developing countries were animal breeding,
monument conservation, energy development, and forestry; while future ICT, economics, and
engineering specialists from newly industrialized countries foresee that they will find jobs
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relatively easily in their home country. Not only the individual’s career prospects, but also a
kind of obligation to serve one’s people, were considered in the plans of the EM students. One
of the students expressed it like this: “If all students from Erasmus stay here, who will do
good work in our country? Europe is already developed, and development is really needed for
my country” (SUTROFOR, Sustainable Tropical Forestry Erasmus Mundus Masters, M, 38,
Nepal). Many comments similar to the following two were noted: “My skills will be more
valuable in Malaysia than in EU”; “I want to help Argentina to overcome the serious political
and social problems that are arising”.
Some students see themselves in the future as a bridge between the country of origin
and European countries, with a mission to promote and implement cooperation: “I like life in
the EU and I would like to work for my home country with what I learnt in EU, to work as a
contact between these two cultures” (VINTAGE, International Master of Science: Vine, Wine
and Terroir Management, F, 25, China). A Croatian student, who has experience in
international voluntary work in Ecuador and Costa Rica, sees herself in taking part in joint
supranational actions, believing in their power to bring change: “Underdeveloped countries
suffer from greater social injustice, and have lower economical resources and political power
to change how they are treated internationally. Nonetheless, they deserve to have experts in
all fields, especially in environmental protection, because they still have something to protect,
unlike most developed countries, which have almost completely lost natural habitats, and also
have enough resources and experts of their own. So my main reason is the imbalance of
knowledge/possibilities between developed and undeveloped countries. Also, I feel that
working internationally creates a stronger energy between participants, more ideas can come
from people with different backgrounds, so I believe they can be more successful” (EMAE,
European Master in Applied Ecology, F, 27, Croatia).
A Filipino student is among those who want to transfer their knowledge to the
business sector: “Returning home, I will apply the things I learned in Europe in the
commercial aspect of wine industry”, while others, like this Zambian student, are more
idealistic: “I want to help improve the quality of life of my country people. I love freedom and
my country despite its poor conditions of service for professionals. I have a passion for
working in Africa. Moreover, my family is waiting for me!” Some students want to transmit
their knowledge to younger generations: “The only one thing I am thinking about is to live
back in India because I want to contribute my knowledge which I have gained from Erasmus
Mundus programme to many students in India” (AMASE, Joint European Master Programme
in Advanced Materials Science and Engineering, M, 24, India); “Brazil needs teachers and I
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work exactly in the training of new teachers and also students to utilize technology in their
lives, not just in the classroom. We must widen the knowledge of the poorest Brazilians”
(EUROMIME, European Master in Media Technology for Education, F, 51, Brazil). An
Ethiopian student considers return only as a second option: “The first choice is to stay in the
EU for further study, and this is because I strongly believe that I will get enough knowledge
with the new technologies in my field of study because I am practicing now in my master’s. If
this doesn’t happen, I am intended to go back to my country to participate in its development
and to help those people who didn’t get the chance of modern education, due to the economic
problem of my country which can’t afford to give full facility and modern education system”
(ME3, European joint Masters in Management and Engineering of Environment and Energy,
M, 27, Ethiopia).
Plans to visit or stay for a longer period in the EU after some time spent at home
country.
The students were asked the following question: “If you intend to return home after
completion of your course—do you plan again to visit or stay for longer time in the EU? For
what purpose? Please give details”. In response, the majority expressed their willingness to
come to Europe later for either leisure or academic and business purposes. Many were
enchanted by Europe. A Brazilian 26-year old student of Crossways in European Humanities
may be a perfect example of those who discover for themselves the values of the European
heritage and lifestyle: “I love Europe and I would like to come back to work, study or at least
to visit”. Some see Europe as a reservoir of know-how where they can come in future “to
gain and freshen up and widen knowledge based on European practices” or to “continuously
visit the EU for educational, and some real world experience purposes”. A future economist
from India enjoyed his stay, and admires the results of putting economic expertise into
practise in Europe: “I would like it very much to come back to the EU and maybe teach in
some European university some day. I have thoroughly enjoyed my stay here. The people are
good, the culture is extremely interesting, and most importantly the economists in Europe are
doing some really good work” (QEM, Models and Methods of Quantitative Economics, M,
24, India).
Those who have a kind of bond with their university or other place of work plan to
come back to Europe again only when the required period of reintegration finishes: “I want to
study for my doctoral degree in two years, because I have signed an agreement to give service
to the university that I used to work for, for at least for two years after I finish this master’s
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programme” (EM-ABG, European Master in Animal Breeding and Genetics, F, 23, Ethiopia).
But what can be noticed is that rather few students believe it would be possible to get a job in
Europe after having gone home, and then having returning to Europe later. A Russian sees
such an opportunity if she can “join a team that deals with water related issues in Europe”.
This would also allow her to come back to Europe “to work or study to achieve my main
goal—to become a qualified specialist in International water management”. Some students
have the idea of going home and networking with universities involved in master’s consortia,
or staying and collaborating as diaspora members: “If I return home I would like to return to
Spain to build a relationship between the university in my home country and the university
there, and do a research period of 6–12 months” (VIBOT, European Master in Vision and
Robotics, M, 24, New Zealand). A student from Malaysia is thinking about doing not only a
PhD but also postdoctoral studies in Europe. She is convinced that a European Master’s
degree will not guarantee her satisfying employment: “I intend to stay longer in the EU to
continue postdoctoral research. After weighing the pros and cons, I have decided that it is best
if I am based in the EU in the coming future, and hopefully my institution/employer will have
collaborations with institutions in my home country. That way I can contribute to my country
as well, instead of going back to my home country and starting from scratch. I also don’t think
it is easy to find employment in my home country with my future PhD. For a start, the
master’s degree of the University of Algarve is not on the list of recognized universities in our
education ministry” (EJMWCM, European Joint Master in Water and Coastal Management,
F, 37, Malaysia).
Short visits for conferences, seminars, and short-term training were the next most
frequently considered purposes for future trips to Europe, expected to be financed and
organized by European bodies: “I hope to visit the EU sometime for workshops or
conferences, and to see my Professors and colleagues” (MsGT, Master of Science in
Geospatial Technologies, F, 27, Vietnam); “I would love to attend conferences and if possible
to find a postdoc in Europe. Europe pays much more serious attention to my area of research”
(MAE, Master of Applied Ethics, M, 35, India); “I have to go back and serve my
organization. The media in Bhutan lacks professionals. If there are any relevant short courses
and trainings offered under the auspices of EU, I would like to come back to upgrade my
skills and knowledge in the future” (EMMA, Journalism and Media within Globalisation: The
European Perspective, M, 31, Bhutan). Also non-professional prospective visits were
considered: “I’ll be back again to visit or stay for longer time because I like the multicultural
environments and enjoy life in Europe” (China); Thanks to staying in Europe for 10 months, I
14
know some good friends here. I’d like to visit them in the future” (Taiwan); “Of course I will
come back to EU, since I like here and especially the beautiful landscape is calling me to
return and enjoy here!” (China); “Yes, I hope so. Not just to further my career, but it’s a
lovely place to see, learn, grow. Travelling, though it may sound trivial here, is an important
part of learning” (India). Doctoral studies carried out at home could also be an opportunity to
visit some European countries again: “Maybe for a short period during my PhD, if there are
some opportunities in the EU that are not available in my country, and that are relevant for my
studies” (MBIO, Master of Bioethics, F, 31, Argentina).
Factors influencing students’ decisions—family obligations
The simple truth is expressed by a Malaysian student: “always the country where you
are born is the most beautiful place, although most of the things will not be better than in
Europe”. She touches on the dilemmas which accompany the reasoning of those who consider
staying in Europe. Even one or two years of studies in Europe involve suspending close
connections with loved ones left behind. The extent to which both sides suffer depends on
many factors: it may be eased by previous familiarity with relatives’ long absences, access to
communication technologies, cultural and physical proximity of the country of origin and the
host country. A long stay away from the family may be a life changing event. By asking the
question, “do you think your family would be supportive of or against the decision to settle
abroad?”, in which students a choice of three options (supportive—against—hesitating), and
were then asked to explain their choices, it was shown that support for one’s plans from
parents, spouses, and other family members plays a crucial role in Mundus students’
decisions.
Table 7. Attitude of students’ families towards the decision to settle abroad (all
respondents).
Expected attitude of the family towards the decision to settle abroad:
Percentage
Against
5.71%
Hesitating
23.81%
Supportive
70.48%
According to respondents’ answers, less than 6% of families would be against
emigration. Members of these families may be worried about a student living a lonely
existence in a country that they are not very familiar with, and because of this may want
15
students to return home: “None of my family members have lived abroad before and they
worry all the time about my security” (M, 25, Malaysia). Yet much more often, relatives view
this phase of the respondents’ life as an awesome possibility, and expect that it will also bring
an improvement to the quality of their life if their relative in Europe can help them
financially: “We are middle income family. My relatives need me to earn for them and my
own family (M, 27, India); “Economic situation in Pakistan is chaotic and the whole of my
family depend upon me alone” (M, 29, Pakistan); “They want me to stay in Europe and send
them some money” (M, 24, Ethiopia). Sometimes the opinions of family members are
polarized: “For the ‘against’ part: my family have close relationships, and they hope family
members will not stay too far away... For the ‘supportive’ part: They know that staying in
Europe will provide me some great opportunity for work and studying. Besides, it is very
marvellous to experience life and cultures in EU” (F, 27, Taiwan); “My father is supportive.
But my mother would like that I come back” (F, 25, China); “Some support the idea of
finding a better life abroad, and the others support me returning and using that experience in
Columbia, where it is most needed” (M, 27, Colombia). A few students answered that they are
relatively independent in their decisions: “My family is very open-minded. They understand
what a young, sophisticated, curious mind is seeking in life” (F, 24, Indonesia); “My family
believe that I must make the decision that makes me happy, and in turn they will be happy.
Nowadays travel is much easier, as is communication, so if this situation arises it does not
mean that we cannot stay in touch” (F, 27, New Zealand); “I am at a young age and have not
yet married nor do I even have a dedicated relationship, and my parents are also financially
sufficient in supporting themselves. Therefore it is relatively easy for me to grasp the
opportunity for advancing my academic career” (F, 23, China). One female respondent
referred to gender-based limitations in her personal development: “My parents want me to be
successful, but they have some habits of thinking that a girl should not reach ‘too high’ level
education and travel abroad too much” (F, 27, Vietnam).
Increasingly, the traditional united family model is changing: members are scattered
all over the world for different purposes, and for shorter or longer periods. Such situations
were reported by Mundus students: “My family will be supportive of my stay abroad because
my wife is also abroad, in South Africa, for the next two years studying, and our eldest
daughter is preparing her matric and in three years would want to go abroad to study. So it is
in their favour for me to stay abroad because they can also plan to travel and visit” (M, 40,
Zimbabwe); “My parents always want me to be a global player, and to settle abroad is one
step to realize that” (M, 28, Indonesia); “My family is spread far and wide, it wouldn’t be a
16
problem to stay away from home” (F, 22, India); “My family is in fact used to the practice
that I am not at home except for some vacations. The reason is that I was always out of my
home since I was 11 for the purpose of studies” (M, 26, Bangladesh). The answer to one’s
family expectations may vary from total dependence—“I will go back by the choice of my
family” (M, 24, Pakistan)—to disagreement and manifestation of one’s own will and
aspirations: “They do not understand fully the opportunities and they are scared I will not
come back. I am not afraid. Fear is not a good adviser” (M, 28, Argentina). From many
students’ statements we can only guess at the underlying emotions, hesitations, and sacrifices
which occur when it comes to making a decision: “It will be difficult for them to accept the
fact that I’m an ocean away, but they want the best for me. And if settling abroad is necessary
for the accomplishment of my dreams and career, they’ll be supportive” (M, 22, Mexico);
“My parents know how difficult it could be to come back from Europe to Brazil and find a job
as good as the title we get here. Then despite the nostalgia and missing me, they understand I
have more chances here in Europe” (M, 25, Brazil).
Despite the hopes of numerous students for settling down in Europe, some students are
conscious of the realistic possibilities offered by the job market in the European Union:
“Although Europe has more technology and is richer, job opportunities are limited for nonEuropean people” (MEEM, Mechanical Engineering Erasmus Mundus Masters, M, 24,
China). One Nepalese student passionately described his unsatisfying attempts to find a job:
“My family is always insisting for me to stay in Europe, find a job in Europe for some years
until the political situation in Nepal comes to a standstill. This is because they fear possible
political upheavals in Nepal, and as I am the only member in the family with degree
qualification, the breadwinner and the pride of the family, they are so concerned about my
safety and well-being. Last year in 2007, a kid of barely 8 years old in our neighbourhood was
kidnapped and brutally murdered in Kathmandu. After that incident, I could not concentrate
on my studies thinking about the safety of my own kid, so I invited my family to Denmark.
Every Nepali I met from London, Spain, Portugal, and Belgium to Denmark, with the first
question used to ask me: ‘Sir, why do you want to return to Nepal, which has gotten worse in
recent years? Better find a job in Europe and stay until things get better in Nepal.’ But what
they view of Europe is different from what I have experienced in the last two years. Last year
I approached my coordinator in the university for a job, he refused point-blank saying there
are no job openings for international students. Soon after two of my colleagues (singles) were
offered the job in the university. What an irony! I was with my family in Copenhagen and had
a huge challenge to meet financial expenditures, including the fee for my son in school. I then
17
went from door to door looking for job in summer holidays but not even the McDonalds were
interested in me. I ended up in a Turkish restaurant in Copenhagen, washing dishes, which I
could not continue after a few days. I then decided to return to Nepal and live jobless rather
than wash dishes in Muslims’ restaurants in European capitals. I have realized that my
qualifications (MA LLL) will fetch hardly any decent job in Europe or anywhere in the world.
Thus, I am now insisting on going back to Nepal, despite a very bleak future prospect for job
and amidst danger and uncertainty of life” (MA LLL, European Master’s in Lifelong
Learning: Policy and Management, M, 33, Nepal).
Factors influencing students’ decisions—acquaintance with examples of successful
careers of previous Erasmus Mundus graduates.
Awareness of the impact of Mundus qualifications on the careers of other Mundus
graduates was investigated with two questions: “Do you know any Mundus alumni whose
career developed after completing studies in Europe and coming back to home country?”, and
“Do you know any Mundus alumni whose career developed after completing studies and
staying in European country?” Both were accompanied by the further question, “If yes, please
give details—which Master’s programme he/she completed, what kind of job he/she was
doing before and after, and in what sense is the person successful?” One reason for these
questions was to find out both the scope of students whose career developed in Europe or
back home after completing studies, as there is no regular statistics on that topic, and data can
be obtained only from the coordinators of particular courses. Another goal was to investigate
the level of awareness of successful cases of this kind that may play a role in strengthening
belief in the value of a Mundus degree and the employability potential, or a role in providing
an example to follow. Generally Mundus students are familiar with more EU-based postMundus careers, than careers developed in the home country. This is probably because word
of mouth and information given to students officially by course organizers both concern the
students’ peers in Europe. They are easier to contact, and are, for example, available to join
specifically organized meetings where they share their post-degree experience with new
cohorts of Mundus students. Usually respondents gave information about students on the
same course, but sometimes they also knew cases from other Mundus courses.
Mundus students are generally familiar with more EU-based post-Mundus careers
(such cases were known to 53 respondents) than careers developed in the home country
(positive answers received from 40 respondents).
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Table 8. Knowledge of Mundus alumni successful careers (all respondents).
Knowledge of successful post-Mundus careers:
Careers in the European Union
23.56%
Careers in the home country
17.78%
Students gave specific examples, sometimes with the name and other details, or
mentioned that they knew “a few” or referred to them in the plural. Here are some examples
chosen to represent different countries, such as Russia, Pakistan, India, Brazil, and Thailand,
which regained their “brains”: “A friend of mine has been doing the same course: EJMWCM,
European Joint Master in Water and Coastal Management. She is enrolled on PhD course in
my home country and has started lecturing. The course she completed offered her several
positions in management companies, but at the moment she actively participates in
development of a management course as part of the work of a Water Ecology chair (Faculty
of Oceanography, Russian State Hydrometeorological University). She is also involved in
work with foreign students at the university”; “Mr. Murtaza Sarwar, EUROAQUAE, Euro
Hydroinformatics and Water Management. He is doing a job with Halcrow UK, operating in
Pakistan. Before his master’s he was working at an engineering university but the
environment was not conducive to learn and apply knowledge”; “He did the same master’s as
me. Before graduating he did a research-based thesis with one of our partner universities, and
after graduating, he got a job as an assistant winemaker. I guess he is successful because he
managed to get employed in one of the biggest emerging wineries in India which normally
employs foreigners instead of local people”; “A woman who did the same master’s than me.
Now she is working in a Brazilian winery”; “A course mate of us from Thailand finished her
programme, went back home and now she has a well paid job”; “I heard about two guys who
did the same master’s I did. I am not sure about their background, but I know they went back
to their home countries (India and Philippines) and are working in their areas of water and
coastal management”. Some graduates returned to their previous jobs: “I don’t know details
but I know that some students went back to their former work as teachers in the universities in
Venezuela”; “Colleagues who come back to the same job or another better job (better salary
and position)”; “A friend from the same master’s was promoted to a better job in the
university she came from”; “Forestry. She has and returned to work with WWF upon
completion of her programme. Since she has just completed it and returned to work, I cannot
comment on her success, but she loves her job”; “She did the same EUROAQUAE Master’s,
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she joined her last workplace with higher prospects in her home country”. One Indian student
described a case he knows in a unique way: “He was denied admission to PhD programme in
his home country after successfully passing the written exam because he was an Erasmus
Mundus student, which is not as good as a good Indian master’s programme”. It seems that
Indian credential system does not recognize foreign international masters’ provided by groups
of universities, especially when not all of them are ranked A-class on world lists. The
situation in Europe is different—a Bangladeshi student heard about a graduate of the
European Masters Program in Computational Logic who was doing a job in India before the
course, and the grade obtained in Europe secured him a good position in the UK: “He is now
doing a job in some company in the UK. He completed his master’s from European countries
and they evaluated the degree as top class”.
The majority of EM graduates whose career in Europe was mentioned by respondents
and perceived as successful stayed in Europe to continue their education. The majority of
respondents who gave examples had heard about, met, or contacted those who previously
completed their EM programmes and are doing their PhD in some of the best universities.
An Indonesian student mentioned a few of her compatriots who had the opportunity of doing
doctoral programmes and staying in European countries: “I am in contact through a mailing
list with Erasmus Mundus students from my country. I cannot tell the names of the master’s
programmes, because I do not remember, however, most of them are staying in Europe for
work and for a PhD” (EUROAQUAE, Euro Hydroinformatics and Water Management, F,
24, Indonesia). One of the Turkish students, when asked to give an example of successful
development, pointed out himself: “Myself at least. Affected very positively in self
confidence and English speaking skills increased. I will go to Holland for PhD, I have
applied and been accepted” (EJMWCM, European Joint Master in Water and Coastal
Management). Here are some other examples of continuation at the PhD level, chosen to
represent different courses: “One alumnus of the Journalism and Media within Globalization
(to be withdrawn in 2008), Nandkumar, has been offered a PhD position at Leiden
University in the Netherlands” (EMMA, Journalism and Media within Globalisation: The
European Perspective); “Rodrigo Pacher (Brazil), Course EMMS. Now doing PhD at TUHH
Hamburg, Germany. In all instances that I know, people got accepted to higher studies, i.e.
PhD” (EMMS, Joint European Master’s Programme in Materials Science); “I know 6 exAMASE Master’s students. Three of them got a good job. Three of them got doctoral
programme scholarships” (AMASE, Joint European Master Programme in Advanced
Materials Science and Engineering); “In my master’s, Crossways, some of the students I
20
know decided to stay in Europe to do their PhD” (CROSSWAYS, Crossways in European
Humanities); “I know at least five people who successfully got admission to European PhD
programmes while they were denied the same in India after completing Erasmus
programme” (QEM, Models and Methods of Quantitative Economics); “All graduated
students I got to know in the meetings of our master’s are studying a doctorate here in
Europe. I only know people from my master’s programme” (EMPCL, European Masters
Program in Computational Logic); “A graduate of QEM is doing a PhD in financial
econometrics in a very good university in Holland with a good scholarship” (QEM, Models
and Methods of Quantitative Economics); “He was in the same course, EMMAPA, and now
he has an offer for a PhD. This will definitely help him boost his knowledge and skills”
(EMMAPA, Erasmus Mundus Master in Adapted Physical Activity); “They completed the
same master’s as me (MEEES, Masters in Earthquake Engineering and Engineering
Seismology) and now they are doing PhDs (MEEES, Masters in Earthquake Engineering and
Engineering Seismology); “He has completed his Master’s in animal breeding and genetics
and he got placed in one of the leading genetics research group and is working as a scientist”
(EM-ABG, European Master in Animal Breeding and Genetics).
The second, much smaller, group are those who got jobs in EU countries. In answering
the question, “in what sense is the indicated person successful?”, the respondents pointed out
various aspects of success: a high salary, the ability to put into practice the knowledge gained
at on the EM course, a position suited to one’s overall background, or a job not considered to
be stressful: “Alumni of a programme in Aerospace Engineering. They get a monthly salary
of 3000 Euros after their master’s programme”; “His studies are related to Industrial
Management, and after finishing it he got a job, and he is working in a good position in one of
the companies in Norway. He is successful because he is exploiting the knowledge that he has
gained through his studies and he is financially settled as well”; “EuMI, European Master in
Informatic. He joined Ericsson research in Germany in his specialization area. With adequate
facilities being offered, he is able to implement his previous knowledge and gain real world
high quality research experience”; “I know of two people, one EU citizen and one non-EU
citizen, who got jobs in Brussels and in London, exactly in the fields that they were seeking
(EU institutions, communication and PR and the other financial market reporting in London).
Both of them graduated in the same programme that I did”; “[EMPCL, European Masters
Program in] Computational Logic, current job in the field of research, not stressful, quite
well-paid job with integration into international scientific life”. Some EM courses provide
internship placements, and maintain close cooperation with companies in their field. One of
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these is EUROAQUAE, a Master’s in hydroinformatics and water management which
actively supports the employability of its graduates. A Ukrainian student of this course
reported: “So many people from EUROAQUAE got placements in England in companies
such as Halcrow and HR Wallingford. As well as students from the MATHMODS,
Mathematical Modelling course.
Factors influencing students’ decisions—awareness of the brain drain problem
The respondents’ attitudes to the problem of brain drain in their countries was revealed
by their answers to the questions, “In what specializations/sectors does brain drain have the
most negative effect in your country? What are the social and economic effects? What are the
particular reasons of emigration? Are there any good sides to this phenomenon?” The
comprehensiveness and level of detail found in many of the answers reveal that this topic is
present in public debate—and therefore in the minds of the representatives of the nations
affected by brain drain. For Bangladesh, a small country in which most of the people are
illiterate, the loss of the main sources of knowledge and know-how in the form of emigration
of educated and motivated individuals is damaging. According to one of the Bangladeshi
students, the only good side to the phenomenon is the remittances that the citizens of the
country receive: “Brain drain has an effect in my field of information technology and in many
others in my country. The country is losing talented people and lacks the right people at the
right place. The reason behind emigration is economic and political instability. Fortunately
the country is earning foreign currency sent by people living outside, which is more than 40%
of our income” (EMPCL, European Masters Program in Computational Logic, Bangladesh).
Educated young people who are supposed to bring sustainable development by means of their
creative skills and technical and technological know-how are leaving developing countries,
especially smaller and poorer countries. The young generation want to live abroad, where life
is safer and healthier, where job markets are free from corruption, and free from clan systems
and nepotism blocking one’s professional development regardless of personal merits, and
where there is no war or political tension. The cream of students is migrating to overseas
higher education institutions—some through scholarships, others by self-finance. Very few of
them ever return. Larger countries, and those becoming newly industrialized, experience
significantly more returns, thanks to improved conditions in the market economy and
successful initiatives targeted to attract expatriates back. The students’ comments showed a
panorama of reasons, effects, and examples of brain drain and the phenomena accompanying
it. A popular belief was that highly educated people emigrate because they do not find
22
chances of professional development at home, and because life in Europe or in the United
States is better. Among the positive sides to outflow of skilled people, the most frequently
noted were similar to the following: “People that stay abroad can have a better and more
peaceful life”, “they can send remittances to the home country or help by return or by remote
engagement”, “losing highly skilled manpower has a positive side, if and only if the person is
intends to return to his country after some time of getting knowledge and technology from the
developed countries so that he can apply that knowledge and serve the poor people to have
better life”. “Whoever goes abroad to study does go back if good opportunities are found”,
states another Bangladeshi student. But there are no good opportunities at home, according to
the majority of students from Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal, Ethiopia, and Brazil, while
students from India and Russia tend to go back, looking more optimistically at their future at
home. In the case of other countries, correlations between decision and country of origin were
not so evident.
Among the referred-to reasons and effects of brain drain, financial issues were
frequently mentioned: “People migrate mainly for a better salary, better working condition,
but also for fair judgment of merits”; “The country is losing the return on the investments it
made in people in the time before they leave the country. There is only one good side—these
migrants send money home—what we call remittance—and currently remittances plays a very
important role in our economy”; “In any profession, people can earn better wages in other
countries for the same amount of work they do in my home country”. Some respondents
referred to push factors in the national perspective when explaining their own personal
decision: “In my opinion it happens either because the student does not have good work
conditions when going back to Brazil, or because many big cities do not offer good life
quality—adequate security, health, education, etc.” (Brazil); “There are many reasons. This
depends on each individual character. Some like much better living conditions, others may
crave for career promotion. I believe that most such educated people have strong esteem for
their home country. Although they live and work abroad, they still want to do something to
contribute to the development of the home country. Many of them want to return although
they have a high position in their field in developed countries. The matter lies in the
conception, behaviour, and legal treatment of the government leaders” (Vietnam).
Numerous factors pushing students out of their home country were listed. In case of
New Zealand, an increasing number of departures abroad are caused by the combination of
lower wages, limited career opportunities, and also students’ debts—they need to earn money
to pay off student loans: “Often the reason is that the study costs a lot and then there are better
23
opportunities (more money or more opportunities) abroad, so people leave to help pay off
their debts or get a quicker financial start. Often though they come back after some years”
(New Zealand). There are countries like Kenya where most employment used to be granted by
state institutions, and now this capacity decreases year by year: “People emigrate due to the
low capacity of governmental institutions to absorb all the graduates. The government needs
the personnel, but cannot afford to pay them” (Kenya). Reasons of a political nature dominate
in Venezuela: “The reason for brain drain is the political situation, which is creating many
restrictions, corruption, and a lack of good benefits and salary. The money is there, but people
are not granted it for their work, due to a misapplied concept of socialism. So the people who
have made a big effort at the university want to have a better life and emigrate” (Venezuela).
The Nepalese civil war—a conflict between government forces and Maoist rebels which
lasted until 2006 and caused massive emigration of skilled labour—is the main factor
motivating Nepalese skilled workers: “Another reason for the emigration of graduates and the
most experienced professionals is the insecurity and 15 years of civil war in my country. We
are losing our experienced experts. To prepare other experts takes decades and lots of
resources” (Nepal). “Red tapism” and an enormous bureaucracy paralyze progress in India
and pushes talent out: “We have no platform to express our skills in the government. Very
poor pay, limited freedom, and red tapism, lead to emigration” (India). “No good sides for the
country but many good sides for the people”, a Pakistani economist comments on brain drain.
A Brazilian computer science specialist complains, “I based my opinion on some students I
know. The main reason is economic. Some of them even couldn’t get a decent job in their
areas, even having high level European diplomas”. A compatriot turns attention to the sexual
discrimination in her specialization—the wine industry: “It is very difficult to work together
with men. If you are not a daughter or a wife of the viticulturist, the salary is very little. I
know that this sector in Brazil normally is male-dominated, and when a working woman
appears, it is difficult for men to accept this situation” (Brazil). Structural overemployment is
a factor noted in Bangladesh: “The first reason for emigration is the too high population,
which creates an overemployment problem. When the overemployed are not getting their
remuneration according to their service, they are searching for jobs in developed world.
Second reason is corruption in employment sector. The third is attraction of a luxurious life in
developed world” (EMIN, Economics and Management of Network Industries, F, 27,
Bangladesh).
Many students refer to the situation in their discipline (i.e. of the subject of their
European Master’s, or of their previous degree). Here are some examples of students’
24
opinions describing the situation in their specializations: “In the engineering domain, it has
the most negative effect. It limits our progress of technology, so that we have to buy
technology from abroad. The main reason of emigration is searching for better life. The good
side is that we know more about other countries, and other countries know more about us”
(MEEM, Mechanical Engineering Erasmus Mundus Masters, M, 24, China); “The country has
lost a lot of good social scientists over the last decades. The main reason for their moving is
that social science is not respected as a field, and the government doesn’t provide adequate
infrastructure for the field to be developed. Hence, talented and ambitious social scientists
prefer to develop their careers abroad” (EMMA, Journalism and Media within Globalisation:
The European Perspective, F, 28, India); “There is a huge problem of brain drain especially in
natural resource management sectors. A large numbers of forest professionals from Nepal
have graduated in Europe, the US, and Australia. Most of the experienced foresters (based on
service period) get the chance to study in scholarships or Government quotas. Most of them
didn’t return to the home country when they graduated. They are getting good payments doing
professional and or even nonprofessional jobs in host countries” (SUTROFOR, Sustainable
Tropical Forestry Erasmus Mundus Masters, M, 38, Nepal); Health workers (nurses, doctors,
physiotherapists, biomedical scientists, and paramedics) and teachers are the most affected.
Poor salaries and generally bad service conditions, poor career progression opportunities, and
overly demanding jobs due to brain drain are blamed. An example of the last aspect: “one
teacher handling five classes and getting no allowance for it!” (EMMAPA, Erasmus Mundus
Master in Adapted Physical Activity, M, 38, Zambia).
From many of the comments, one can read about students’ personal engagement and
concern about the negative effect of brain drain: “Due to bad political and economical
situations, educated people in all fields, especially doctors and engineers, usually prefer to
immigrate to the USA, the UK, or Canada on a large scale, which is making this brain drain
impact more and more severe; I really feel this issue deep inside me and I feel a sense of duty
and want to return home in order to help out in there” (EMPCL, European Masters Program in
Computational Logic, M, 25, Pakistan); “When skilled person is leaving your society it means
you are losing an important resource, so it will directly and indirectly impact on your social
and economic sector” (EMIN, Economics and Management of Network Industries, F, 27,
Bangladesh); “Unfortunately the government does not give any support to scientists, so
people go away to be able to be creative. A lot of Egyptians are like this: a very famous
example is Professor Zweel, the Nobel-prize laureate” (VIBOT, European Master in Vision
and Robotics, M, 24, Egypt).
25
Among the negative effects, an Indonesian Erasmus Mundus student listed the
“decreasing supply of high quality human resources”, the “decrease in the loyalty to the
nation”, “the [delay of] development, and the economic and social polarization”. Yet, we also
hear that, “Europe should not be held responsible for brain drain. Developing countries should
stop the corruption, terrorism, and other stupidity”—this from an Argentinean, a student of
Management, Environment, and Energy, who referred to some of the underlying causes
pushing talented people out of their countries. His Mexican colleague adds “I think that
perhaps we have a need for a better work-culture; thinking in a globalized world, using the
right knowledge in the right situations” (AMASE, Joint European Master Programme in
Advanced Materials Science and Engineering, M, 23, Mexico). According to an Indian
respondent “the reasons for emigration are: excessive bureaucracy, corruption, systemic
inefficiency” (MEEM, Mechanical Engineering Erasmus Mundus Masters, M, 23, India). The
above-mentioned causes need to be prevented in the countries affected by brain drain, if they
wish to keep their talent. There are also, according to respondents, many positive sides to the
phenomena accompanying brain drain: “Creating the bridge for relations between developed
and developing countries, increasing the cooperation and collaboration, transferring the
knowledge and technology, giving valuable information about abroad, doing exchanges for
education and technology” (MONABIPHOT, Molecular nano- and bio-photonics for
telecommunications and biotechnologies, F, 28, Indonesia); “For the individual and his family
these phenomenon could fetch better incomes and job opportunities, better education, freedom
of thought and speech, etc. But while at the country level there might be gains in the form of
remittances, these are not comparable to the contributions the individual could make by
staying in his country. In short, the social return would be much larger than the individual and
family benefits of the emigrant” (SUTROFOR, Sustainable Tropical Forestry Erasmus
Mundus Masters, M, 25, Ethiopia): “The good side is that India is becoming more valued in
the international scenario, her talent pool is becoming evident” (CROSSWAYS, Crossways in
European Humanities, F, 24, India); “The good side is that one can promote the good part of
Indonesia, in the same way as the migrated Indians in the US—to show that we, Indonesians,
are good workers/researchers” (EMPCL, European Masters Program in Computational Logic,
M, 24, Indonesia); “In the long term, emigration has helped my country in high technology
areas. People ‘escaping from a troubled economy’ is a myth. People in general have an
attachment with their country and send remittances to their family and when capable enough,
act as entrepreneurs to start new businesses. The so-called brain drain has helped my country,
as it has brought influx of new ideas and technologies. The social effects, if measured on the
26
long term, are also positive as they have raised the average living standards in the family.
Moreover, it has also brought about social equality” (MEEM, Mechanical Engineering
Erasmus Mundus Masters, M, 23, India); “I believe brain drain is good from the economical
development point of view. India and China have much more brain drain than Brazil, and
their economies are developing faster, for example. As I said, in Brazil a skilled specialist
works three times harder and receives three times less than in Europe. So, it is better to let
Brazilians go to Europe, earn 3 times more, and then potentially invest this money back in
Brazil” (EMPCL, European Masters Program in Computational Logic, M, 25, Brazil). A
student advocating for the need for both Master’s and PhD studies within the framework of
Erasmus Mundus argues as follows: “The good side of this phenomenon is that when a
student does an MSc or PhD abroad, especially in the EU, he can be a more active person, but
if he needs to do something special for his country maybe he will not get enough
infrastructure, and if somebody wants to make it by himself he needs to be a more capable
person. To gain capability the student should achieve or gain knowledge, from the EU, and
then he can make own research team and can contribute to developing of the country” EMABG, European Master in Animal Breeding and Genetics, M, 29, Bangladesh).
From some students’ answers brief reviews emerge of the situation in their country.
Below are cited some interesting comments about countries—Guatemala, Venezuela,
Colombia, Mexico, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Malaysia, and Nepal—experiencing particular situations
which make them breeding-grounds for brain drain. Guatemala: “I have read articles about
scientists of my country, and they all are abroad. I wish they could be in Guatemala to change
the current structures; however, the universities and the industry hardly invest in research
programmes, so these professionals must go abroad”; Venezuela: “My country is living
through a difficult period, is affected by hard political, economical, and social problems, and
so unfortunately many people have left the country looking for a better life, even if it is
difficult to find a good job. I mean, they have a university diploma but in order to earn money
they have to take whatever job. I don’t want this for me, I’m studying to have more skills and
tools and to work in the area that I really like”; Colombia: “All the technology in my country
is old and imported mainly from the US. Colombia doesn’t have its own ‘intellectual
property’ and every day the technological lag behind developed countries increases, and for
this reason most of the companies Colombia are multinationals, not Colombian companies.
There are less Colombian companies every day. Investment in Colombia is conducted to end
the drug trade and to fight against terrorism. There is no money to invest in research. It’s more
important is to cover the basic needs”; Mexico: “Mexico has invested millions in developing
27
people by sending them abroad through its programme of scholarships, CONACYT. Now the
situation is changing, somehow the electronics industry is looking at many cities in the
country to create design centres. Due to lack of local specialists these centres are attracting
foreigners, mainly in the areas of electronic design”; Eritrea: “In 2002, the government
officially stopped issuing exit visas to citizens who want to pursue their studies abroad. Right
after this almost all applicants who got the opportunity to pursue higher education started to
leave the country illegally. These applicants will not be able to return to the country. In
addition, the political situation (no freedom of press, speech, unlimited forced military
service, religious persecution, etc) are major reasons for people to leave the country and not
go back. Although there are many people who are not getting the opportunity to pursue their
studies, those who manage to pursue their studies are getting the skills and knowledge. These
people will be going back and serving the country after the political situation is solved”;
Ethiopia: “There is massive brain drain in every possible specialization. Especially the
outflow of engineers has seriously affected the country. Now corrupt professionals are taking
the upper hand and plunging my country into social and economic chaos. The reason for the
emigration of the honest and highly skilled professionals is mainly due to low salaries and
[the corrupting effect of] political influence. The positive impact comes from emigrants
properly exercising their skill and sending money to the home country to support their
relatives”; Ethiopia: “My country is probably the first in Africa regarding brain drain. This
happens in almost all specializations. What matters is whether you get the chance or not. But
it is the worst in the field of medicine. There are more Ethiopian medical doctors in US than
in Ethiopia. There are one or two or a few more professors of Economics in Ethiopia, but
Ethiopian professors of Economics in the US are very large in number. Among the social
costs, the country’s education quality is deteriorating, in my view because of bad planning
and lack of qualified professionals in many disciplines. Fresh graduates are teaching advanced
courses in many of the universities in the country. The country has incurred a huge cost to
educate professionals who are abroad now. In addition, it is recruiting professionals from
foreign countries, mainly Indians, at high foreign exchange rates, but they are very bad in
terms of their performance. In general the social and economic costs are huge and difficult to
enumerate in this short questionnaire. The main reasons are searching for better jobs and
income opportunities and escaping from bad political conditions at home. The latter is
especially the main reason for highly educated people. But recently, politics is the main
reason for even those who have little education”; Malaysia: “People who emigrate are usually
not happy with the government, with our policies and quota system that looks at what race
28
you are, etc. For example, a well-deserving student will not get a scholarship if that one is
meant for a different race. Another example is that an academic position is usually given to
someone who is not as capable but because he is of a certain race or has connections. Another
one is that a professor has acquired grants but is not academically qualified in this area. The
grant is still awarded to him. Other things are like the administration of the country. For
example, we have to pay a lot of tolls to use the roads/highways. We pay road tax and still
have to pay tolls. This is very unfair for the common people”; “A majority of rural districts in
Nepal (Nepal has 75 districts, only a handful of them have cities, the rest are rural) are
without a doctor or medical equipment. Many bright students (many of them are high
achievers and gold-medallists at the medical and engineering institutes and top scorers in
physics in Nepal) have continuously been drained from Nepal, in particular to the US and the
UK. Many of them are making money for the knowledge economy—Silicon Valley in the US
and the UK’s bio-technology firms. The US and the UK are two countries that recruit more
skilled technical personnel from the Third World. Whatever limited trained human resources
were available in Nepal have already been outsourced to the developed countries in recent
years. But sometimes brain-drain can also be brain-gain if these technicians return with
training and skills they acquired abroad. Thus it has a reciprocal effect too. Among the
reasons why there is brain drain, the major ones are the lucrative salaries, and the chance to
earn foreign currency—dollars and Euros. Second, the Maoist conflict, lack of security and
poor working conditions including a small salary paid by the government back home is
another reason that causes brain-drain” (MA LLL, European Master’s in Lifelong Learning:
Policy and Management, M, 33, Nepal). In the collected survey material there were found
many more mini-diagnoses of students’ home countries situations, usually reporting factors
and symptoms that have been mentioned in the brain drain literature discourse. Nevertheless,
some comments were surprising—like the following outlook on Iran presented by a MEEES
student: “Some people can find good job in Iran and some of them not. When they come
outside they will see the situation in Iran is much better in terms of economy. Really the EU is
poor and cannot offer a good salary. It’s good just for having a different experience. Also the
educational system in the top Iranian universities produces strong students and experts. It is
more noticeable for us when we go outside” (MEEES, Masters in Earthquake Engineering
and Engineering Seismology, M, 29, Iran).
Yet the situation is changing, according to some survey participants: in some
countries, reverse brain drain now occurs more often, or at least the outflow of the skilled is
not as strong as it was some years ago: “It happened in 90s, but now with the growth of the
29
economy in China, we are quite confident with our country, and lots of the students abroad
want to come back. I think in some years we would attract specialists from other countries”
(China); “We are still unable to offer good jobs to all those talented people. Mostly it happens
in the area of engineering. More than 80% of our students settle outside India. But a reverse
phenomenon is also found taking place these days” (India); “The economical situation in the
country is getting better, so that the situation for educated people is also getting better,
especially in the capital and other big cities (I think)” (Russia); “Particularly in the medical
and technological sectors, people have moved to Australia where the incomes are higher,
taxes are lower and there are more job opportunities. I think it has significantly reduced the
rate of development of the sectors, although many people do return and start companies after
several years abroad” (New Zealand);
Factors influencing students’ decisions—visions of life and work in the more distant
future.
In the last question of the questionnaire, students were asked to imagine that 7 years
have already passed from the time they have completed their Mundus studies, and from such a
perspective they were asked to answer the questions, “How do you imagine your life and
work in future? What would you like to achieve? What changes in your life do you expect?”
Answers revealed a wide range of EM graduates’ career profiles and possible paths of
development reflected in the expectations and aspirations of respondents. Before analysing
them, it is worth familiarizing ourselves with the exemplary vision of a Nepalese student
whose response embodies both the high ambitions and the great hopes of Mundus students: “I
have a double master’s, one in political science from Nepal and another lifelong learning from
Europe, and will have a PhD in hand by that time, seven years from now. I am no longer a
journalist or a mere teacher in high school as I used to be. I am a policy-maker, an executive,
working in a high-level position, with far greater responsibility towards my country, and I
have worldwide networking. I will have done at least one piece of ground-breaking research
and written a couple of books. I will have presented papers at international seminars and
conferences on higher education, and taken part actively in the discourses on higher education
policy-making both at the national and international levels. I will be financially well-off and
my standard of living will increase dramatically” (MA LLL, European Master’s in Lifelong
Learning: Policy and Management, M, 33, Nepal). This question, concluding the
questionnaire, was answered very enthusiastically, and motivated respondents to express their
hopes, dreams, and expectations. Nevertheless, from table 9 we can see that the current
30
students’ expectations of increase in their career prospects are lower than those possessed
before starting studies.
Table 9. Expectations as to Mundus impact on career prospects (all respondents)
Expectation of an increase in career prospects
as result of Mundus studies
before starting studies current expectations
Yes
92.54%
74.67%
No
7.46%
25.33%
.In response to the request, “If you think that in these 7 years or before, you would be
a good candidate to be portrayed in a documentary film presenting the careers of Mundus
alumni, please give your contact details” more than 150 students gave their contact details. In
this way, they demonstrated that they see themselves as potential future models for Mundus
careers, to be portrayed in a second film which is planned to present the impact of the
programme on graduates, and its overall outcomes from a longer perspective. Seven years
from the time that they complete their studies, many EM students imagine that they will
experience great changes in their professional and personal lives. They see themselves
holding “a better post”, which they have achieved because of “deeper experience in
specialization”, having “stable work”, receiving “better income”, being employed “at
management level, giving innovative solutions to crucial problems”, working at “a respectable
position for some reputable firm”, enjoying “good living conditions”, or “a better life in terms
of quality of living”. Those who chose an academic career expect to be “renowned researchers
in their fields”, “with several publications”, “holding top positions” in their country or
academic society, sometimes also “having their own business and working in a partnership
with a university”. Both business- and science-oriented students frequently mentioned various
kind of “contribution to the society and the country”, a desire to be “a leader who makes real
changes in my country”, “helping the socially vulnerable”. Mundus students expect also
personal growth—to “achieve more knowledge”, to “gain confidence”, to “grow on individual
level”. Also financial prosperity, or at least escape from the poverty experienced before, is a
dream of many students. These desires are showed in many comments, of which the following
are but a few examples: “I will hold a managerial position in an international company with a
good salary”; “I will have a successful career and become wealthier than before. I hope I can
donate something to my alma mater”, “I have the power to support my poor family. No
relative of mine is suffering from hunger like in the current situation”.
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There were also rare vague answers, such as, “7 years is a long time, so after that of
course I will be matured, experienced. I will try to do something for my country and develop
my own career also”, or some which reveal a lack of detailed plans, like: “I expect there will
be many changes, other than that I cannot say. I do not know where I will be or what I will be
doing”, and “I have absolutely no idea. I’m just living in the present”. The majority of
students seem to feel that this unique opportunity they have received from the Erasmus
Mundus programme has the potential to change their lives, but that it is they themselves who
must manage, direct, and stimulate these changes.
Here are some answers in which the desire to just live a good and safe life dominates:
fulfilment of the simplest right of every human being: “I would like to work in a suitable
atmosphere, like the one in the programme I attended. I want to contribute something for my
country by making some collaboration with European universities and home university. I
expect to have a life like the one which I lived in Europe for last 2 years in my study”
(EMPCL, European Masters Program in Computational Logic, M, 28, Bangladesh); “I want
to get a job in Europe, and also my family does not want me to return home. I want to help my
family to leave extreme poverty behind forever. The civil war in my country began in 2002
and still continues, although there is a ceasefire. Every day they remind me to stay in Europe,
and that they do not need me at home anymore” (CROSSWAYS, Crossways in European
Humanities, M, 30, Ivory Coast); “I will be based in the EU, hopefully with collaborations
with my home country or with anywhere else in the world that requires my expertise. I intend
to serve humanity regardless of race and religion. The changes in my life will be that my
family will have joined me in the EU, where there are better education and employment
opportunities. I would only return to my home country if I find good opportunities back home.
My heart is always with my country, warts and all. Who knows... in 7 years” (EJMWCM,
European Joint Master in Water and Coastal Management, F, 37, Malaysia); “I wish after 7
years that I’ve finished my PhD studies and also worked on some phenomenal research
projects, some here in Europe and some back in my country. I even prefer to work in industry,
but still to be in close contact with academic research and teaching; During my stay in Europe
I really feel myself a changed person; More responsible, full of confidence and living a good
life” (EMPCL, European Masters Program in Computational Logic, M, 25, Pakistan). Some
respondents underlined the simplicity of their needs and demands: “I would be living with my
family in my home, and work as a manager or an engineer in an enterprise. I expect the
promotion in my job, and the augmentation of my salary, so that I can go on vacation every
year” (MEEM, Mechanical Engineering Erasmus Mundus Masters, M, 24, China); “Work
32
hard enough to gain more experiences and money. Have a name in the academic community.
Gain the asset of travelling experiences. Satisfy my needs (this is quite simple), love my
family and help people” (MsGT, Master of Science in Geospatial Technologies, F, 27,
Vietnam); “I want a peaceful life even if it comes at the cost of fame. So either I do research,
job, business, teaching etc, I want to have some time and energy left for attending to other
issues of life too” (OPSCITECH, Optics in Science and Technology, M, 24, Pakistan); ”I am
going to be an superior analyst in an investment bank, working busily every day, living a
happy life with my lover and creating some benefit for the society” (QEM, Models and
Methods of Quantitative Economics, M, 23, China); “First of all I imagine myself as a PhD.
And I’ve done something new in the bioethics field. I would like to achieve some national and
international reputation for my work. I hope I will have a minimum plus financial support for
my family to live a good life” (MAE, Master of Applied Ethics, M, 32, Bangladesh).
Future researchers see themselves on the way to being professors, with clear plans of
conducting significant, high-impact, research on promoting development or preventing
current threats to humanity: “I want to return to Europe and do a doctorate programme.
Return to my country and contribute to cultural development. I see myself as a university
professor, promoting academic research. After doctorate I would like to do a postdoctoral
study and again return to my country, to be employed at the university. I want to promote
academic development in the universities of Guatemala. I hope to carry out research in my
country, although it will not be easy since structures do not exist, perhaps in some cases I will
have to invest with my own money; nevertheless I see myself developing research” (MEEM,
Mechanical Engineering Erasmus Mundus Masters, M, 28, Guatemala); “I intend to work as a
researcher and/or teacher in the university. I expect to help in establishing more mutual
knowledge and cooperation between one or more European countries and my home country”.
(EMMA, Journalism and Media within Globalisation: The European Perspective, F, 23,
China); “After seven years, I would have already finished my PhD, and would have been
involved in research work in my country. I would like to achieve a sound knowledge in
community-based forest management in the new era of climate change. I would like to work
with communities in developing countries, and participate (actually helping) in climate
change mitigation through sustainable management of their forests. I will be a community
worker rather than an employee of the Nepalese Department of Forests” (SUTROFOR,
Sustainable Tropical Forestry Erasmus Mundus Masters, M, 38, Nepal).
It is interesting that there were cases of some very young students who had already
planned for themselves quite long stays in Europe, and they sometimes have plans for their
33
whole life: “I am imagining doing researches in industry-related research centres in Europe,
involved in many specification development activities (from a technological point of view).
At that point I might want to stay for another 8 years, then go back to my country,
contributing what I have achieved so far (with 15 years experience in European research
centres)” (EuMI, European Master in Informatics, M, 23, Indonesia); “Honestly speaking,
Ethiopia needs Engineering very much but I have to benefit from my efforts too. From this
point of view, I can say that if I can’t get job with attractive salary in my country, my whole
life will be in EU countries where I can contribute a lot and get the feeling of how valuable I
am to the company” (OPSCITECH, Optics in Science and Technology, M, 25, Ethiopia); “In
7 years, I see myself working somewhere in Europe. I intend to work for Europe for at least
10 years. That is my first intention” (AMASE, Joint European Master Programme in
Advanced Materials Science and Engineering, M, 25, Cameroon).
An attractive mode of life for some students is to frequently travel, to live a Westernstyle active, busy life, in the spirit of brain circulation. There are numerous students who
imagine themselves as global citizens travelling frequently for business and scientific
purposes: “I will be a world class consultant, living in Europe but travelling all the time to
Asian countries to search for new markets and business opportunities. I will be the bridge
between European and Asian industries and make a mutual relationship between them”
(VIBOT, European Master in Vision and Robotics, M, 28, Indonesia); “I expect that I will be
leading my own projects, travelling regularly to conferences and meetings, working extremely
long hours. And hopefully making everybody’s, or at least someone’s, life a little better”
(EMAE, European Master in Applied Ecology, F, 26, Malaysia); “I would like to work in an
organization dealing with Russian-EU cultural relations, using my Mundus experience,
spending time in both my home country (Russia) and the EU” (CROSSWAYS, Crossways in
European Humanities, F, 23, Russia): “I expect to be back home, Brazil, after about 3 years
working in some European country. I can sketch some futures I would like to have... Being a
professor in some university, planning doctorate studies in Europe for the next years. Or
working in a big company that uses my knowledge of languages, Europe and of course
computer science. Or work in Brazil with some high-tech European company that needs me to
travel around the world, e.g. for representation, using my language and social skills, and the
knowledge in computational science” (EMPCL, European Masters Program in Computational
Logic, M, 25, Brazil).
Reading many students’ answers awakens the hope that many positive changes will
come with from the future actions of Erasmus Mundus alumni—only if their idealistic plans
34
materialize as they expect. Here are some appealing examples of what they may achieve in 7
years from now: “I would like to be working to improve the social conditions of the
immigrants in Europe, or the social condition in Brazil as well as doing academic research”
(CROSSWAYS, Crossways in European Humanities, F, 25, Brazil.); “I will be thinking of
going into politics. As a politician I will be in a position to influence legislation positively”
(MsGT, Master of Science in Geospatial Technologies, M, 37, Nigeria); “I dedicate my life to
my family, research, science, and technology development as well as to women’s
emancipation for science and technology. This would influence, encourage, and inspire all
women to get better education. Furthermore, I hope my future life dedicated to science and
technology will have social impacts for surrounding people and the nation. I hope I can
contribute positively to solutions to solve national problems” (MONABIPHOT, Molecular
nano- and bio-photonics for telecommunications and biotechnologies, F, 28, Indonesia): “I
would like to see my work being useful to provide a better education to the poorest people. I
hope that the world will be better and that more people can share their knowledge”
(EUROMIME, European Master in Media Technology for Education, F, 51, Brazil); “This is
really a difficult question. I can imagine that I will have finished my PhD in Ecosystems
Restoration. I’m back in Mexico, I’ve opened an NGO with my EMAE Mexican colleagues.
Working closely with the National Autonomous University and/or other universities (national
and international), we perform ecosystem analysis, natural resources management, and
restoration of soils, wetlands and marine ecosystems on Mexican territory. I will like to work
on applied research for restoration purposes. There is a lot work to be done in this field of
study, and not only in Mexico. I would love to write books about ecology for children and
maybe later, when I get more experience, a textbook on restoration ecology. The changes are
too many to count!” (EMAE, European Master in Applied Ecology, M, 22, Mexico); “Start
running a multipurpose rehabilitation, sport, and leisure centre for all persons regardless of
social-economic, religious, disabled or not, race, gender and educational background at
University Hospital. A centre for all humanity without borders, providing state-of-the-art
rehab, sports at all levels, and different activities for improving quality of life for all”
(EMMAPA, Erasmus Mundus Master in Adapted Physical Activity, M, 38, Zambia); “I
would like to be a successful person in the field of medical imaging, but not because only of
my personal achievements, but because I want to generate situations or an environment in
which other persons can grow and share a dream with me. I would like to develop systems in
the area to enhance the quality of the medical services; I would especially like to collaborate
with people of my country to improve the conditions in the industry” (VIBOT, European
35
Master in Vision and Robotics, M, 27, Mexico); “I have shown the importance of my field in
applied ethics to many people in my country and hopefully this will help in fighting against
corruption, graft, election cheating, etc. in my country” (MAE, Master of Applied Ethics, M,
34, Philippines); “I would like to be working in Brazil or another third-world country, or even
in a first-world one, but working in something I believe in, that would contribute to improve
social and environmental conditions (environmental justice) for poor people” (EJMWCM,
European Joint Master in Water and Coastal Management, F, 27, Brazil); “I would like to
work for people from the country and local villages. If I am able to do good at my home then I
will turn to Africa to serve people” (QEM, Models and Methods of Quantitative Economics,
M, 23, India); “I would like to be holding a PhD in forestry and climate change issues and be
among the top world researchers list contributing to fighting global warming. I would also be
comfortable carrying out any research in forestry that improves poor people’s livelihoods in
Africa” (SUTROFOR, Sustainable Tropical Forestry Erasmus Mundus Masters, F, 26,
Kenya).
The plans of the surveyed group allows us to also expect the foundation of some
companies, using new technologies, based on intellectual potential, which produce returns to
their creators and serve local development: “Just in short—I would like to have my own dairy
farms which I work on as a part-timer, and also as a full timer in governmental works” (EMABG, European Master in Animal Breeding and Genetics, M, 22, Ethiopia ); “I would like to
start my own company in Europe; using some of the knowledge that I got from my Master
and PhD studies”( EMMS, Joint European Master’s Programme in Materials Science, M, 27,
Mexico); “I would like to improve the quality of my translation company and to introduce
quality matters in translation. I think that the experience I had in this master course will serve
me a lot” (CROSSWAYS, Crossways in European Humanities, F, 39, Peru); “After working
on engineering seismology I would like to do some studies in management, in order to
achieve a stronger background for creating my own company” (MEEES, Masters in
Earthquake Engineering and Engineering Seismology, M, 27, Colombia); “It is just a few
years to get experience and come back home with some money in order to start up a business.
In 7 years I own the company, I already have several clients and now I’m expanding out of
Mexico, to USA and Europe” (VIBOT, European Master in Vision and Robotics, M, 30,
Mexico); “I will become physiotherapist in the field of adaptive physical activity and start a
disease–specific rehabilitation centre” (EMMAPA, Erasmus Mundus Master in Adapted
Physical Activity, M, 26, Pakistan); “I would like to be a successful consultant in my field,
providing assistance to European and overseas organizations (private, governmental and non36
governmental), helping them to solve particular issues and provide capacity building”
(EMAE, European Master in Applied Ecology, F, 28, El Salvador); “I would be a young
professor in the area of water, and I would have my private consulting company for waterrelated projects” (EUROAQUAE, Euro Hydroinformatics and Water Management, M, 22,
China); “It will not be easy to experiment on cultivating wine grapes in Vietnam due to the
tropical climate. I wish not to lose much in agricultural experiments. I also expect to succeed
in commerce activities and management thanks to languages and ways of thinking I‘ve gained
during the course” (VINTAGE, International Master of Science: Vine, Wine and Terroir
Management, M, 37, Vietnam).
The experience of the international nature of Erasmus Mundus Master’s Courses, its
global coverage and accessibility, has helped students to understand the idea of networking
and the power of worldwide dissemination and reciprocal access to others’ findings and
developments. Many respondents intend to network and to be a kind of bridge between the
institutions of their countries and those in the countries they study in: “I plan not only to learn
high skills from this course, but also to know more people from different countries. An openminded and international view can help me think more—I think I will have more ideas and do
better in my profession” (SAMHC, Advanced Masters in Structural Analysis of Monuments
and Historical Constructions, F, 31, Taiwan); “I will always have a very strong link to the
culture and the career practices of the countries in which I completed my study in Europe. I
foresee that I would like to return for a period of time to Europe during these 7 years and I
intend to remain highly involved in my field of study” (VINTAGE, International Master of
Science: Vine, Wine and Terroir Management, F, 27, New Zealand); “I will become a lecturer
(not yet a professor in 7 years time, I think) in local university. I will be participating in
educational system revision and reformation, ensuring quality of courses and exposing
students to the studies of European humanities—to gain different/new perspective so as to
bring positive changes to our country” (CROSSWAYS, Crossways in European Humanities,
F, 26, Malaysia). Some respondents see themselves as future role-models or educational
leaders, promoting by their own example or by actions they undertake the idea of mobility
and study in the European Union: “I will be one of the nature conservationists of my country,
who only works for nature. Most of the people will know me. I will have good salary. My life
will be happy. After looking me people will motivated to study in Europe” (SUTROFOR,
Sustainable Tropical Forestry Erasmus Mundus Masters, M, 38, Nepal); “I would like to work
in an academic institution in my home country and encourage research cooperation and
student mobility with overseas universities in a similar manner to the Erasmus Mundus
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programme” (VIBOT, European Master in Vision and Robotics, M, 24, New Zealand); “I
would be a Senior Research Scientist in a government organization in India or in a research
organization/company in Europe related to animal breeding and genetics/genomics. I would
have helped several friends to pursue education in Europe under Erasmus Mundus
programme, similarly to how I have already helped 5 of my friends to get Erasmus Mundus
fellowship in different Master programme for the year 2008–2010” (EM-ABG, European
Master in Animal Breeding and Genetics, M, 25, India).
Conclusion
The survey uncovered the plans and reasons to either stay in Europe or to return home
after receiving an EMMC diploma. Nearly 14% of students plan to stay in Europe after
graduation for a period of up to one year, and 43% for a longer time. From the latter group’s
answers to open questions, it is known that the majority are considering staying between two
to five years to get some working experience. Those who have chosen academic careers and
plan to continue at PhD level want to stay even longer in EU countries. This way they can
deepen their expertise, accumulate more skills, and get richer international exposure and
networking in order to better serve their home societies and economies in the future. In case
of a few African students, a desperate desire there was noted to establish themselves in
Europe due to unpromising perspectives or even hostile situations at home. Nearly 24% of
respondents declared that they will go back home immediately after getting their diplomas,
many with the aim of contributing to the development of knowledge, to new areas of
competence, to the effectiveness and modernization of their home services and policies, or to
the economic growth or well-being of their compatriots. In all probability, at least some
Mundus students, being already middle-aged, will return. The most likely returnees will be
those who have had previous successful practice at home, who have worked in stable job
positions, and who treat EM studies as complementary to their already strong backgrounds.
Such individuals will eagerly return home—both in order to support their home institutions,
and to rejoin their families. Some students presented different reasons for return: they
admitted that they will be force to return home after graduation due to their failure in finding a
job or further study opportunities in the EU. Other respondents perceive their home countries
to be able to offer them better opportunities and conditions than those they can find in Europe.
This group of respondents represented countries as different as Peru, Vietnam, Russia, Iran,
India, and the USA. About one fifth of the respondents who declared an intention to return
home will do so for personal or family reasons—they have left their spouses, children, or
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friends behind, and want to rejoin them. The biggest group of those who plan to return home
stated that their aim is to contribute to building national capacity in their countries through the
transfer of skills, technology, and knowledge. Coming back with Erasmus Mundus degrees
will give them the opportunity to starting or continue professional careers at home, but only if
they find their labour markets or governments in need of specialists in sectors relevant to their
educational background, and if they will be offered attractive remuneration. Taking into
consideration the specializations taught in the courses covered by the survey, the most
promising for future career development at home in the opinion of representatives of
developing countries were animal breeding, monument conservation, energy development,
and forestry; whereas future ICT, economics, and engineering specialists foresaw that they
will be able to find jobs relatively easily in their newly industrialized countries. Not only the
individual career prospects, but also a kind of obligation to serve one’s people was considered
in the plans of EM students. According to the majority of surveyed students from Bangladesh,
Pakistan, Nepal, Kenya, Ethiopia, and Brazil, there are no good opportunities at home.
Conversely, students from India and Russia especially tend to return home, because the
stronger labour markets and emerging economies of their countries allow them to look more
optimistically into their future at home. Some 37.5% of respondents answered that they still
do not know whether they will stay or return after completing studies. In their cases, the
decision depends on the work opportunities they can find in the EU, or on the success of the
PhD applications they have submitted to European HEIs
A good attitude to the brain drain problem appeared in respondents’ answers to the
questions asking which specializations or sectors are most affected by brain drain, about brain
drain’s social and economic effects, and about any possible good sides to the outflow of
skilled labour. The comprehensiveness and level of detail found in many answers revealed
that this topic is present in public debates, and therefore also in the minds of representatives of
the nations most strongly affected by brain drain. The students’ comments created a panorama
of reasons, effects, and examples of brain drain and accompanying phenomena across the
developing world. Among the reasons and effects of brain drain especially referred to, those
of a financial nature very frequent. When respondents were asked about possible good sides to
the outflow of skilled labour, the most frequently recorded responses were that it may bring a
better quality of life, a more peaceful life, remittances, physical return after some years or
remote engagement.
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Educational exchange programmes such as Erasmus Mundus may enable international
students to contribute to the development of their home countries. In the long term, providing
the most talented students with knowledge, technology and skills not available in their
countries and appropriate to their home labour markets’ needs may be the greatest
contribution that EU higher education can make for a peaceful and sustainable world.
Moreover, the benefits of also offering an atmosphere of appreciation of freedom, solidarity,
equity, and peaceful cooperation should not be overlooked. Third-world students and
academics may appreciate European culture and values, which can make them the best
ambassadors for the EU after their return. At first glance, EU efforts to attract brilliant
students may look like a way of increasing brain drain. This is definitely not the programme’s
objective, and if it occurs it would be an unintended outcome, resulting from individual
grantees’ decisions, most probably rooted in underlying causes of the brain drain existing in
their home countries. EM Masters’ alumni who continue their education in EU universities at
the PhD level may in turn stay on as skilled immigrants, contributing to European intellectual
richness. Even if many alumni of Erasmus Mundus Master’s courses would prefer to stay in
Europe for some more time after graduation, to get a job or to continue in PhD studies—this
does not need to lead to permanent brain drain. By staying like this, they can deepen their
expertise, accumulate more skills, get richer international exposure, and greater networking in
order to better serve their home societies and economies when they return. A temporary stay
in Europe after graduation also happens when graduates’ home countries are not at present not
able to practically use their know-how in highly specialized areas, or do not have policies that
can make use of returnees’ skills. Nonetheless, those who stay in Europe can set up networks
and organizations collaborating with peers studying and working in their home countries. The
EM programme obliges participating EU universities to implement measures aimed at
preventing possible brain drain effects on third-world countries as a result of the short-term
Mundus mobility scheme (action 2 of the programme). The alumni of joint Master’s and PhD
courses (action 1) must make their own decisions regarding the location of their “brains”.
However, the evidence presented justifies the presumption that the offer of higher education
in Europe within the framework of the Erasmus Mundus Programme will not significantly
contribute to brain drain.
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