ERR News – Research commissioned by the Archimedes Foundation, an independent body tasked with implementing national education programs, has found that difficulty in getting residence permits is prompting many foreign students to pass up the chance to study in Estonia.
The foundation's “Study in Estonia” analysis concluded that efforts to attract an international student body to the nation's universities are being hindered as complicated and time-consuming visa and residence permit procedures steer candidates to other countries.
"For example, there have been a lot of inquiries from Indian students interested in our master's or doctoral programs in IT, but in the end they give up because of the bureaucratic difficulties,” said Mariann Lugus, Communica-tions Manager for Higher Education Marketing at Archimedes, in a statement. She noted that part of the problem is that Estonia lacks consular offices in many countries, India included.
Lugus emphasized that, in general, foreign students find Estonian higher education a desirable prospect, and said that the fact that so many Finnish students study in the country is a mark of quality, given the quality of education available in Finland.
The study, presented in Tallinn on May 20, was conducted by Thijs van Vugt IE&D Solutions BV and Tim Rogers of Higher Education Consultants UK Agency, LTD.
