IRELAND: Brain drain fear as more Irish study abroad

A new brain drain could be looming for Ireland after new figures showed a sharp rise in the number of students going to college abroad, write Katherine Donnelly and Paddy Clancy for The Independent. A startling jump in the numbers of Irish undergraduates and postgraduates studying elsewhere in Europe was revealed in a new EU education report.

The extent of the economic downturn in Ireland makes it difficult for graduates to return to a job at home.

The proportion of Irish students abroad almost doubled to 13.8% between 2002 and 2006 - way above the EU average of 2.6%. The comparable figure for the UK is 0.7%, according to the Eurydice Key Education Data report, a snapshot of education trends in 31 European countries in 2006-07. The reports suggest that almost 18,000 Irish students were studying for primary degrees or postgraduate qualifications elsewhere in Europe in 2006. There are also about 5,000 Irish students in the US.
Full report on The Independent site