Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

The Netherlands remains the most attractive study destination for Bulgarian students

Photo: iStock

The interest of young Bulgarians in studying abroad has risen sharply, with a 30% increase compared to last year. In addition, the number of students leaving for the academic year 2024-2025 has increased by about 11%. This is what Kristina Bozhilova, head of the largest education consultancy in Southeast Europe, told BNR's Hristo Botev programme.

According to her, the Netherlands remains the top destination for Bulgarian students, accounting for 38 per cent of this year's departures. In 2023, some 5,300 Bulgarian students studied in the Netherlands. Bulgarians are among the top 5 most successful students in this country.

Belgium follows as the second most popular destination for higher education, with 12 per cent of all Bulgarian students abroad going there, followed by Italy and the UK with 10 per cent each.

Since Brexit, the number of Bulgarian students going to the UK has fallen from around 2,000 in 2014 to just 300-400 in 2021. 

The most attractive fields for Bulgarian students include innovation, artificial intelligence and digital media.



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Dutch experts train Bulgarian colleagues to recognise forged documents

Experts from the Royal Netherlands Police are in Sofia for a series of trainings for their Bulgarian colleagues from the Border Police in the field of identification of forged documents. The organisation of the programme started last year after a visit..

published on 2/11/25 4:32 PM

Ukrainian Rada authorises purchase of Bulgarian-owned Russian-built nuclear reactors

The Ukrainian Rada today approved the purchase of two reactors from Bulgaria for the expansion of the Khmelnitsky nuclear power plant, Bulgarian media reported. The reactors, which Bulgaria bought from Russia in 2015 for the unfinished Belene NPP, were..

published on 2/11/25 4:25 PM

Women make up almost half of scientists and engineers in Bulgaria, according to Eurostat

In 2023, there were 7.7 million female scientists and engineers in the EU, with Bulgaria among the top three countries, according to Eurostat data . The proportion of women scientists and engineers in 2023 varied widely across the EU, with the highest..

published on 2/11/25 4:12 PM