New figures from numbers-crunchers Statistics Sweden show that just under six out of ten foreign doctoral students from the 2017-2020 cohort were still in Sweden three years after graduation.
For master’s programmes, the number was even lower. Only a third for international students completing a two-year master’s programme in the country in 2019 were still in Sweden three years after graduation, falling to 15 percent for one-year master’s programmes.
How many foreign students complete these degrees in Sweden each year?
Around 1,000 foreign doctoral students graduate each year, with that number rising to around 5,000 for international students completing a two-year master’s degree and 1,600 for a one-year master’s.
The most common subjects for doctoral graduates are natural science, health sciences, engineering and medicine, with master’s students most likely to study engineering or manufacturing.
According to Statistics Sweden statistician Tomas Westling, those studying engineering and technology are the most likely to stay in Sweden after graduation.
“That applies to both foreign doctoral graduates and international master’s graduates,” he said.
How does employment compare to Swedish doctoral graduates?
More than three quarters, 77 percent, of foreign doctoral graduates who remain in the country are established on the labour market three years after graduation. This is significantly lower than the figure for Swedish-born Swedish doctoral graduates (90 percent) and the figure for foreign-born Swedish doctoral graduates (85 percent) which could for example include people born elsewhere who immigrated to Sweden as a child.
Among foreign doctoral graduates, those most likely to be working had studied engineering or natural sciences (80 and 77 percent respectively), while for Swedes the most common subjects were medicine, health sciences and engineering (all 92 percent).
For master’s graduates, 59 percent of foreign graduates were not on the labour market three years after graduation, compared to 80 percent of Swedish-born Swedish graduates.
Does this mean that foreign master’s graduates are more likely to be unemployed?
Not necessarily. According to the stats agency, many international master's students stay in Sweden after graduation and continue on to further study at the doctoral level – a total of 26 percent compared to just 9 percent of Swedish-born Swedish master’s graduates.
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