Bulgarian market

Europe

According to non-official foreign sources the Bulgarian students which are studying abroad are about 80 000. That is the approximate number of the pupils graduating from secondary schools. According to the National Statistical Institute there are 274 200 students in Bulgaria.

According to the Eurostat data from 2008, the Bulgarians at the different universities in Europe are 22 800. In the timeline of eight years (from 2001 to 2009) their number has become twice as big – in 2001 they were 10 800. In 2009 the number of students which have applied abroad has run up to 50%.

The most popular degrees among the Bulgarian students are Economics, Law studies, Psychology, Architecture, Fashion and Design, and Computer technologies.

One of the most preferred educational destinations of the Bulgarian students is Great Britain. Compared to last year, the number of those who want to study in GB has increased with 56,3%.

According to UCAS – the organization that is centrally concerned with candidates for higher education in Britain - this year the Bulgarian candidates who have submitted their documents to British universities were 1 651, whereas last year their number was 1 056.  

Now that Bulgaria is part of the European Union the tuition fees for the Bulgarian students in Great Britain have declined significantly. Before 2007 they had to pay between 9 000 and 12 000 pounds, whereas nowadays charges rarely exceed 3000 pounds. Apart from that our students have another privilege - they can draw low-interest loans from the British agency.

The Bulgarian students are also interested in the provided courses in Denmark and Holland universities. The reason for that is the targeted policy of the governments of the countries - attracting foreign students with favorable conditions for admission.

The candidates orientate themselves to Denmark because of the tuition free education. Holland is preferred because it is a state with traditions in the practical oriented education.

Most of the Bulgarian students study in Germany - their number there is 12 500. The second big group of Bulgarians is to be found in the USA – 3 500 Bulgarians.