Throughout the 2025/26 scholastic year, there were 129,764 international students registered throughout degree levels at Dutch universities and higher expert education (HBO) — a 0.1% decrease of simply 133 students on the year before.
“Although it is a minor decrease, it certainly shows a break in the pattern,” stated Jonatan Weenik, scientist at Nuffic, the Dutch body for internationalisation.
The figures, launched in Nuffic’s annual report, reveal a 3.8% decline in brand-new global undergraduate enrolments, while new master’s trainees were up by 2.9% at universities and 8.4% at HBOs.
According to Weenink, the increase in master’s students can partially be credited to international trainees currently in the country moving from undergraduate degrees.
“If you disregard those transfer students, there is likewise a decline in the university master’s.”
“The truth that enrolment in bachelor’s programs continues to decline likely shows that the drop in total numbers will continue for some time,” he said.
While 2025/26 marks the 3rd successive year of decreases at the undergraduate level, it is the first time that amount to trainees across universities and greater expert education have actually fallen.
Especially, Weenink highlighted a “striking” 28% decline in new Chinese trainees, with China falling out of The Netherlands’ top five source nations for the first time considering that 2006.
“A possible description for this is the increasing position of Chinese universities in global rankings, making students more inclined to study in their own nation,” he suggested, keeping in mind that Chinese enrolments in other European and Western nations are revealing similar trends.
Rutger Brood, head of marketing at the University of Groningen, agreed that the more comprehensive decrease had not been driven by policy alone: “Demographic trends, changing student preferences, geopolitical developments and increased international competition are likewise forming trainee mobility,” he informed The PIE News.
That being stated, he expected the government would see the figures as broadly in line with the goals of current policy steps aimed at minimizing global trainee growth.
On the other hand, in spite of staying the leading sending nation, the data showed brand-new enrolments from Germany decline by 9% last year, in extension of a trend seen because 2020.
In other places, there was a modest rebound of European students following a three-year decline, as Italy, Romania, Spain and Poland follow Germany to comprise The Netherlands’ top 5 source markets.
The reality that enrolment in bachelor’s programs continues to decline most likely suggests that the drop in overall numbers will continue for a long time
Jonatan Weenik, Nuffic
While total non-European trainees decreased by 3.5%, Indian student overalls rose by the exact same quantity, with new master’s trainees from India increasing by 16.5%.
What’s more, Türkiye surpassed India as the second-largest sending out nation outside the European Economic Area, with both standing closely behind a quickly shrinking China.
Within The Netherlands, the number of global trainees in the capital decreased for the first time this year by 1.7%.
“Amsterdam is, after all, the city with the most international students and has the image of a very worldwide city,” said Weenink. “The decrease fits the national photo, but is still striking because light.”
Brood highlighted that Dutch universities have been pursuing targeted recruitment strategies in areas of strategic significance to Dutch society, labour markets and the economy, rather than looking for “development for growth’s sake”.
This is evident in the noteworthy 11% increase in international students taking engineering, which is now the second-largest field after economics.
Significantly, the city of Eindhoven saw a considerable 13.4% increase in trainees, mostly sustained by this pattern, with Eindhoven University of Technology popular for its engineering courses.
The information follows numerous years of federal constraints on worldwide students in The Netherlands, under the government’s internationalisation in balance expense (WIB) which sought to lower worldwide enrolments and strengthen the Dutch language in education.
Whilst numerous of the expense’s most questionable measures have actually been rolled back — consisting of the requirement to formally prove the right of English-taught courses to exist — universities have taken their own measures to minimize international enrolments to sustainable levels.
“The crucial factor to consider is ensuring that the Netherlands continues to inform enough highly proficient graduates to meet the requirements of its economy, especially in sectors where skill remains in high need,” stated Brood
What’s more, he stated one favorable advancement of higher federal government scrutiny suggested it was now in routine contact about the obstacles dealing with the sector, welcoming the “continuous dialogue” between policymakers and universities.
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