Entering a foreign labour market via the “academic gate”. The experiences of Poles who came as international students to Germany

Against the background of debates on needs for highly-skilled labour in Germany, the article is interested in international students as a special group of Highly-Skilled Migration. It analyses the impact of studying abroad on future mobility and career patterns. The article presents results from an...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Nina Wolfeil
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Société Royale Belge de Géographie and the Belgian National Committee of Geography 2010-12-01
Series:Belgeo
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journals.openedition.org/belgeo/6409
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Against the background of debates on needs for highly-skilled labour in Germany, the article is interested in international students as a special group of Highly-Skilled Migration. It analyses the impact of studying abroad on future mobility and career patterns. The article presents results from an online survey and 27 qualitative interviews with Poles who came as international students and who later on entered the German labour market. Results from the online survey indicate that approximately 70 % return to Poland but lower return rates are observed among degree-seeking students than among exchange students. The professional value of the study abroad experience is very high. A qualitative typology comprising four types (“Brain Circulators”, “Polonia Members”, “International Career”, “Transformation Refugees”) shows how former international students combine Polish and German cultural capital in their professional life and identifies success and failed stories. As a result, special programmes should be created to smooth the transition from university to the labour market in the study abroad destination.
ISSN:1377-2368
2294-9135