As part of the cycle of lectures by new researchers at the Institute of Social Sciences, dr Nena Vasojević, a Research Associate from the Centre for Sociological and Anthropological Research, held a lecture on December 15, 2022 in the Great Hall of the Institute of Social Sciences on the topic ” Education of international scholarship students in Serbia: Case study “The World in Serbia” in the 21st century”.
The lecture was devoted to the interest of foreign students to study in Serbia, especially after the commence of the “World in Serbia” project. Primarily, the profile of scholarship students studying in Serbia in the previous decade using funds from the Republic of Serbia was highlighted.
During the lecture, it was pointed out that the education of foreign students unfolds numerous issues such as world-class education, better economic prospects, international politics, etc. The aim of the lecture was to point out the importance of temporary academic migration for the country of the donor – recipient and the country of origin of the student. Based on the research conducted in the form of focus groups and individual interviews, the results obtained regarding the profile of foreign students studying in Serbia, including socio-demographic data, financial status, reasons and motives for studying in Serbia, as well as the attitudes and assessments of foreign students as far as feel accepted in the country of residence.
During the discussion, it was emphasized that Republic of Serbia has decades of experience in organizing classes for foreign students. However, despite the existence of a long tradition, there are no available databases on the number of foreign students who study in Serbia, nor what percentage of students return to the country or stay in Serbia. It was concluded that the situation is the same for domestic students studying in abroad. In this regard, the importance of linkage between science and the civil society organizations in further improving the position of foreign students was highlighted.
