At a time when the conversation around internationalisation in Dutch higher education is dominated by concerns over intake limits, Dutch-language transitions, and budget cuts, it’s important to highlight a more hopeful and often overlooked development:

More international students are choosing to stay in the Netherlands after graduation.

According to NUFFIC’s 2024 report, Stayrate en arbeidsmarktpositie van internationale afgestudeerden 2013–2022, 41% of international graduates remain in the country one year after completing their studies. Even more striking, 30% of master’s graduates—especially those who completed both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in the Netherlands—are still here five years later. These numbers mark a consistent upward trend in stayrates.

That’s something to celebrate. These graduates bring critical skills, global perspectives, and ambition that are urgently needed in sectors like healthcare, IT, and engineering. And they don’t just stay—they contribute. By year five, 80% of those who remain are in paid employment, making a direct contribution to the Dutch economy and labour force.

The Netherlands has acknowledged the value of retaining international talent. As outlined in the Package of Measures for Internationalisation by Universiteiten van Nederland (2024), there’s now national-level focus on integrating stayrate goals into institutional policy. But these efforts are running in parallel with reductions in English-taught programmes, intake caps, and tightened migration policy, including the proposed Wet Internationale Bewegingen (WIB). This mixed message risks undermining the very goal of retention.

Meanwhile, a contrasting and instructive picture is emerging across the border in Germany, which has embraced a proactive approach to talent retention. The DAAD’s 2024 strategy paper, Securing Skilled Labour through International Students, outlines a national goal of doubling graduate retention—from one-third to two-thirds by 2030. This is more than just policy rhetoric. The International Students – An Economic Gain for Germany study by the German Economic Institute (IW) supports the strategy with hard numbers: international graduates from the 2022 intake alone are projected to deliver a net gain of €15.5 billion over their working lifetimes. That’s an eightfold return on public investment.

In short: Germany is scaling up. The Netherlands is scaling down.

With the growing stayrates, the Netherlands now has an opportunity to lead—but only if we actively support the students who choose to stay. That means aligning visa policy, employment access, and—crucially—housing infrastructure with our retention goals.

To retain international talent, we need more than good intentions—we need systems that work. That includes rethinking our housing infrastructure. NUFFIC’s 2023 report, Staying After Graduation, reveals that 6 out of 10 graduates struggle to find accommodation, and over a third of leavers cite it as a reason for leaving. This numbers show that we’re not just losing potential—we’re signalling that the Netherlands isn’t ready to keep the talent it attracts. It’s a national competitiveness issue.

Retention doesn’t start at the work permit stage. It starts with creating the conditions for graduates to imagine a future here—secure, stable, and supported. Housing must become part of our talent strategy; a structural cornerstone of economic policy.

The students are choosing the Netherlands. Now we need to build a country that’s ready for them to stay.

‍