The Driving Factors for the Rise of African Student Migration to Russia
https://doi.org/10.31992/0869-3617-2024-33-7-84-99
Abstract
This study investigates the factors that drive African students to Russia. The number of African students studying in Russia from the 2010/11 to 2022/2023 academic year increased more than fivefold: from 6.7 thousand to 34.4 thousand. The paper was based on an online survey provided to African students between February and November 2023. A sample of 275 African students from 28 countries was used. Findings revealed that the major factors that draw African students to Russia are the quality of education and the quality of life. We compared the quality of education between both genders along with the quality of life. The findings also revealed that females are more interested in the quality of life than males, while males are more interested in the quality of education than females. The findings suggested that policymakers should consider age and previous education as major variables in student migration.
Supporting agencies: The authors do not have any related financial interest to any organization to disclose
About the Authors
Y. A. Mohammed
School of Sociology
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Yassir Ali Mohammed – correspondent author, PhD student, Faculty of Social Science, Doctoral School of Sociology
M. B. Denisenko
HSE University
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Mikhail B. Denisenko – PhD (Economy), Associate Professor, Head of the Department of Demography, Director of the Vishnevsky Institute of Demography.
20 Myasnitskaya str., Moscow, 101000
References
1. Gabdrakhmanov, N. (2019). Geographic Information System in Modeling of Educational Migration: Gravity Model of the University. 19th International Multidisciplinary Scientific Conference SGEM 2019. Pp. 879-886. Available at: https://publications.hse.ru/pubs/share/direct/317112390.pdf (accessed: 02.04.2024).
2. Dako-Gyeke, M. (2016). Exploring the Migration Intentions of Ghanaian Youth: A Qualitative Study. Journal of International Migration and Integration. Vol. 17, no. 3, pp. 723-744, doi: 10.1007/s12134-015-0435-z
3. Güngör, N.D., Tansel, A. (2008). Brain Drain from Turkey: An Investigation of Students’ Return Intentions. Applied Economics. Vol. 40, no. 23, pp. 3069-3087, doi: 10.1080/00036840600993999
4. Murray Brux, J., Fry, B. (2010). Multicultural Students in Study Abroad: Their Interests, Their Issues, and Their Constraints. Journal of Studies in International Education. Vol. 14, no. 5, pp. 508-527, doi: 10.1177/1028315309342486
5. Wiers-Jenssen, J., Støren, L. A. (2021). International Student Mobility and the Transition from Higher Education to Work in Norway. Higher Education. Vol. 82, pp. 1119-1143, doi: 10.1007/ s10734-020-00564-9
6. Altbach, P.G., Knight, J. (2007). The Internationalization of Higher Education: Motivations and Realities. Journal of Studies in International Education. Vol. 11, no. 3-4, pp. 290-305, doi: 10.1177/1028315307303542
7. Nefedova, A. (2021). Why International Students Choose to Study at Russia’s Leading Universities. Journal of Studies in International Education. Vol. 25, no. 5, pp. 582-597, doi: 10.1177/1028315320963514
8. Kemp, S., Madden, G., Simpson, M. (1998). Emerging Australian Education Markets: A Discrete Choice Model of Taiwanese and Indonesian Student Intended Study Destination. Education Economics. Vol. 6, no. 2, pp. 159-169, doi: 10.1080/09645299800000013
9. Binsardi, A., Ekwulugo, F. (2003). International Marketing of British Education: Research on the Students’ Perception and the UK Market Penetration. Marketing Intelligence & Planning. Vol. 21, no. 5, pp. 318-327, doi: 10.1108/02634500310490265
10. Naidoo, V. (2007). Research on the Flow of International Students to UK Universities: Determinants and Implications. Journal of Research in International Education. Vol. 6, no. 3, pp. 287-307, doi: 10.1177/1475240907083197
11. Wiers-Jenssen, J. (2008). Does Higher Education Attained Abroad Lead to International Jobs? Journal of Studies in International Education. Vol. 12, no. 2, pp. 101-130, doi: 10.1177/1028315307307656
12. Findlay, A.M. (2011). An Assessment of Supply and Demand-Side Theorizations of International Student Mobility. International Migration. Vol. 49, no. 2, pp. 162-190, doi: 10.1111/j.1468-2435.2010.00643.x
13. Varma, R., Kapur, D. (2013). Comparative Analysis of Brain Drain, Brain Circulation and Brain Retain: A Case Study of Indian Institutes of Technology. Journal of Comparative Policy Analysis: Research and Practice. Vol. 15, no. 4, pp. 315-330, doi: 10.1080/13876988.2013.810376
14. Lee, C.-F. (2014). An Investigation of Factors Determining the Study Abroad Destination Choice: A Case Study of Taiwan. Journal of Studies in International Education. Vol. 18, no. 4, pp. 362-381, doi: 10.1177/1028315313497061
15. Bokayev, B., Torebekova, Z., Davletbayeva, Z. (2020). Preventing Brain Drain: Kazakhstan’s Presidential “Bolashak” Scholarship and Government Regulations of Intellectual Migration. Public Policy and Administration. Vol. 19, no. 3, pp. 25-35, doi:,10.5755/j01.ppaa.19.3.27764
16. Mathies, C., Cantwell, B. (2022). Intra-Regional Mobility of PhD Students in the European Union: The Outcomes of Region-Making Policy? Policy Reviews in Higher Education. Vol. 6, no. 2, pp. 230-251, doi: 10.1080/23322969.2022.2105256
17. Matusevich, M. (2009). Probing the Limits of Internationalism: African Students Confront Soviet Ritual. Anthropology of East Europe Review. Vol. 27, no. 2, pp. 19-39.
18. Perraton, H. (2017). Foreign Students in the Twentieth Century: A Comparative Study of Patterns and Policies in Britain, France, Russia, and the United States. Policy Reviews in Higher Education. Vol.1, no. 2, pp. 161-186, doi: 10.1080/23322969.2017.1303788
19. Olumayowa, O.I. (2020). The Sociability of West African Migrants among Russians in Moscow. Vol. 18, no. 1, pp. 143-156, doi: 10.17323/727-0634-2020-18-1-143-156
20. Atsyor, G.A. (2023). Bibliometric Review of Research on International Students in Russia. Vysshee Obrazovanie v Rossii = Higher Education in Russia. Vol. 32, no. 3, pp. 153-166, doi: 10.31992/0869-3617-2023-32-3-153-166
21. Katsakioris, C. (2021). Nkrumah’s Elite: Ghanaian Students in the Soviet Union in the Cold War. Paedagogica Historica. Vol. 57, no. 3, pp. 260-276, doi: 10.1080/00309230.2020.1785516
22. Francesconi, M., Slonimczyk, F., Yurko, A. (2019). Democratizing Accessto Higher Education in Russia: The Consequences of the Unified State Exam Reform. European Economic Review. Vol. 117, pp. 56-82, doi: 10.1016/j.euroecorev.2019.04.007
23. Sopnev, N.V., Soloviev, I.A. (2022). Cartographic Provision for the Study of Territorial Features of Student Immigration in Russia. InterCarto. InterGIS. Proceedings of International Conference. Vol. 28, no. 2, pp. 126-145, doi: 10.35595/2414-9179-2022-2-28-126-145
24. Mazzarol, T., Hosie, P. (1996). Exporting Australian Higher Education: Future Strategies in a Maturing Market. Quality Assurance in Education. Vol. 4, no. 1, pp. 37-50, doi: 10.1108/09684889610108039
25. Perkins, R., Neumayer, E. (2014). Geographies of Educational Mobilities: Exploring the Uneven Flows of International Students. The Geographical Journal. Vol. 180, no. 3, pp. 246-259, doi: 10.2139/ssrn.1857523
26. Abbott, A., Silles, M. (2016). Determinants of International Student Migration. The World Economy. Vol. 39, no. 5, pp. 621-635, doi: 10.1111/geoj.12045
27. Beine, M., Docquier, F., Rapoport, H. (2007). Measuring International Skilled Migration: A New Database Controlling for Age of Entry. The World Bank Economic Review. Vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 249-254, doi: 10.1093/wber/lhm007
28. Torkington, K. (2010). Defining Lifestyle Migration. Dos Algarves. Vol. 19, pp. 99-111. Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/49614748_Defining_lifestyle_migration (accessed: 02.04.2024).
29. Mazzarol, T., Soutar, G.N. (2002). “Push-pull” Factors Influencing International Student Destination Choice. International Journal of Educational Management. Vol. 16, no. 2, pp. 82-90, doi: 10.1108/09513540210418403
30. McMahon, M.E. (1992). Higher Education in a World Market: A Historical Look at the Global Context of International Study. Higher Education. Vol. 24, pp. 465-482, doi: 10.1007/BF00137243
31. Chen, J.M. (2016). Three Levels of Push-Pull Dynamics Among Chinese International Students’ Decision to Study Abroad in the Canadian Context. Journal of International Students. Vol. 7, no. 1, pp. 113-135, doi: 10.32674/jis.v7i1.248
32. Labrianidis, L., Sykas, T., Sachini, E., Karampekios, N. (2022). Highly Educated Skilled Migrants Are Attracted to Global Cities: The Case of Greek PhD Holders. Population, Space and Place. Vol. 28, no. 3, e2517, doi: 10.1002/psp.2517
33. Lee, E.S. (1966). A Theory of Migration. Demography. Vol. 3, no. 1, pp. 47-57, doi: 10.2307/2060063
34. Benson, M., O’Reilly, K. (2016). From Lifestyle Migration to Lifestyle in Migration: Categories, Concepts, and Ways of Thinking. Migration Studies. Vol. 4, no. 1, pp. 20-37, doi: 10.1093/migration/mnv015
35. Benson, M., O’Reilly, K. (2009). Migration and the Search for a Better Way of Life: A Critical Exploration of Lifestyle Migration. The Sociological Review. Vol. 57, no. 4, pp. 608-625, doi: 10.1111/j.1467-954X.2009.01864.x
36. Benson, M., Osbaldiston, N. (2016). Toward a Critical Sociology of Lifestyle Migration: Reconceptualizing Migration and the Search for a Better Way of Life. The Sociological Review. Vol. 64, no. 3, pp. 407-423, doi: 10.1111/1467-954X.12370
37. Eder, J., Smith, W.W., Pitts, R.E. (2010). Exploring Factors Influencing Student Study Abroad Destination Choice. Journal of Teaching in Travel & Tourism. Vol. 10, no. 3, pp. 232-250, doi: 10.1080/15313220.2010.503534
38. Brooks, R., Waters, J. (2010). Social Networks and Educational Mobility: The Experiences of UK Students. Globalization, Societies and Education. Vol. 8, no. 1, pp. 143-157, doi: 10.1080/14767720903574132
39. McLeod, M., Wainwright, P. (2009). Researching the Study Abroad Experience. Journal of Studies in International Education. Vol. 13, no. 1, pp. 66-71, doi: 10.1177/1028315308317219
40. Winters, P., De Janvry, A., Sadoulet, E. (2001). Family and Community Networks in MexicoUS Migration. Journal of Human Resources. Pp. 159-184. Available at: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3306699 (accessed: 02.04.2024).
41. Shanka, T., Quintal, V., Taylor, R. (2006). Factors Influencing International Students’ Choice of an Education Destination–A Correspondence Analysis. Journal of Marketing for Higher Education. Vol. 15, no. 2, pp. 31-46, doi: 10.1300/J050v15n02_02
42. Maringe, F., Carter, S. (2007). International Students’ Motivations for Studying in UK HE: Insights into the Choice and Decision Making of African Students. International Journal of Educational Management. Vol. 21, no. 6, pp. 459-475, doi: 10.1108/09513540710780000
43. Singaravelu, H.D., White, L.J., Bringaze, T.B. (2005). Factors Influencing International Students’ Career Choice: A Comparative Study. Journal of Career Development. Vol. 32, no. 1, pp. 46-59, doi: 10.1177/0894845305277043
44. Kahanec, M., Králiková, R. (2011). Pulls of International Student Mobility. SSRN Electronic Journal. 18 p., doi: 10.2139/ssrn.1977819
45. Beine, M., Noël, R., Ragot, L. (2014). Determinants of the International Mobility of Students. Economics of Education Review. Vol. 41, pp. 40-54, doi: 10.1016/j.econedurev.2014.03.003
46. Basford, S., van Riemsdijk, M. (2017). The role of Institutions in the Student Migrant Experience: Norway’s Quota Scheme. Population, Space and Place. Vol. 23, no. 3, e2005, doi: 10.1002/ psp.2005
47. Balch, A. (2010). Managing Labor Migration in Europe: Ideas, Knowledge, and Policy Change. Managing Labour Migration in Europe. Doi: 10.30950/jcer.v8i1.429
48. Li, G., Chen, W., Duanmu, J.-L. (2010). Determinants of International Students’ Academic Performance: A Comparison Between Chinese and Other International Students. Journal of Studies in International Education. Vol. 14, no. 4, pp. 389-405, doi: 10.1177/1028315309331490
49. Wilkins, S., Epps, A. (2011). Student Evaluation Web Sites as Potential Sources of Consumer Information in the United Arab Emirates. International Journal of Educational Management. Vol. 25, no. 5, pp. 410-422, doi: 10.1108/09513541111146341
Review
Views:
505
Email this article 