Sri Lankan Students’ Perceptions and the Factors that Affect Migrating for Their Higher Studies

Abstract

In recent times, with globalization, especially in Asian countries, there has been an increasing trend of student migration for higher education. This can cause short-term and long-term brain drain and the overflow of foreign exchange out of the country. Therefore, this study intends to provide students’ perceptions and the factors that affect migrating for their higher studies in Sri Lanka. This study is based on primary data from a rapid online survey of Sri Lankan students who are aged between 16 and 30 years old. Among 110 respondents, there were 51% males and 49% females. More than 60% of students were aged between 21-22 years old. Among all students, 83.6% of students are hoping to go abroad for higher studies. The students cited reasons such as the high quality of education abroad (56.4%), economic instability in Sri Lanka (53.6%), and limited enrolment and resources in government universities (20%) for choosing to study overseas. Students prefer studying abroad due to dissatisfaction with the local higher education system. Government school and state university graduates tend to migrate for higher education and not return home.