Areport by the Institute for Statistics of the UN’s Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco), based on figures from 153 countries, ranked South Africa as the eighth most-popular study destination for foreigners.
The Global Education Digest 2009 study, which explored changing trends in higher education, listed the US as the most popular destination for foreign students. According to the study, one out of every five foreign students from Africa was studying at a South African university, including 14669 from Zimbabwe, 10169 from Namibia, 4963 from Botswana, 2825 from Swaziland and 1213 from Mauritius.
In contrast, only 5746 South Africans went to study abroad. The study found that one of the reasons students leave is to “avoid the frustrations of under-resourced universities at home”.
Some are attracted by the unique courses offered in South Africa , including viticulture at Stellenbosch; palaeontology at Wits; homeopathy at the University of Johannesburg and a master of science degree in agricultural economics at the University of Limpopo.
Reference:
03/08 Foreigners flock to SA universities
