Why Do Graduates Leave Maastricht?

The Debate: “A City for the Residents It Wants Not the Ones It Has”

Last Wednesday (October 28^th), Debatcentrum Sphinx held a debate on the current topic of why students leave Maastricht after graduation. The debate was well-organized by Sofia Theodorou, Emma Mecs, Layla Morris, Jade Novara, Simone Snijder, and Hüseyin Sakalli; Moderated by Lennart Booij and Sofia Theodorou. Through their varied selection of panelists, we could hear diverse perspectives, including from Maastricht University (President of the Executive Board Prof. Dr. Pamela Habibović), the local resident Carla Schröder, the municipality (Alderman Jeroen Hoenderkamp and Councilor Romy Frijters), international students Sofia Theodorou and Emma Mecs, and the labor market expert and speaker Inge Hooijen.

The debate aimed to present the clear mismatch between what Maastricht offers to its graduated students and what makes a city attractive for permanent residence. Although the percentage of students’ retention in the Netherlands has increased (depending on the region and sector), there are a number of factors contributing to Maastricht’s lowest stay rate in the Netherlands, along with South Limburg’s inability to retain students in the Dutch labor market after 5 years of graduating as much as the Randstad region, as Inge explained. Thus, the question arises: how can the university, the city and employers work together to keep graduates here?

Diverse Perspectives

When asked the question of why Maastricht University (UM) does not invest stronger efforts into keeping students in the city, Prof. Dr. Pamela, clearly states their main goal is to give “students full freedom to choose their future”. Alderman Jeroen similarly explained that their aim is to “not scare people who would like to stay here but not cage them as well”. However, freedom would mean making an informed and fair choice between two attractive options. In this case, the current structures and resources in place do not meet these criteria.

For example, according to Prof. Dr. Pamela, UM requires mandatory courses for the Medicine bachelor because the labor market for this area requires Dutch language fluency. She further explained, it is not worth making it mandatory for all the programs due to students’ uninterest and negative experiences in learning. In contrast, I would argue UM should follow the example of Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e), as to offer their students voluntary and free access Dutch courses for all levels. Eliminating this barrier would motivate students to stay longer in the country, since it would allow greater access to the opportunities available in the local economy, in areas such as politics and business. 

The local representative says students have many ways to integrate and enhance their sense of belonging, such as through volunteering at local communities. Still, we can notice the municipality decides to invest in the luxurious residence complex The M, rather than in non-profit organizations, such as Foodbank Maastricht. They do openly support student events by partnering with and promoting them, such as INKOM (the annual introductory week for newcomers), which do help with socializing, but do not fulfill the long-term goal of connecting with locals and building a strong community in the city.

Alderman Jeroen recognized Maastricht is but does not behave like a true international city. This manifests through the lack of accessibility to information in English, including parts of the municipality’s own official website still being only in Dutch, such as sections to fill complaints about the municipality, social affairs, and objections to decisions. Besides, as the student Sofia suggested, the absence of initiative organized by the municipality to provide a proper introduction to the incoming international students shows the lack of effort to change behavior.

Additionally, Sofia complements students need intrinsic motivation. This would possibly arrive through a valuable job opportunity. They view this as a major communication issue, where they are not made aware of the local career options, nor have accessible ways to look for them. With a joint effort from UM, the municipality and employers to make work options available and accessible, students would acquire a higher perception of freedom and tendency to explore new challenges.

Further Steps

The panelists together with the audience provided useful insights on how to improve the international students retention rates in Maastricht. Research on Internationalization in Education by Nuffic builds on the Stay rate and labour market position of international graduates 2013-2022, to provide further tips and ideas on these goals.

Besides free Dutch courses for all levels, a rather easier idea proposed was a buddy language program, where international students would be matched with locals who want to learn each other’s languages. In general, students show an interest in learning languages but are often not willing to invest money, effort and time. This idea would provide them a more casual and fun approach to it, meanwhile making new friends. To ensure continuity and effectiveness UM-wide, it would need to be implemented and/ or supported by the University.

Moreover, the municipality should focus more on preserving community non-governmental  initiatives (e.g.: Foodbank Maastricht). Especially when in collaborative action with governments and companies, these provide a lasting positive impact in the area and strengthen the ties between locals and internationals through meaningful actions.

Lastly, there needs to be a bridge for the communication gap between job-seeking graduates and employers. As outlined by Inge, doing an internship in the city increases the chances of staying. Possibilities for this would be to create local networks and platforms that allow these formal connections.

In the end, there is not only one reason why graduates leave Maastricht. There needs to be joint action and aligned goals from UM, the municipality, and companies to increase the city's attractiveness for international students. They have a place to live during their studies and are only one step away from having a home to build a life. After all, the city belongs to them as well.