With over 87,000 international students studying in the Netherlands this year, even persuading 1 in 5 to remain could potentially add around €740 million to the Dutch economy. Besides monetary value, international students could also contribute to certain fields which are in need of new ideas and talent.

Jet Bussemaker, the Dutch Minister of Education, has asked the Social-Economic Council (SER) to look into what the government, educational institutions, and companies in the Netherlands can do to entice international students to stay in the country once they’ve finished their studies.She believes that international students can contribute to Dutch society on a number of levels.

The study done by SER will also investigate what effects hiring international students will have on Dutch citizens’ employment rates. A big shortage of technical students is expected since only 2 out of 10 students currently follow a study in technical fields and international students tend to favour Economics or Cultural and Social Sciences when picking a study.

Rising unemployment in the Netherlands will make sectors where additional manpower is needed, such as the technical field, be of higher priority when it comes to employment, especially of international students.

The results of the study are expected to be published in March of 2013.