In 2007 a mere eight students chose to do an MSc elsewhere in the Netherlands after their BSc in Wageningen; by 2011 that number had increased to 47. The reverse flow, of BSc graduates from other Dutch universities doing an MSc in Wageningen, rose from 18 to 100 in the same period. So the inflow from other universities is twice the size of the outflow. More than a quarter of the Wageningen students who pack their bags after their BSc opt for Utrecht University. Nijmegen and the VU University Amsterdam are also fairly popular. Of the 100 BSc students from other universities who switched to Wageningen last year, 14 are now doing the Master’s in Forest and Nature Conservation, 13 the Master’s in International Development and 10 the Master’s in Animal Sciences. The inflow from foreign institutions, which is larger, is not included in this summary. Ab Groen, Director of Corporate Education & Research, thinks the introduction of the Bachelor-Master structure is now finally having an effect. The universities are also getting better at promoting their Master’s programmes. Groen expects to see further increases in the mobility of students after the Bachelor’s phase. ‘Students are becoming more flexible, in part thanks to their extensive social network.’
More students switch university after Bachelor’s
Figures from Wageningen University show that students are increasingly likely to choose a Master's at a different university after the BSc phase.