International student interest in Estonian universities rising again

International student interest in Estonian universities rising again While the number of international students at Estonia's universities has been falling in recent years, the latest admissions data point to a renewed interest. University of Tartu adviser on international studies Ülle Tensing confirmed that the number of international students enrolling has been going down in the most recent years. "In 2021, 1,746 international students studied at the University of Tartu, whereas in 2025 there were 1,435: 18 percent fewer than five years ago," Tensing noted. "The biggest decline has been seen in master's studies, where the number of international students fell by around 25 percent. The number of international students in doctoral studies has remained stable, and the decline at the first level of higher education has been smaller," she added. Tensing noted that in 2025 there was one English-language master's program where the decision was made not to start the academic year due to a lack of applicants, while this year there have been two such programs. According to Tensing, however, the number of applications from prospective international students has started to rise again. In 2025, the number of applications increased by 24 percent, while this year the increase was four percent. "This gives us hope that the number of applications from international students will no longer be declining significantly," Tensing said. This year, a total of 380 international students are commencing their studies across all three levels at the University of Tartu, roughly the same figure as for 2025 (385). According to Tensing, the fall in international students has been influenced by various factors. "Obtaining a visa to travel to Estonia has not been easy for citizens of many of those countries where Estonia does not have an embassy," she noted. "Compared with the period earlier, as a country we offer significantly fewer scholarships for master's studies. Estonia is also no longer as attractive a destination for those for whom a lower cost of living is important when choosing where to study," Tensing said. In Tensing's assessment, however, the decline in the number of international students is slowing, and based on the number of applications, the number of international students can be expected to stabilize in the coming years and, it is hoped, might even show the green shoots of recovery. "According to the International Student Barometer (ISB) satisfaction survey of international students conducted at the end of 2025, the University of Tartu's international students rate Tartu's living environment very highly," Tensing pointed out. In Tensing's assessment, compared with other European university cities, it is also considerably easier in Tartu to find suitable and affordable student accommodation. "University of Tartu international students are also more likely than international students at other European universities to feel that their studies and overall university experience are worth the money they have paid," she added. "Estonia's international reputation and image are important to international students primarily in generating interest and trust. A strong reputation for education and as a digital society helps put Estonia among the possible study destinations," Tensing continued. According to Tensing, increasing the number of international students is not an end in and of itself for the university; instead, the important aspect is to create an international learning environment. "Against the backdrop of a decline in international student numbers, it is becoming clearer which programs continue to attract strong interest among international students and where there is therefore reason to continue developing international education," Tensing said. To increase interest among international students, the University of Tartu conducts international student recruitment at several levels. The university actively promotes its English-language programs but is increasingly focusing on the overall study and living experience in Tartu and Estonia more generally. "We use targeted digital marketing and social media, take part in international education fairs and information seminars, and cooperate with Study in Estonia. Online recruitment is also an important part of this, including our annual virtual open day," Tensing explained. "We have an international student ambassador program and the 'Tiksu to UniTartu' podcast, where we discuss both practical topics and the personal journeys of international students, researchers and alumni at the University of Tartu and in Estonia," the international studies adviser added. According to Tensing, more than usual attention is paid to EU countries, particularly the nearest ones: Finland, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland. This choice is based both on the University of Tartu's strategic objectives and on market research carried out in recent years. "These countries are geographically close, but the study opportunities offered by the University of Tartu are not always sufficiently well known there. We see good potential in them for increasing both awareness of the university and the number of applicants," Tensing said. According to Tensing, the practical side is also important to EU students, as starting studies and staying on in Estonia are easier than in some other destinations. In addition, several English-language master's programs offer tuition-free study places to citizens of EU and European Economic Area (EEA) countries as well as to students from Switzerland. "This does not mean that we are focusing merely on these countries. The University of Tartu's English-language programs continue to be aimed at an international audience worldwide, but selecting target markets helps us use our marketing resources more deliberately," Tensing explained. EKA seeing rise in international applications One institution where the number of international applicants has been rising over the past five years is the Tallinn-based Estonian Academy of Arts (EKA); the admissions figure has remained stable from year to year, according to EKA communications specialist Andres Lõo. "In general, there have also been no major changes in countries of origin, although this year the number of applicants from the U.S. and Turkey increased significantly," Lõo said. According to Lõo, tuition fees, the cost of living and the availability of housing are key factors for consideration, and Estonia is in a favorable position on these metrics. However, a decision to study at EKA is not made on the basis of these factors alone. "For EKA, one of the most important factors in recruiting international students is the generally high level of internationalization at our school," Lõo noted. "Our students and teaching staff participate actively in mobility programs, establish contacts in their professional networks, take their creative work outside Estonia and thereby introduce EKA around the world as well," he added. Lõo said Erasmus+ exchange students are very significant too, with many of them later continuing into degree studies. Even if they do not continue their studies at EKA, international students take positive impressions of the school back to their home countries. "We see that personal contact or a recommendation is what works best as advertising, and people often come because of a particular lecturer as well," Lõo continued. According to Lõo, EKA is the only Estonian university that has for 20 years straight offered incoming international students a course in Estonian language and culture, something which is very popular and eagerly anticipated among international students. "We have also risen into the top 100 art and design universities in the world in the international QS Ranking — that certainly cannot be underestimated as a mark of quality," Lõo continued. TalTech seeing renewed interest too Meanwhile Tallinn University of Technology (TalTech) Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs Ingrid Pappel said before the peak of the coronavirus pandemic, the university was Estonia's most international university, with international students accounting for around 12 percent of the student body. Now that share is around 8 percent, Pappel said. According to Pappel, this decline has been influenced by the geopolitical situation in the region as well as Estonia's migration policy and the after-effects of the pandemic itself. However, admissions figures from recent years provide cause to expect the trend to reverse: Interest in studying at TalTech, and in Estonia more broadly, is once again growing strongly, she went on. "In 2026, international students submitted a total of 1,004 applications to TalTech, 278 applications or 38.3 percent more than in 2025 and 395 applications or 64.9 percent more than in 2024. The number of qualified applications has risen to 745, which is 207 applications or 38.5 percent more than in 2025 and 334 applications or 81.3 percent more than in 2024," Pappel said. Universities and countries are nowadays competing increasingly fiercely for talent in international higher education, Pappel added. "A student's choice is influenced simultaneously by the quality and suitability of the program, career opportunities after graduation, the reputation of the university and country, tuition fees and living costs. Another factor is how easy it is to enter the country and to work there during studies and after graduation," she went on. A study from this year by Keystone Education Group, covering more than 67,000 prospective international students, confirmed that the most important factors influencing decisions are the quality of the study program and career prospects. The Keystone Education Group's 2026 study, based on responses from more than 67,000 prospective international students in 150 countries, shows that the most important factors when choosing a place to study are: - The right program and suitability of the field — the most important factor influencing the decision - Career prospects — graduates' employment success, internship opportunities and return on investment (ROI) - Tuition fees and total cost — price remains the main obstacle, but is assessed together with future value - The country and the opportunities it offers — visa, employment and residency opportunities have become more important than before, particularly among South Asian students - The university's credibility — official university websites remain the most trusted source of information (72 percent), while AI is widely used to search for information but is trusted considerably less (30 percent) In Pappel's assessment, one of Estonia's strengths is its very strong international reputation as a digital society and a provider of high-quality education. "In the case of TalTech, this is supported by its strong position in engineering and technology education and programs that meet labor market needs," she added. "For example, among the most popular fields in international admissions in 2026 were cybersecurity, computer science and artificial intelligence — fields in which demand for specialists is growing worldwide," Pappel said. These are important competitive factors because international students consider the entire investment when making a decision about studying, not just tuition fees, Pappel noted. "Estonia's advantage has been its good value for money compared with several Western and Northern European study destinations," she continued. In Pappel's assessment, living costs and the living environment are always among the first questions when an international student begins seriously considering a destination country. At the same time, she said, the rising cost of living means it is increasingly important to demonstrate what value students receive for their investment — high-quality education, a safe and digital society, and good opportunities to link their studies with their future careers. "Just a few years ago, a large proportion of our international students came from Finland, Ukraine and, before the war, Russia as well, but in 2026 we are seeing significant growth in interest from countries such as Romania, Germany, Spain, France, Latvia, the U.S. and Poland," Pappel continued. According to Pappel, the number of qualified applications from students from Romania nearly quadrupled, from seven to 24, in the space of a year. At the same time, interest has grown rapidly and organically from countries where no active strategic marketing is carried out — for example Azerbaijan, Pakistan and India, where the Police and Border Guard Board does not recommend recruiting students. Interest has also grown from Turkey, the Philippines and Nepal. The number of qualified applicants from Turkey rose from 27 to 40 and from Nepal from two to 14. "Our goal is to restore TalTech's position as an international university of technology and increase the proportion of international students, particularly considering that from 2030 the number of students entering our first level of higher education will begin to decline again," Pappel outlined. According to Pappel, to increase the number of international students, the university has significantly strengthened its international marketing over the past three years and focused more deliberately on countries that already show a positive admissions trend and interest in studying in Estonia. "To do this, we actively cooperate with the Work in Estonia and Study in Estonia programs so that the countries in which we market Estonia overlap as much as possible," she added. The focus, Pappel noted, is not solely on increasing the number of applications, but above all on the quality of applicants. Increasingly, the university is also marketing not just itself, but Estonia as a destination for study, technology and a future career. TalTech head of strategic marketing Kadri Kiigema-Voorel concurred, saying: "Estonia is small on the global scale and awareness of us is limited, but among people who do know Estonia, there is a very strong image of us as a digital society with high-quality education. This gives TalTech a good starting point in international competition." Tallinn University also reporting rise in international student interest According to Tallinn University Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs Helen Joost, international applicants submitted to that higher education establishment came to a total of 1,476 in 2026, 28 percent more than a year earlier. The number of applications also rose between 2023 and 2024. "To date, 194 international applicants have confirmed that they will begin their studies, but matriculation depends on the candidates actually reaching Estonia. Last year, around 130 international students matriculated," Joost noted. Joost said the issue is not a lack of interest among international students, as the number of applications is showing a broadly positive trend. Whether students actually begin their studies depends, in her assessment, on various circumstances. "For example, in recent years it has become more difficult for applicants to obtain the visa required to enter Estonia, while the availability of sufficient financial resources and the general rise in Estonia's cost of living also affect whether they can commence their studies," Joost added. When planning marketing activities and seeking to increase student interest, Tallinn University focuses on the interests of potential future students. "We consider it important to explain the content of the programs to them as substantively and precisely as possible and to introduce the university and Estonia," Joost continued. "It is equally important to show the future prospects arising from the program. We understand that the decision to study in another country is made over a long period and after careful consideration, which is why our comprehensive support and relevant information are crucial in making that choice," she went on. In Joost's assessment, the growth in applications reflects the fact that applicants highly value personal communication and the university's rapid response to questions that arise. Both the university's growing international visibility and Estonia's reputation as an innovative country with a good living environment play an important role in international students' decisions. -- Follow ERR News on Facebook and Twitter and never miss an update! Editor: Andrew Whyte