Top 10 Best Countries for Higher Education in the World

Rosemary December 13, 2022 | 03:37

Which country in the world has the highest quality education? Most of them are in Europe.

♦ 10 Best Performing Education Systems In The World and Why

♦ 10 Countries With The Best Education In The World And Why

Top 10 Countries In The World For Higher Education. Photo KnowInsiders

Someone has said “Choosing a university is a big decision. In fact, it's probably one of the most expensive and life defining decisions you'll ever make.” You will definitely think twice, even lots of times before making a decision on which university to apply.

Check out our list of top 10 countries with the best quality of higher education. Is your dream destination in the list?

Top 10 Countries In The World For Higher Education

10. France

For decades, higher education institutions in France were among the best universities and have been on the academic ranking of world universities for years. Reaching the top positions in international rankings is important for universities to attract students, researchers, and funds.

Universities have been one of the main pillars of the higher education system in France. Universities in France are expected to provide a free public service to all students.

There are several types of institutions that are part of the French higher education system. The main institutions are:

• Universities

• Grandes écoles

• Specialized schools

How many students obtain a higher education degree in France?

The number of total graduates from universities in France was 795 961 in 2018 as reported by Eurostat. Among these graduates, 56% were females (447 332) and 44% were males (348 629). A similar trend is also observed in other European countries where female graduates are more than males.

How many students are in higher education in France?

In 2019-2020, 2.73 million students were enrolled in higher education institutions in France. It’s a 1.6% increase over the previous year.

This recent study confirms that getting enrolled in a higher education program is gaining traction in France. In the span of 10 years, the share of students in France increased by 20% approximately: from 2.29 million students in 2010 to 2.73 million students in 2019-2020. This is the eleventh year of consecutive growth.

How many international students are in France?

In 2012-2013, international students represented 9.7% of all the students in the French higher education system. This accounts for 231 200 international students. This number increased to 385 000 in 2018-2019, or 13% in terms of percentage share.

It’s a growing trend that shows the evolution in the number of French and international students in France.

9. Netherlands

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The Netherlands’ education ecosystem thrives with top-tier institutions and progresses in a way that prepares students for working live through both vocational education and training (VET) as well as higher education. Higher education in the Netherlands consists of research-oriented and profession-oriented education. Together, the Netherlands’ vocational and higher education pathways create an ecosystem of talented professionals that are skilled in a variety of disciplines, ranging from IT to life sciences and everything in between.

Home to 14 universities, 34 professional education universities and a variety of specialized training facilities, the Netherlands has one of the top five education systems in the world. The Delft University of Technology is a top 20 university for engineering and technology. Eindhoven University of Technology ranks as the third most influential center for scientific research in Europe. Utrecht University, the University of Groningen, Erasmus University Rotterdam and Leiden University all rank in the top 100 of global university rankings.

Developing a multilingual and talented workforce: lifelong learning

The Dutch education system and business community support one another. The Netherlands’ education and training system focuses on meeting the needs of today’s businesses and keeping the economy competitive by graduating a steady stream of highly skilled workers. As a result, businesses in the Netherlands benefit from the assurance that a skilled workforce is ready when they need it. This also means that businesses, in turn, can focus on further developing talent and students can continue to grow in the workplace.

Highly skilled graduates also bring more than just learned lessons to the workforce. Dutch graduates are known to develop excellent English skills, making them undeniably competitive and prepared to contribute to globalized industries. Having educated employees who are also excellent multilingual communicators is among the strongest factors for foreign businesses looking to relocate to the Netherlands. Together, the education system and business community make the Netherlands a favorable choice for companies seeking an educated workforce.

8. Denmark

Denmark isn't just a country known for its beautiful Nordic landscapes, but it is known for its excellent education system. Seven of its universities are included in world academic rankings. Explore with us five reasons you should consider Denmark as the country you should pursue higher education.

Scholarships available for international students

Denmark is widely known for being a great place to study with student-friendly cities. If you're a citizen from the EU, you're all set as tuition fees are entirely free. On the other hand, if you're an international student, you have several scholarship opportunities to choose from the government, universities, or private organizations.

Here's a quick summary of the scholarships you should look out for

1. LifeAsapa International Undergraduate Financial Aid in Denmark

Three types of scholarships

$10,000 in the first year and a monthly stipend of $2,000

50% payment for a three-year bachelor degree course

100% payment for a bachelor degree course for the entire period

Available for undergraduate international students

Available for technical undergraduate degrees only

2. Danish Government Scholarship 2022

Fully funded: full tuition fee waiver and a grant to help cover living costs before taxes, or partially funded.

Open for most of the top Danish universities, such as Copenhagen Business School, Aarhus University, University of Southern Denmark, University of Copenhagen, etc.

The scholarship grants students with high academic merit. So, financial aspects are not taken into consideration.

3. Denmark Ph.D. Scholarship in Leadership At Copenhagen Business School

Fully funded = including tuition fees, office space, travel grants plus a salary

Available for Ph.D. international students at the University of Copenhagen

Available for leadership degrees only

7. Canada

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Canada is the current hotcake for many international students not only because of the country’s multicultural society and flexible immigration policies. Students target Canada because the Canadian education system is one of the best in the world. Since 2016, Canada has been consistently featuring among the top 5 countries with the best higher education systems in the world.

Top Universities in Canada

University of Toronto

University of British Columbia

McGill University

McMaster University

University of Montreal

University of Alberta

University of Ottawa

University of Calgary

University of Waterloo

Western University

6. Switzerland

Switzerland is surely one of the places you should be considering if you’re looking to study abroad. This location has a lot to offer for international students, including world-class universities and exciting student experiences. With more than 23 universities and colleges in Switzerland, you’ll surely have a wide range of choices.

Out of 23 universities in Switzerland, ETH Zürich and Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne are the top-performing schools in Switzerland. This list covers both public and private institutions in Switzerland.

Swiss universities have the best connections

The higher education systems are assessed according to four categories: connectivity, output, resources, and environment. Switzerland came in first place globally for connectivity, which investigates the extent to which the higher education institutes have an international focus. For example, the proportion of international students or the proportion of research projects with international researchers are assessed. However, integration into society is also examined.

Good funding and high quality

Switzerland came in third place worldwide in the category of output. This measures the number of publications and their consideration, the number of top international universities in the country, and also the proportion of students or academics in the population, for example.

5. Ireland

Photo study in Ireland

Known as the Land of Saints and Scholars, Ireland is a great country to receive an education. There are currently seven (soon to be eight) universities in Ireland, with more in the north.

These are University College Dublin (UCD), the University of Galway, University College Cork, the National University of Ireland, Maynooth, Trinity College Dublin (TCD), the University of Limerick (UL) and Dublin City University (DCU). Ireland was also found to be the third-highest ranked country in Europe and, most impressively, was ranked as the best country in the world for Arts & Culture in higher education.

4. Germany

Students worldwide have rated Germany as one of the best places to study in the world, despite most universities still not charging any tuition fees. A study conducted by student review site The Campus Advisor last year asked 17.824 students from all over the world to consider the countries they received their degrees in.

Students were asked to give a one to five rating in six different categories: Quality of Education, Cost of Living as a Student, Graduate Career Prospects, Student Diversity, Arts and Culture, and Social Life. The scores were then used to determine the top 20 countries for higher education in 2022.

Germany placed fourth in the rankings, receiving an average score of 4,41 out of five. Both the German capital and the Bavarian capital were highly rated by students. Berlin was voted as the best student city for 2022, whilst Munich boasts the country’s best university: Ludwig Maximilian University.

3. Australia

After the UK and the US, Australia is home to the third-highest number of international students. Further, six Nobel Prize winners were among the faculty and alumni of the Australian National University. Currently, it is run by a Nobel laureate, Brian Schmidt, who won the prestigious prize in 2011 in Physics.

Top 5 Australian universities have produced Nobel laureates, scholars and famous world leaders whose work has impacted the world. 5 Australian Prime Ministers attended the oldest university in Australia (since 1851), The University of Sydney. The Booker Prize-winning novelist Peter Carey attended the research powerhouse, Monash University. The University has research and training centers in different parts of the world. Noted Royal Society’s fellows David Boger, David Solomon and Nobel prizewinner Peter Doherty (Physiology and Medicine) used to teach or research at the University of Melbourne.

2. United Kingdom

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Higher education is undertaken by an increasing number of people across the globe, and with one of the most prestigious and established university systems anywhere in the world, the United Kingdom is no exception. As of 2021, there were over 2.75 million students at UK universities. Among people aged between 30 and 34 in the United Kingdom, half were educated to a tertiary level, one of the highest shares in Europe. Additionally, there were around 750,000 applications to study at university in 2020, an increase of around 345,000 when compared with 1994, when there were 405,000 applications.

Oxford retains top spot

As student numbers has increased, so has the number of universities in the UK. As of 2019 there were 164 universities and higher education institutions in operation. The very first university in the UK is also the highest rated. In 2020, Oxford University, founded in 1096, was the highest ranked university in the United Kingdom, with it's traditional rival Cambridge, founded by exiles from Oxford in 1209, in second place. Neither Oxford or Cambridge were the largest universities in terms of student numbers, however, with that particular honor going to University College London, which had 45,715 students attending in 2020/21, followed by Manchester University which had 44,635 students.

Facts about stuyding in the UK

The number of international students is growing yearly

Young people understood the importance of education, therefore they want to pursue higher education in fields such as Economics, Engineering, Psychology, Arts, Music and many more at the best universities in Europe. According to global rankings, UK boasts most of these universities, so no wonder that more and more young people apply to studies here.

Over 2 million students in the UK

As we said above, the numbers are growing yearly. Now, 1 in 20 people from the UK is a student. These numbers reshape the country, because presently the focus is being laid more and more on students’ needs. You can become a student in UK too and we can help you find out more about this here.

Not as expensive as you may think

The UK may sound expensive, especially when you think about great cities like London, Manchester, Birmingham etc. However, there are cities in the country that have been known to be the most affordable student cities, some which are Portsmouth, Newcastle, Nottingham, Middlesbrough and others. You can enjoy studying at the universities there, without thinking about saving money all the time.

1. United States

Compared to most other higher education systems around the world, the U.S. system is largely independent from federal government regulation and is highly decentralized.

It is also incredibly diverse – there are public institutions and private, very large and very small, secular and religiously affiliated, urban, suburban, and rural. Such diversity means that there is a "right fit" institution for every qualified student.

The U.S. Department of Education website presents a general view of U.S. post-secondary education, as well as in-depth information on U.S. educational structure, accreditation practices, and links to state and federal education agencies and organizations.

The system of higher education in the United States differs from its counterparts in Europe in certain ways. In the United States, there is a nationwide assumption that students who have completed secondary school should have at least two years of university education. Hence, a great number of “junior colleges” and “community colleges” have sprung up to provide two years of undergraduate study, in contrast to the traditional universities and colleges, where a majority of students complete four years of study for a degree and where substantial numbers go on for one to three years of postgraduate study in a “graduate school.”