German emigrants engaged in study and research abroad

This chapter establishes that students from Germany not only exhibit aboveaverage mobility, but also have become the largest group of international students in the OECD area from any member country. In several host countries, they represent a significant share of the entire student population. Marked differences between international students from Germany and the students who remain in Germany are identified with respect to subjects studied. While the available data on internationally mobile researchers from Germany are scarce, this chapter identifies their number in key destination countries and discusses the evidence on their motivation to move abroad and to return. Measures of scientific impact based on publications suggest that many of the more influential researchers move abroad permanently.