European universities soon to be a hub for higher education
Though there are 24 official languages in the European Union, most countries across Europe offer study programmes in English also.
Thiruvananthapuram: The new entry and residence rules will make European universities more attractive for highly educated students and researchers from other countries. The salient features of the new provisions are:
(1) Students and researchers should stay at least nine months after finishing their course and seek jobs or begin businesses which would benefit Europe.
(2) Students and researchers can move more easily within the EU during their stay. In future, they will not need to file a new visa application, but only to notify the member state to which they are moving. Researchers will also be able to move for longer periods than those currently allowed.
(3) Researchers can bring their family members along and they are entitled to work during their stay.
(4) Students have the right to work at least 15 hours a week.
The Visa Directive formally called Directive 2004/114 is the legislative instrument that sets out the conditions under which non-EU nationals can enter the European Union to study, conduct research, volunteer, or take up internships or au-pair assignments.
The new rules will help Europe to more effectively compete for talent and also harmonise visa regulations across EU member states thereby improving mobility within Europe for non-EU students and researchers, said T.M.S. Kutty, CEO of the Career consultant.
The directive which came to force the day after its publication in the European Official Journal has made clear that member states will then have two years in which to transpose its provisions into their national laws. With thousands of universities, research centres and higher education institutions offering world-class study programmes, Europe is a place to reckon in the field of higher education, Mr Kutty said
Though there are 24 official languages in the European Union, most countries across Europe offer study programmes in English also. Apart from that, other leading global languages like Spanish, French, German, Russian, Italian, Portuguese and Arabic are also used as the medium of instruction, Mr Kutty said.