Postgraduate programs multiplying

The number of postgraduate programs and the number of students in Greece is rising. According to the data, the economic crisis that the country went through in the previous decade appears to have been a milestone for the increase in postgraduate studies. 

In 2010, 31,071 students were studying in the postgraduate programs of Greek universities.

A few years later, in 2016, the number increased to 52,948 and in 2019 to 78,518. Two years later, in 2021, the number increased to 84,248.

Within a year, in 2022 the number of postgraduate students increased by almost 11,000, reaching 94,931.

Based on the latest figures from the National Authority for Higher Education, postgraduates in 2022 made up 11.25% of all students at Greek universities, while in the previous year their share was 10.5%.

Despite this impressive increase, Greece nonetheless has the lowest percentage of postgraduate students among the EU countries.

Cyprus ranks first (46.44%) followed by Italy (37.95%).

A similar trend is seen in the number of postgraduate programs.

According to the data available from the Ministry of Education, Greek universities currently offer 923 postgraduate programs, compared to 828 programs in 2021 and approximately 600 in 2016.

Of course, Greek universities benefit since postgraduate tuition costs flow into their budgets, while instructors’ monthly wages are also increased.

Today, tuition fees range between 1,500 and 10,000 euros per year.

In fact, the Ministry of Education is offering 62 million euros to universities to enter into joint master’s degrees with reputable foreign institutions each year as part of its efforts to limit the exodus of Greek graduates abroad and to strengthen the extroversion and innovation of Greek higher education institutions.