Student mobility into and out of Northern Ireland: What brain drain?
Date published:
This report is written by Dr Anne Devlin (ESRI), Maureen O’Reilly (Independent Economist) and Dr Aine Doran (Ulster University).
The report provides an evidence-based assessment of student mobility into and out of Northern Ireland and what this implies for the region’s skills base and longer-term economic capacity.
This report explores patterns of student mobility across the UK and Republic of Ireland, drawing on a wide range of data sources, stakeholder engagement, and student interviews.
By integrating administrative and survey evidence with lived experience, the research offers a nuanced picture of the scale and nature of Northern Ireland’s ‘brain drain’, the pathways through which talent is retained or lost, and the potential implications for productivity, labour-market matching and regional competitiveness.