Student Enrolment in Tertiary Education, detailed data, Slovenia, Academic Year 2016/17

The number of students dropped below 80,000
For the last few years the number of students in tertiary education has been decreasing. In the academic year 2016/17, 79,547 students are enrolled in tertiary education; i.e. 1,000 fewer than a year before and more than 36,000 fewer than ten years ago (in the academic year 2006/07). The last time fewer than 80,000 students were enrolled in tertiary education was in the academic year 1998/99.

The number of short cycle higher vocational education students (11,000) didn’t change significantly compared to a year before. The number of students in higher professional and university study programs to obtain first higher education diploma (for comparison students in uniform master studies are included as well) declined by 1,200; there are 48,900 of them in the academic year 2016/17, while ten years ago (in 2006/07) there were nearly twice as many (91,400). In postgraduate higher education study programs the number of students (17,100) is similar to the previous year and represents a quarter of all higher education students. Doctoral students represent less than 4% of all higher education students.

Nearly half of people aged 19–24 in Slovenia enrolled in tertiary education
The number of tertiary students is rapidly falling but interest of young people to study is not falling as rapidly. The number of new entrants (students enrolled in the first year of undergraduate studies for the first time) was about the same as a year before (15,500), i.e. about 7,000 lower than ten years ago. The share of young people (aged 19–24) studying decreased by 2 p.p. (to 47.4%) in the last five years, yet with almost half of young people enrolled in tertiary education, Slovenia is still among the top countries in the European Union. The decrease in the student population is therefore partly a result of smaller generations of young people. 
 
Two out of three students study in the Osrednjeslovenska statistical region 
Two out of three higher education students study in Osrednjeslovenska, one in five in Podravska, 7% in Obalno-kraška and one in ten in other statistical regions of Slovenia, particularly in Gorenjska and Savinjska. Students residing in the Osrednjeslovenska region mainly study in their home region (86%). Many of their colleagues come from the neighbouring regions. A lot of students from Goriška (15%), Primorsko-notranjska (17%) and Obalno-kraška (37%) study in the Obalno-kraška region. Students from eastern regions choose to study in the Podravska region more often. Half of students from the Pomurska region and two out of three students from the Podravska region study there.

While higher education students often leave the home region to study, short cycle higher vocational education students study closer to home. The majority of them study in their home region or in the neighbouring region.

The share of degree-mobile students in slowly increasing 
In the academic year 2016/17 there are 3,090 (4% of all students) degree-mobile students (students with permanent residence abroad). Those are mainly students in higher academic and master study programs coming from Croatia, Macedonia, Serbia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina (2,134 in total), followed by students from Italy and Russia. The share of degree-mobile students in Slovenia is slowly increasing; in the academic year 2014/15 it was 2.6%.