FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
Albania is losing students year after year as it is no longer able to fill university classrooms. The latest INSTAT data shows that in the 2025-2026 school year, the total number of enrollments in pre-university education fell by 1.7%, confirming the trend of demographic contraction and emigration that is hitting the education system.
In total, 399 thousand students are enrolled in schools and kindergartens, while the sharpest decline is seen in 9-year education, where there are 2.7% fewer students compared to the previous year. The figures show that the emptying is no longer affecting only rural areas, but is becoming a national phenomenon.
The starkest contrast is seen at university. While the pre-university cycle shrinks, higher education continues to be dominated by female enrollments. According to INSTAT, 67.6% of students in Master's programs are female, while in Bachelor's they make up 56.8% of the total.
The data also reflects another development, that vocational education continues to remain peripheral. Only 19.4% of high school students have chosen vocational education, while girls account for only 17.2% of enrollments in this profile. This shows that the technical training market is still failing to attract young people, despite the growing demand for practical and technical professions in the country, which is becoming increasingly skewed.
At universities, preferences remain focused on traditional majors. “Business, Administration and Law” leads with 25.2% of students, while “Health and Welfare” ranks second with 22.2%. In third place comes “Engineering, Manufacturing and Construction,” with 16.9%.
The data shows that the Albanian economy continues to produce more lawyers and economists than technological or industrial profiles, at a time when businesses complain about a lack of specialized labor.
Regarding the ratio of public and private education, it results that over 85% of students at every level continue to enroll in state institutions, leaving the private sector's share in the Albanian education system limited.
Lini një Përgjigje