Stay of highly educated youth in Serbia as a chance for even development of regions

Abstract

The bad economic situation in Serbia has been initiating the intensive leaving of young people abroad for years, most often due to a lack of finding a job in their own country. Serbia remains without highly educated young people who, with their knowledge and modern skills, could affect the development of their home regions. This paper is an attempt to establish a connection between brain drain and the development of the NUTS 3 regions of Serbia, or whether the stay of highly educated youth could affect the even development of the regions. Development problems and reasons for migration are theoretically present-ed. After that, the results of the research conducted through a survey that included 320 respondents between the ages of 18 and 35 (students and those who already have university degrees) were given. The results of this research are quite negative, and therefore it was determined that the position of youth in Serbia is unsatisfactory. By comparing it with previous research, it is concluded that the situation has been getting worse over the years. Based on the responses of the respondents, certain steps were suggested that should be taken in order to achieve positive results.