The study develops and presents a concept of Virtual Internationalization (VI) in higher education, which refers to internationalization implemented using information and communications technology (ICT). VI is contextualized with the inclusiveness of international experiences and with external challenges to internationalization (posed, for example, by the Covid-19 pandemic). Conceived as an institution-spanning concept, VI is developed from the ACE-CIGE model of Comprehensive Internationalization. It is inferred from actual practice based on a content analysis of conference abstracts from relevant fields, employing coding and computer-assisted text analysis (CATA). Based on the findings, the VI concept includes strategies and articulated institutional commitment as a transversal category and online and distance education (ODE) as an additional category in contrast to the concept of Comprehensive Internationalization. This research furthermore considers two dimensions of VI: one that is directly internationalization-related and the other concerned with broader aims of the combination of the virtual and the international. It concludes with a perspective on a “new normal” of hybrid internationalization in higher education.

The concept of Virtual Internationalization systematizes the many possible uses of digital technology in the internationalization of higher education. It is rooted in a comprehensive understanding of internationalization that encompasses the entire institution. Virtual Internationalization includes, but is not limited to, curricular concepts such as virtual mobility, virtual exchange, and virtual study abroad. Beyond the curriculum, it also involves the internationalization of management and administration, academic and teaching staff, and the role of digital technology in physical student mobility, international partnerships, collaboration, and transnational education. Moreover, Virtual Internationalization systematically integrates online and distance education. Study programs that are offered fully online or at a distance are thus brought out of the blind spot of internationalization.

The concept of Virtual Internationalization systematizes the many possible uses of digital technology in the internationalization of higher education. It is rooted in a comprehensive understanding of internationalization that encompasses the entire institution. Virtual Internationalization includes, but is not limited to, curricular concepts such as virtual mobility, virtual exchange, and virtual study abroad. Beyond the curriculum, it also involves the internationalization of management and administration, academic and teaching staff, and the role of digital technology in physical student mobility, international partnerships, collaboration, and transnational education. Moreover, Virtual Internationalization systematically integrates online and distance education. Study programs that are offered fully online or at a distance are thus brought out of the blind spot of internationalization.