Internationalization of Higher Education, Challenges and Opportunities for the Next Decade

Abstract

Internationalization has evolved in higher education over the past 30 to 40 years from a marginal aspect to a key aspect of the reform agenda. It also has evolved in different directions and, in that process, some previous values have got lost, and past priorities have been replaced by others. Economic rationales have become more dominant, but as the society is facing extreme challenges, summarized in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations, internationalization needs to respond to these challenges and goals.

The China-centric era? Rethinking academic identity for sustainable higher education internationalization in China

“…The meanings and priorities of HE internationalization evolve over time in response to the changing environment. Most recently, de Wit and Deca (2020) call for an alignment of HE internationalization with human values and the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN to counteract the effect of the overriding economic rationale and tackle the challenges of our time. To achieve these goals and contribute to the global public good, international cooperation rather than confrontation is necessitated based on mutual understanding.…”

Internationalization as a Strategic Dimension for the Development of Academic Institutions

“…Internationalization of higher education is an object of researches of such prominent contemporary experts as Philip Altbach (Altbach & Knight, 2007;Altbach, 2013) and Hans de Wit (de Wit, 2019;de Wit & Deca, 2020). Special analyses of internationalization of research and contemporary approaches for measurement of this dimension of academic activities were presented in paper "Internationalization of research: Key considerations and concerns" (Woldegiyorgis, Proctor, & de Wit, 2018).…”

Internationalization in Canadian Higher Education Institutions: Ontario

“…According to IAU’s (2005) survey the main rationales of internationalizing are to ‘increase student and faculty international knowledge capacity and production; strengthen research and knowledge capacity and production; create international profile and reputation; contribute to academic quality; broaden and diversify source of faculty and students; promote curriculum development and innovation; [and] diversify income generation’ (p. 2). Nevertheless, from the perspectives and observations of most scholars, internationalization in rich northern countries of the West is increasingly associated with commodification and commercialization of higher education (Altbach 2002; de Wit, 2011; IAU, 2012; Maringe et al, 2013). As Knight (2008) argues, the dominant tendency of internationalization in Anglo-American institutions is mostly towards economic and commercial rationales.…”

“…Like many institutions in the Anglo-American tradition of academia (de Wit, 2011; Knight, 2008; Maringe et al, 2013), Ontario University is largely motivated by the economic incentives of internationalization. Drawing on the official policy documents and administrators’ perceptions, although the research and academic objectives and components are theoretically the central rationales driving international initiatives, the university’s administration cannot ignore the tempting economic benefits of internationalization in practice.…”