Integrated Approach to Internationalization in Higher Education

Internationalization in higher education has been the recurring theme of the global academic community in preparing the future world leaders and workers – from the developed to the developing countries. Faculty diversification, which is the primary arm of internationalization, covets an array of geopolitical and geocultural interdisciplinarities that may hinder its prime purpose. This study discerns the determinants of internationalization and faculty diversification in higher education: the exposure of the student-learners to an array of ideas, cultures, behaviors, experiences and standards. Diversification benefits the academic environment by offering optimal educational experiences to a community that promotes peace and harmony in preparing students for their global tasks as future leaders and workers in the acumen of internationalization in education and work globalization. Hence, it benefits the student-learners as diversified teachers are imperative to the need and the focus on extending tertiary education as a vehicle for long term human resource development.

The Internationalisation of Higher Education in Brazil: Analysis of a Spanish-Brazilian Scientific Cooperation Project in CAL

This article discusses the new Brazilian government strategy aimed at the internationalization of higher education—the program Networks for Institutional Internationalization (CAPES-Global.Edu)—launched in July 2025. The objective is to analyze the directions of the internationalization of Brazilian higher education over the past 10 years, with some initial reflections on the characteristics of the new initiative and, specifically, its prospects for marking a new paradigm of internationalization for Brazil.

English-medium instruction (EMI) has increasingly become a key strategy for internationalization in higher education. However, studies on the perceptions of low-proficiency students remain limited, particularly within technological and vocational education contexts. This study examines the perceptions of 288 students from a Taiwanese technological university regarding EMI and the strategic use of the first language (L1) in EMI classrooms. Quantitative analysis revealed generally neutral to negative attitudes toward EMI, significantly influenced by English proficiency, prior EMI experience and gender. Female students and those with greater familiarity with EMI expressed more favourable perceptions. Qualitative data further indicated that lower-proficiency students highly valued the selective use of L1 by both their instructors and peers, viewing it as essential for content comprehension and active participation. Overall, the results underscore the pedagogical value of selective L1 use to accommodate learner diversity and enhance EMI effectiveness. This study offers practical implications for EMI policy design, classroom practice and instructional planning in an English as a foreign language-based technological university setting.

The most important competition of the 21st century is that of talents. How to make higher education and the cultivation of talents contribute to the long-term national development agenda and the construction of a community of a shared future for mankind is a significant task and mission of higher education in China. The Belt and Road Initiative is one of the means to share the Chinese experiences, Chinese wisdom and bonus of reform and opening-up. Construction of the core area of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the implementation of the Open Up West Program call for talents to contribute to the regional development. It has brought both opportunities and challenges to foreign language education in universities and colleges in Xinjiang. The cultivation of talents in foreign language education must integrate into the scope of internationalization in national higher education and meet its expectations of talents by focusing on fostering character and civic virtue, maintaining and serving regional social stability and long-term security and pursuing development in the long run. The tripartite route of development is as follows. Firstly, it is expected to design and carry out the tasks and agenda in line with China’s Ministry of Education’s concern of internationalization in higher education. Secondly, it is vital to focus on important aspects with a deep awareness of opportunities and challenges of internationalization. Thirdly, it is of practical significance to explore various potentials of development through Sino-Russian cooperation in faculty training and development, cultivation of talents, scientific research and cultural exchange with the help of platforms of cooperation in operation. With the joint efforts of both parties, there is hope that the cultivation of talents in foreign language education will bolster mutual capabilities in serving the Belt and Road Initiative.

This article discusses the concept and the rationales for the internationalisation of higher education. In particular, the impacts of globalisation and the knowledge economy upon the internationalisation of higher education are examined. The study suggests that the internationalisation of higher education is becoming increasingly dominated by economic imperatives that focus on exporting education and generating income from overseas students. What is currently overlooked is that ‘internationalisation’ is occurring not only beyond but also within national borders. A practice model is proposed for helping higher education institutions analyse the internationalisation of higher education from four rationales to develop more inclusive internationalisation policies and strategies.

This article examines the roles of university elites in enhancing internationalisation agenda in Indonesian higher education. This is done by exploring the relationship between internationalisation and cosmopolitanism. Drawing from two stages of field studies of the internationalisation of Indonesian universities, interviews with key correspondents in the sector, and an analysis of related documents, I argue that there is a tension between the way the university elites see themselves as the agents of cosmopolitan culture and the way they are positioned as intermediaries of global interest and agenda. Cosmopolitan culture that appears to be symbolic, universal, and democratic as represented by the university elites belies the instrumental purpose of internationalisation that yokes higher education into the global marketplace. A shift from mere cosmopolitanism to cosmopolitics would equip the university elites with the analytical tools of global geopolitics regarding the internationalisation of higher education.

The generation of higher education internationalization has its own profound political, economic, technological and cultural factors, and the economic factor is one of the most important factors. Driven by economic interests, developed country has accelerated the output of educational resources to international markets. In order to enhance competitiveness and international visibility, institutions of higher education in developing countries have increased the speed and depth of cooperation with the developed countries through a variety of ways. Author proposed recommendations about the internationalization of higher education from the analysis of the connotation of internationalization of higher education and its causes. This thesis uses the nearly two years of Changchun University of Science international education as an example.

This paper examines two of the major conceptual and empirical aspects of internationalisation in the higher education area from contemporary and collaborative perspectives. It also explores a number of factors---academic and non-academic ---which influence both the provision of outstanding academic programs by tertiary institutions and the educational achievements of students. The paper draws on high-level expertise in intercultural understanding and practice and on longstanding involvement in cross-cultural curriculum development, teaching and research. It provides examples of principles and practices that contribute to, and sometimes determine, the success or failure of internationalising educational services and the achievement of excellence in the higher education sector.

The article focuses on internationalization of higher education. It analyzes the European experience of implementing internationalization strategies on the examples of Aston University (United Kingdom) and Sapienza University of Rome (Italy). The authors present the results of the research on defining the level of internationalization conducted at Russian higher education institutions under Erasmus+ project “Development of approaches to harmonization of comprehensive internationalization strategies in higher education, research and innovation at EU and partner countries (HARMONY)”. The project partnership is comprised of 14 higher education institutions of different types (classical universities, institutions of applied sciences) from 9 countries of the world, namely Spain, United Kingdom, Germany, Portugal, Italy, Greece, Russia, Belarus, and Armenia. In Russia the questionnaires were sent to 119 universities located in four Russian federal districts including the Central, North-Western, Volga and Southern federal districts. The survey was based on data of 2015–2016 academic year. Finally, the article analyzes the cooperation between Russia and European Union in the framework of Erasmus+ programme and the role that the programme plays in internationalization of higher education.

Internationalization of Ukrainian higher education is becoming an important topic of discussion at national and institutional levels. Ukrainian universities consider internationalization as a major tool to impel much needed internal change and improve access to knowledge, research and funding across borders. Ukrainian students view international opportunities as critical to succeed in the European job market. Ukraine, an ex-USSR republic, which borders NATO and the European Union countries on the West and Russia on the East, maintains a semi-peripheral position in the international knowledge system. It tries to locate its own niche internationally and still hesitates about which developmental trajectory to follow. This paper investigates how Ukrainian universities approach the development of international outreach capacity in order to interact with potential partners on student/faculty international mobility, curriculum development, joint/dual degree initiatives, etc. Disproportionate distribution of already scarce resources, the role of historical preference towards cross-border and linguistic inclinations, and current active protests against the state government’s decision to stop the preparation process for an EU agreement emerge as important factors to shape the current Ukrainian higher education internationalization agenda.

As a response to globalization, internationalisation of higher education could be accomplished by the forms of a series of national policies and institutional strategies to strengthen the global competitiveness of universities. The history of Japanese higher education spans approximately over 130 years, experiencing both flourishing time and stagnant period. Driven by the increasing pace of internationalisation and great pressure originated from global competition, Japanese government has already taken concrete measures to get its higher education better merged into internationalization. However, higher education in Japan is now at a crossroads maintaining its sustainable and steady development. As Japan’s neighboring country, China came much more slowly of breaking the ice for the internationalisation in dimension of higher education if compared with Japan. As gradually playing an important role internationally, China has invested massively into internationalisation of higher education as well. However the direction of development in Chinese higher education seems to be blur or too early to tell. The current status of higher education in China and Japan are both characterized by profoundly historical roots. Better understanding on the ‘historical internationalisation’ in both countries sheds light on the understanding of higher education in contemporary China and Japan and their developmental progress. Therefore the present dissertation examines the originally authentic sense of internationalisation which could be traced back to the middle to late 19th century. During the middle of nineteenth century China and Japan were both undergoing the threat from invasive West with countries’ independence and traditional culture in danger. In response to expansion of the West, Chinese and Japanese’s reactions varied enormously in polity subversion, economic construction, attitudes towards foreign culture and educational reform. The Meiji Restoration of 1868 in Japan rapidly foster its modernization by successfully ‘using the barbarian to control the barbarian’ to achieve the equal standards with the West eventually which opened a brand-new page for the beginning of Japanese modern history. Unlike Japan, Chinese failure in Self-Strengthening Movement which was supposed to be the preparation of modernization in China, stroke China back to the abyss of bureaucratic governance, leading Chinese modernization and first step accepting western culture and technology almost half a century later than Japan. In this sense, historical roots of internationalisation in China and Japan would be taken into serious consideration in this dissertation because it shaped countries’ status quo and would probably insert a far-reaching influence on the prospective development.

In this article, we argue that efforts to internationalize higher education that do not make visible the colonial legacy in the higher education space become catalysts that intensify and reproduce the power asymmetries among countries, universities, and ways of knowing. To support and illustrate our argument, we carried out an analysis of two of the largest international scholarship programs implemented by Latin American countries, namely, the Brazilian ‘Science without Borders’ and the Chilean ‘Becas Chile’ programs. Our analysis shows that Brazil and Chile, aiming to enhance their position in the so-called ‘knowledge economy’, implemented strategies of internationalization that assumed, naturalized, and possibly biased the intrinsic benefits of internationalization at the expense of local needs and realities. We also found that Brazil and Chile embrace a concept of internationalization equated with academic mobility to (almost exclusively) Western/European industrialized countries of the global North. Key words: Internationalization of higher education, Coloniality, Brazil, Chile, International scholarships How to cite this article: Chiappa, R. & Finardi, K.R. 2021. Coloniality Prints in Internationalization of Higher Education: The Case of Brazilian and Chilean International Scholarships. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in the South. 5(1): 25-45. DOI: 10.36615/sotls.v5i1.161. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

PurposeThis paper aim to argue for Cambodia to take internationalization of higher education seriously and strategically to position it for higher education development, and this starts with enhancing its buy-in among the key stakeholders, fine-tuning its conceptualization and contextualization and a government-funded comprehensive policy and investment program.Design/methodology/approachThis paper explores policies and practices of internationalization in Cambodia, using Knight's (2004, 2007) conceptualization of internationalization and Wan's (2018) list of six dimensions, by which the authors track and measure internationalization.FindingsSystematic policy implementation to position internationalization to achieve national and institutional goals is little. Given utilitarianism of internationalization, policy statement has geared more toward employing internationalization to achieve institutional building, in order of significance: mobility, research collaboration, policy formulation and quality control, and much less on networking and aligning with international instruments. Subtle differences among the four universities under investigation exist. While all focus on student and faculty mobility and exchange, some aim at research collaboration and networks; some at indigenous “international” and language programs, and some at joint degree programs. But, internationalization is not a key priority nor is it strategically positioned to achieve institutional aspirations.Practical implicationsWithout comprehensive, strategic policy guidance and implementation from the government, internationalization has taken its own course, and such is not healthy for higher education development.Originality/valueThere are few studies on internationalization in Cambodia. Clayton and Yuok (1997), Clayton (2002) and Pit and Ford (2004) examine politics or its politicization and higher education development after the end of the Eastern Bloc's support (Tek and Leng, 2017). Recent studies (Leng, 2015; Leng, 2016; Yun, 2014) underline institutional case studies to illustrate status, issues and challenges in internationalization. This article attempts to provide an overarching map of internationalization to inform policies and practices toward higher education and national development.

Norway has experienced a substantial influx of students in the 21st century. The number of students with foreign citizenship has increased from just over 5,000 in 2000 to more than 23,000 in 2018, as seen in Figure 1 (DBH, 2020). This growth may seem like a paradox, given that Norway has few well-known higher education institutions, high living expenses, a language not widely understood, and a geographical location at the northern fringes of Europe.
 Figure 1: Number of Bachelor and Master Students in Norway with Foreign Citizenship 2000–2018
 So why do students choose Norway? A deliberate policy for internationalization of higher education developed is an important factor. From the 1980s, internationalization has increasingly become an integral part of national higher education policies as well as included as strategies of higher education institutions (Wiers-Jenssen & Sandersen, 2017). The main rationale for encouraging student mobility is educational; mobility is seen a tool for quality enhancement in higher education. However, economic, cultural,and political rationales are also present. The fact that the vast majority of higher education institutions are public partly explains why internationalization policies quite efficiently has trickled down from the national to the institutional level. 
 Most Norwegian higher education institutions do not charge tuition fees. This has gradually become a comparative advantage, as an increasing number of neighboring countries have introduced fees for students from outside Europe. Hence, there may be economic rationales for choosing Norway as a study destination, despite high costs of living. Students from developing countries may qualify for funding from the Norwegian government, while students from other countries have to cover all expenses themselves.
 Higher education institutions have economic incentives other than tuition fees for attracting international students. A reform in Norwegian higher education implemented in 2003 introduced a performance-based funding system (Frölich, 2006). Higher education institutions are rewarded for the number of credit points awarded, implying a stronger focus on attracting students in general. A significant increase in the number of courses and programs in English has facilitated recruitment of international students (Wiers-Jenssen, 2019). 
 International students cited courses in English and absence of tuition fees as the most frequently reported motives for studying in Norway (Diku, 2019a; Wiers-Jenssen, 2019). The latter is particularly important for students undertaking a full degree in Norway. Features of Norway, such as peaceful, safe, and technologically advanced society and unspoiled countryside are also accentuated. As these characteristics were present also before the number of international students started to grow, such motives must be understood in relation to conditions that have changed, such as availability of courses in English. Beautiful scenery and safety would have limited attractional value if courses in English were not offered.
 Quality is a less highlighted reason for choosing Norway as a study destination. But even if perceived quality is not a main attraction, international students in general give positive assessments of the quality of their education (Diku, 2019a). They cope quite well with academic demands, and their main challenges seem to be dealing with the high living expenses and limited interaction with Norwegians. The latter represents a challenge also for higher education institutions, as a major rationale for recruiting international students is to enhance “internationalization at home” (exposing Norwegian students and faculty to perspectives from abroad). If interaction is scarce, so is the exchange of ideas and perspectives.
 Foreign students in Norway consist of three groups (see Figure 2): (a) students who come to undertake a full postgraduate degree (international graduate students), corresponding to the definition of international students used in the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD, 2020) statistics; (b) students who come for a shorter study of 3 months or more (international exchange students); and (c)students who come for study sojourn of less than three months or who have come to Norway for other reasons, including (labor) migrants, refugees and more. In total, these three groups constituted 8.7% of total enrollments in Norwegian higher education institutions in 2018 (own calculation based on DBH).
 Figure 2: Bachelor and Master students in Norway with Foreign Citizenship, 2018: Number and Type of Students
 PhD students are not included in the figures mentioned above, and an exact numberof current doctoral students cannot be estimated. However, the number of foreign citizens completing a PhD was 657 in 2018, 42 per cent of all PhD graduates (Research Council of Norway, 2019). Hence, the proportion of foreign citizens is far higher at the doctorate level than at the bachelor and master level. This is in line with the situation in most European and North American countries (OECD, 2019).
 The largest universities (University of Oslo and Norwegian University of Science and Technology) attract the highest number of international students. These are also among the few Norwegian higher education institution found on international ranking lists. However, some small specialized higher education institutions such as the Academy of Fine Art, The Oslo School of Architecture and Design, and the Norwegian Academy of Music have higher proportions of international students.
 The majority of international students originate from Europe and Asia (Diku, 2019b). China, Nepal, Sweden and Germany are currently the major sending countries of full degree students. Exchange students are mainly Europeans, and many of these come through the European Union student exchange program ERASMUS. European exchange students are often attracted by the “exoticness” of studying in the northern fringes of Europe. The majority of full degree students are enrolled in master programs, while exchange students are in bachelor programs. Science and technology is the most popular field of study, and clearly more popular among international students than Norwegian students (Diku, 2019b).
 More than half of the international students report being interested in living and working in Norway upon graduation (Diku, 2019a). However, updated statistics on the number that actually settle in Norway are currently not available. While obtaining a residence permit in Norway is quite straightforward for those who are originate from countries in the European Economic Area, students from other countries generally face more barriers. Some countries see recruitment of international students as an instrument for so-called skilled migration, but Norway does not have an explicit policy on this. On the contrary, government policies have encouraged students to leave upon graduation, in order to avoid poaching highly skilled individuals from countries that already experience high emigration. As a part of foreign aid policy, students from developing countries have received grants for studying in Norway, on condition that they return to their home country.
 The last couple of years, the number of international students in Norway has ceased to grow (cf. Figure 1). The reasons for this are not clear. It may be that a (temporary) point of saturation is reached. Still, the overall picture shows a remarkable growth in the last two decades. This illustrates that a small country with weak traditions for inward mobility may be able to attract international students if higher education institutions and national policies match well. Further, it shows that institutional policies can attract international students as much as economic policies.