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Hong Kong has tried to develop itself as a regional education hub for a decade. However, the policy is being criticized because Hong Kong has neither diversified its student population ethnically and culturally nor expanded its share in the global higher education market. This paper explores this context to examine the significance of the education hub concept in the development of higher education in Hong Kong. Based on an analysis of the concept of education hub the paper argues that the purposes of building an education hub need to be defined. It also argues that an instrumentalist interpretation of internationalization of higher education is not enough to understand the importance of the education hub notion to the higher education development in the city. An idealistic and educational approach in this respect is a relevant idea for the prospect of Hong Kong as an education hub.

Summary In many nations government policy and scholarly work have identified the growing role of higher education and research in the world-wide knowledge economy. The role of higher education is not limited to fostering the economic development of nations and providing opportunities for individuals, it extends also to promotion of cultural diversity, political democracy and trade. Emphasis is rightly placed on how higher education can better serve society and promote international cooperation. However, as yet little attention has been given to how higher education and research are active in the processes of globalization, and are themselves being reshaped by globalization with significant ‘feed-back’ effects into nations. Higher education and knowledge are simultaneously global, national and local (Marginson and Rhoades, 2002). Higher education is nested in national government everywhere, and shaped by patterns of social investment. At the same time the cross-border or global dimension of activity is growing, especially in relation to knowledge. By studying the changing global landscape of higher education, we can draw out the implications for the policies of governments and national identity, for the developmental strategies of universities, and for international agencies. The paper maps, summarizes and synthesizes this changing global landscape. It focuses on trends and patterns in the cross-border mobility of students and staff, the growth of educational trade, research publication and research concentrations by nation, ICT-connectivity, language of use, and cross-border policy flows. Most of the interaction between nations in higher education takes the form not of trade but of free exchange and cooperation, i.e. the production of global public goods. The paper draws on (1) recent research for policy papers prepared for the OECD on globalization and higher education, and the internationalization of higher education in the Asia-Pacific region, (2) case studies of leading research universities in eight Asia-Pacific nations, and (3) comparative data from the OECD, UNESCO and the World Bank. While there is a general trend to increased international engagement of higher education, the actual level of engagement, and knowledge economy capacity, vary markedly between nations and regions. One feature of the global knowledge system is the position of the United States, with 54 of the top 100 research universities in the 2007 Shanghai Jiao Tong listing, and almost one third of the world's scientific papers. The USA is a magnet for world-wide talent, enrolling 100,000 foreign doctoral students each year. But a new wave of Asian science powers is emerging in China (including Hong Kong and Taiwan), Singapore and Korea. In China, between 1995 and 2005 the number of scientific papers produced each year multiplied by 4.6 times. In South Korea the ratio was 3.6 times, in Singapore 3.2. From 2003 to 2007 the number of universities from China in the Jiao Tong top 500 rose from 18 to 25, with the mainland universities rising from 8 to 14. Shifts of this magnitude suggest that in world higher education and research a more pluralistic scientific and cultural environment is developing, with some potential also to foster a more pluralistic linguistic exchange. If so, this enhanced diversity would constitute a global public good, providing a greater range of potential solutions to the many problems attending human and environmental conditions.

Higher education the world over has now become part of the globalization process and can no longer be strictly viewed from a national context. The realities of internationalization of higher education and its attendant impacts on the sector is an urgent priority for higher education, especially in developing economies such as Africa. This paper analyses the complex process of internationalization, its manifestations and current developments as well as the main challenges it poses to higher education in Africa. It illustrates the peculiar historical and political contexts of African higher education, the diverse national, regional and international actors, dominant rationales, challenges, risks and their implications for policy. The paper argues that, Africa, just like other regions of the world, or even each country of the world, approaches internationalization in a way that reflects its history, culture and context and in a way consistent with its current needs, priorities and circumstances. While there are areas of dissimilarity between Africa and other world regions, relating to rationales, risks, challenges and even opportunities, internationalization is a worldwide phenomenon that may require increased regional and international cooperation accompanied with workable policies, strategies and ethical standards.

This paper explores the role of the Canadian federal government in two foreign policy areas: overseas development assistance and international cultural relations by providing a brief history of the federal government’s engagement in both policy areas and highlighting the contributions and challenges of Canadian foreign policy to the internationalization of Canadian higher education. More broadly, the paper explores the unique characteristics of the Canadian federal government’s role in higher education policy making, and in particular, its relations with academics and the university community. Ironically in a world increasingly characterized by greater international education flows, in Canada, there has been a narrowing of vision, a focus on more short rather than long term objectives and a limited engagement of dialogue between academics and the government to promote both development assistance and international education as Canada’s soft power.

The paper puts forward arguments in favour of a new approach to the study of internationalisation of higher education. It claims that a systematic mapping of the funding of internationalisation could shed new light on the phenomenon itself and also on the ways it has been conceptualized and studied to date. Preliminary results from a research project adopting this approach are presented, including a series of initial findings and interpretations it has made possible. They provide a basis for the construction of the proposed conceptual framework for the study of internationalisation, which may also serve the creation of heuristic instruments for further research in this context. The paper focuses primarily on potential scholarly contributions (in terms of new knowledge and conceptual refining), and discusses briefly potential lessons to be considered from a policy perspective.

Higher education the world over has now become part of the globalization process and can no longer be strictly viewed from a national context. The realities of internationalization of higher education and its attendant impacts on the sector is an urgent priority for higher education, especially in developing economies such as Africa. This paper analyses the complex process of internationalization, its manifestations and current developments as well as the main challenges it poses to higher education in Africa. It illustrates the peculiar historical and political contexts of African higher education, the diverse national, regional and international actors, dominant rationales, challenges, risks and their implications for policy. The paper argues that, Africa, just like other regions of the world, or even each country of the world, approaches internationalization in a way that reflects its history, culture and context and in a way consistent with its current needs, priorities and circumstances. While there are areas of dissimilarity between Africa and other world regions, relating to rationales, risks, challenges and even opportunities, internationalization is a worldwide phenomenon that may require increased regional and international cooperation accompanied with workable policies, strategies and ethical standards. Internationalization and its Implications for the Quality of Higher

Historically, education was not amenable to foreign direct investment (FDI). Considered as a “public good”, it has been traditionally dominated by the public sector. The State financed, and is still financing, education at all levels. The dominant providers of education have been public and/or private non-profit institutions. With no profits to be made, education has thus remained outside of the realm of market forces, and trade and FDI. This, however, started to change some two decades ago, especially with regard to tertiary education. One reason has been an explosion of demand for tertiary education from emerging and rapidly growing middle classes of developing and transition economies, partly resulting also from government — backed progress in secondary education, producing increased number of candidates for higher education. Governments have not been able to cope with this demand, even though many have increased funding of tertiary education. Another reason is that better-off households in developing countries, facing the supply gap and often lower quality of tertiary education in their own countries, have shown an increasing willingness to pay for education of their children abroad. Not being able to cope with the growing demand, an increasing number of developing countries began to allow the private provision of tertiary education, including foreign provision through FDI. Countries not facing supply constrains have allowed private education in the hope of increasing the quality of education. Developed countries, facing budgetary constraints, have encouraged their non-profit institutions to seek additional sources of revenue, including from fee-based education. All this, as well as other factors, has given rise to the emergence and growth of FDI in education, mainly in the tertiary education. The paper, first, documents growing FDI in education in general, and in tertiary education in particular, using data from various sources. Attention is given to non-equity modes of cross-border provision of education, which are still much more important than modes resembling FDI. This is done against the background of the internationalization of higher education: FDI is but one of the modes of internationalization. Second, drivers and factors behind the expansion of FDI are discussed for host and home countries, as well as for higher education institutions. Third, the paper deals with potential benefits and risks of host developing countries associated with FDI in education. Fourth, it concludes with a review of regulatory issues and host countries’ policies for FDI in tertiary education, including policies aimed at maximizing benefits and minimizing adverse effects of FDI.

Fairness is one of the most important quality criteria of assessments and a necessary condition for valid test score interpretations. In this paper, we describe findings related to an assessment of N = 7664 beginning business and economics students at 46 universities across Germany using a domain-specific higher education entry test. From the perspective of test fairness as defined by the internationally established validation standards outlined by AERA et al. (Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing, AERA, Washington, DC, 2014), we identify which students had particular difficulty completing the test, taking into account gender- and language-related influence factors in the assessment of their test performance. Our results highlight the particular challenges in admissions testing in higher education. One of these challenges is finding a suitable way to address the disadvantages experienced by various groups of students to guarantee fairness and ethical integrity when developing and administering tests. Current migration developments and the overall internationalization of higher education have led to an increasing heterogeneity of student bodies. These challenges are therefore of particular relevance for education policy and practice when it comes to ensuring fairness when assessing learning outcomes for all student groups. This also applies in the context of commonly used standardized assessments and established examination practices in higher education.

As internationalization has become an increasingly central part of higher education (HE), the range and types of activities carried out in its name have grown exponentially. At the same time, and particularly in the context of reduced public funding for HE in some countries, internationalization and its related activities have come to be seen as having potentially wide ranging economic benefits. But what evidence is there that universities are pursuing internationalization for economic rationales? What has been the effect of the current global environment of reduced public funding for HE on internationalization? Are international student recruitment and other activities pursued by institutions for economic gain? By taking a critical look at the results of the International Association of Universities’ (IAU) 4th Global Survey on Internationalization of Higher Education, and particularly at data collected from the 604 European institutions who took part in the survey, this paper will examine the changing perceptions of internationalization of HE, and analyse whether the key motivators for institutions in pursuit of internationalization goals are indeed economic.

The advent of education hubs is heralded as the latest development in internationalization of higher education. The prevalence of education hubs is a token of the transformative forces at play in higher education the world over. The momentum with which education hubs have swept across the Gulf region and South Eastern Asia in particular is extraordinary and merits research consideration. India has wakened to the possibilities that follow on from education hubs—in forethought, if not quite in readiness. The Government of India agencies related to higher education and higher education institutions in the country have taken note of the emergence of education hubs, largely through policy deliberations and symposiums. The prevalence and expansion of education hubs in the aforesaid regions, not to mention the short order in which it has been achieved is of interest to India for self-evident reasons: the geographic proximity, similarities in socio-politico-economic landscape and shared colonial past. While the idea of taking on education hubs in the country is enticing enough, the question of its fittingness in the Indian higher educational milieu remains. It emerges that there are some crucial considerations: there are quite a few ways in which the country can benefit from education hubs. However, the less than channelled nature of higher education in the country and internationalization thereof necessitates a checklist of correctives to ensure that the steps forward lead to quality assurance and sustainability. In the face of missing preliminaries, the project of education hubs might be a step too far afield. Given the recentness of debate on education hubs, theoretical deliberation on the subject is all but absent in the country. The paper coheres analyses of the phenomenon of education hubs, its precipitous emergence and the issue of Indian higher education system's suitability in taking upon itself the prevalent culture of education hubs. The authors examine the subject from the standpoint of internationalization of higher education and set about it largely through descriptive and critical synthesis of such research as is available.

Institutions of higher education around the world are all faced with the universal impact of globalization and internationalization on higher education. At the same time, information and communication technologies (ICT) continues to impact on all aspects of contemporary education, requiring higher education institutions and stakeholders to be linked to each other through an advanced network that is connected to the rest of the world. Of particular interest now is the way in which African universities bring the region in touch with what can be referred to as the global village of higher education, and how universities bring Africa to the attention of the world. This paper explores the extent to which ICT is seen as central for internationalization and the opportunities that exist in Africa for the application of ICT in higher education. It demonstrates how the digital divide that exists within the process of internationalization risks increasing the gap between African higher education and the international community if efforts are not made to bridge it. Specific cases, especially within East Africa, are used to illustrate the arguments raised.

Internationalization of higher education in East Africa raises various questions related to its magnitude and intensity, its capacity to address issues of access, equity and regional research and developmental needs. Internationalization and regionalization as processes in higher education can synergize each other but can also limit the success of the other depending on their focus. In East Africa, internationalization has mainly involved new forms of provision of higher education and not necessarily relevant content. At the same time, regional approaches in the context of wider Pan-African concerns on the implications of internationalization in the continent are at play. This paper gives an overview of the two processes. A discussion of the challenges that internationalization of higher education has to regional quality assurance and knowledge production in east Africa is presented.

We review the recent and growing discussions on the internationalization of higher education and the equally recent and growing practice of world wide connectivity of academic environments through computer networks, mainly the Internet. We argue that developing sophisticated networks and facilitating its widespread use by the academic community is a powerful strategy to achieve the internationalization of higher education. The paper contains some recommendations.

This paper probes into the development of internationalization of higher education in China from ancient times to modern times, including the emergence of international connections in Chinese higher education and the subsequent development of such connections, the further development of internationalization of Chinese higher education, and the regularization of internationalization of China’s higher education. The discussion centers on the issue of internationalization of Chinese higher education in a chronological order by using some official statistics and documents for demonstration. Through the discussion, we may find that China has made great progress in the internationalization of higher education; however, as to Chinese higher education, there is still room for improvement so as for the country’s higher education system to keep pace with the advanced education system in the developed countries.

The internationalization of higher education plays an important role in education, but from the perspective of the whole society, there is a higher level of significance. Combining with foreign experience, this paper holds that internationalization of higher education in China should be established to promote international education by establishing administrative network, shaping the international reputation of higher education, merging policy with communication activities simultaneously to reverse the brain drain situation and to encourage the internationalization of higher education institutions.