By Rahul Choudaha. Strategy is about making tough choices. As Michael Porter asserts in the Harvard Business Review, “Strategy renders choices about what not to do as important as choices about what to do.” Higher education leaders are expected to drive the decision-making processes and set the future directions for their universities or departments. Rahul Choudaha, winner of the 2013 EAIE Tony Adams Award, shares his perspective about the importance of informed internationalisation strategies in this second blog in our series featuring EAIE award winners. More...

By Erin Nordal. The internationalization of higher education has become a reality for many, with a systematic increase in both shorter-term student mobility and full-degree mobility in many parts of the world. This plays a key role in enhancing intercultural competencies and understanding, and ultimately enhances the quality of higher education through the introduction of global perspectives in curricula. 
As an umbrella organization for 47 national unions of students in 39 countries, the European Students’ Union (ESU) represents over 11 million students in Europe. Internationalization is a main area in our work in representing and promoting students’ social, economic and cultural interests. More...

By Douglas Todd. Profit motive: Experts call for educational reform and a rethinking of the drive to attract more foreign students that is motivated by money not altruism. It’s time for promoters of international student programs to stop acting as if they are “white knights.”
That’s the view of Hanneke Teekens, one of many scholars studying the so-called “internationalization of higher education” who are growing worried about the ethical pitfalls that have opened up with the meteoric rise in the number of foreign students in the Western world. Read more...

From 6 to 8 November, 2013, in partnership with the Malaysian Higher Education Leadership Academy (AKEPT) and Universiti Malaysia Kelantan (UMK), the IAU held a capacity building workshop on internationalization designed for Malaysian senior representatives of higher education institutions. Approximately 40 higher education leaders from public and private institutions throughout the country took part in the Workshop held at AKEPT, in the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur.

The IAU called on international and Malaysian experts in the field of internationalization of higher education to help design and deliver the training program. These included, Dr. Madeleine Green, IAU Senior Fellow, Hans de Wit, Director, Centre for Higher Education Internationalization, Università Cattolica Sacro Cuore, Italy, Pro. Betty Leask, La Trobe University, Australia, Dr. Norpisah Mat Isah, Albukhary International University, Malaysia, among others.

The Workshop sessions covered a range of topics relevant to those responsible for the development and implementation of internationalization strategies and programs, including policy development, internationalization of the curriculum, internationalization of research and managing of student and staff mobility. Presentations also included an update on the goals set by Malaysian policy makers for future internationalization. The IAU will work with AKEPT and other international bodies to develop similar workshops in the future. For more information contact: r.hudson@iau-aiu.net

University of Westminster, Graduate School Event, ‘Internationalising Research: Opportunities and Challenges for Collaboration’, London, UK (27 November 2013) 
The University of Westminster, Graduate School, is organising an event on “Internationalising Research: Opportunities and Challenges for Collaboration”, London, UK, on 27 November 2013 from 17.00 to 19.30.

This round-table discussion aims to consider “both opportunities and challenges for international research collaboration, with contributions from policy-makers, funders and researchers”.

Guest Speakers include representatives of Research Councils UK (RCUK), the British Academy, the Welcome Trust and the European University Association (EUA), plus research staff from the University of Westminster.

For more information on this event (and other events taking place at the graduate school) download the events brochure on the university website.

To register for this event, please email: graduateschool@westminster.ac.uk