Institutional Policies and Initiatives for the Internationalization of HE: A Case of Southeast Asia and Pakistan

The internationalization of higher education is an important agenda explored and undertaken by public and private universities to improve the quality of education as well as the skills and competencies of graduates. There is great potential for cross-border engagement and internationalization efforts in the context of higher education in ASEAN countries and Pakistan. In this case study, the discussion on strategies and initiatives to embrace higher education at the university level is not limited to the goals and needs of higher education institutions but is also guided by the views and priorities of the country’s economic and strategic development. This has implications for how individual universities design their policies and implement initiatives at the institutional level and their strategic direction for internationalization

Managing Change at Universities - a selection of case studies from Africa and Southeast Asia. Volume II

The concept of "quality" is quite complex and challenging. In higher education, quality might be defined very differently by the various stakeholders: the students and graduates might see quality in terms of making sure they get well-paid jobs, the academics might define quality from the perspective of being able to enter in scientific debates, the ministries might define quality in terms of the efficient use of resources for reaching certain goals. But even when such issues of clarification of meanings are solved, what are the tools which work. And what does quality mean with respect to internationalisation? A number of papers in this book address quality management from various angles, and provide food for thought for those who seek for good answers. This book is the third in a series, and assembles contributions from authors who participated in the International Deans Course, a programme for leaders in higher education from East and West Africa and Southeast Asia respectively

Evolving ASEAN-Australia relations in Higher Education. Towards a Regional Knowledge Network?

Australia’s attitude towards ASEAN has waxed and waned over recent decades, including in higher education. In part a reflection of tensions between its geography and history, it highlighted the question of the extent to which Australia saw itself as an Asian country (an uncertainty shared by number of its ASEAN neighbours). Reviewing changes in several key indices (Asian languages strategy, International student policy, Education as Aid), the prospects for a regional knowledge network comprising Australia, ASEAN and China are assessed, with the conclusion that the whole would be greater than the sum of the parts, but that for the prospect to be realised, greater consistency in Australian government policy towards the region is needed.

University of Malaya Research Bulletin, Volume 1, 2015

Previously known as IPPP UM Research Bulleti

Internationalisation in higher education: A comparative view of cross-border type 1 & 2 education and their impact on developing and developed countries

Este trabajo examina que significa 'la internacionalización de la educación superior' y como la globalización, en particular, la internacionalización han influencionado la educaciñon transnacional y los efectos que las polítcas comerciales y económias han tenido en la movilidad de estudiantes y en la movilidad de programas e instituciones a lo largo de estos últimos años. Estos dos tipos de movilidades han sido muy relevantes en el desarrollo nacional. Por medio de la investigacion cualitativa y cuantitativa, resulta evidente que para los países en desarrollo que han tenido dificultad en satisfacer las exigencias y necesidades de educación superior de su población, la educación transnacional ha sido la solucion principal para ellos para así cubrir dichas demandas. No obstante, para los países que proveen la mayoria de los servicios de la educación internacional, la educación tranfronteriza ha sido y seguirá siendo un medio de renta significativa. Los beneficios financieros a nivel individual, nacional, y regional, son evidencias de la importancia del papel de la educaion transnacional en una creciente economía de conocimiento global. Este trabajo de invetigación, por lo tanto, presenta las diferentes faceta e implicaciones de la educación transnacional que a nivel superior tiene para los países desarrollados y en desarrollo.This research paper examines what is meant by ‘internationalising’ higher education and how globalisation and, in particularly, internationalisation have influenced cross-border/transnational higher education, as well as the effects trade policies have had on student mobility and programme and institution (P & I) mobility over the years. These two types of mobility have been instrumental in nation building. Through qualitative and quantitative research it is evident that for countries that have had and continue to have difficulty addressing the demands for higher education cross-border education has been their primary solution. On the other hand, for countries that provide the majority of international higher education services education export has been and will continue to be a significant means of revenue. The financial benefits to individuals, nations and regions are evidence of the importance cross-border higher education plays in an ever growing global ‘knowledge economy’. This paper, therefore, looks at various facets and the implications of cross-border/transnational higher education for develop and developing countries

Indonesia in ASEAN: regional leadership between ambition and ambiguity

Supporting regional integration processes within the context of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is an integral component of Brussels' strategic interest in South-East Asia. Hereby, Indonesia - regional primus inter pares and self-proclaimed driver of regional integration - is perceived as a key partner for Europe. There are indications, however, that Indonesia seems to be turning away from ASEAN under the administration of the current president, Joko Widodo ("Jokowi"). A new narrative has recently emerged in Jakarta that seeks to prioritise Indonesia's national interests in all aspects of the country's international affairs over long-standing hallmarks of Indonesia's international politics - most notably of ASEAN being the cornerstone of Indonesian foreign policy. In order to be able to gauge changes in Indonesian foreign policy towards ASEAN under Jokowi, this research paper traces the role that ASEAN has played in Indonesian foreign policy - from the fall of Suharto up to the present day. The study finds that Indonesia's role in ASEAN differs distinctly from one policy field to the other. Although Indonesia has contributed extensively towards regional integration in the field of security policy, it has predominantly displayed inert - or outright negative - attitudes towards regional economic integration. There are a number of indicators that Jakarta's foot-dragging - with regard to economic integration - might further increase under the Jokowi administration. This, however, is not tantamount to a complete neglect of ASEAN in the foreseeable future. After all, ASEAN is still viewed by policy-makers in Jakarta as being the centre of the regional security architecture and the main instrument for maintaining regional security and stability. (author's abstract

The influence of higher education ranking systems : an institutional leadership perspective

Abstract : Competition between universities has intensified with the rise and expansion of Higher Education Ranking Systems (HERS). Many researchers agree that the HERS, and the publication of annual rankings, has influenced all participating institutions to some extent (Espeland & Sauder, 2015; Hazelkorn & Ryan, 2013; Rauvargers, 2013). This study was designed to investigate these influences as perceived by institutional leaders. The objectives of the study were to identify the various influences HERS exert on universities, and compares the extent to which institutional leaders from South Africa, South East Asia, Australia and the Arab Gulf experience these influences. The literature review includes discussions on the flow of international higher education, global phenomena like internationalisation, marketisation and an increased demand for higher education, and how these contributed to the development of HERS. The literature review contains an in-depth analysis of the big-three rankings (QS WUR, THE WUR and the Shanghai Ranking ARWU), and a discussion on the economic, cultural and political push and pull of the global knowledge economy. To identify and compare the influences of HERS on universities, the researcher employed a sequential mixed method study design, opting to conduct a qualitative exploration prior to a quantitative examination. The qualitative phase involved interviews with 25 institutional leaders to identify the numerous ranking-related influences on universities. The researcher employed two cycles of emergent coding to uncover the themes and categories within the interviews. In the second phase of the study, the themes and categories informed the development of a 65-item questionnaire to test the emergent aspects on a wider audience (86 international respondents). The questionnaire results confirmed the majority of the items underpinning the themes and categories. The third phase employs a mixture of quantitative and qualitative information to compare experiences from institutional leaders in South Africa, Arabian Gulf, Australia and South East Asia. The outcomes were presented in four exemplar case studies, featuring the results of nonparametric statistical analyses (Kruskal Wallis and Dunn Bonferonni), regional-specific comments and contextual literature...Ph.D. (Education Leadership and Management

Interaction of leading and supporting factors for the SME competitiveness

The main goal of this research was to investigate the SMEs competitiveness in terms of leading and supporting factors, and to compare the influence of these factors on SMEs performance. The study focused on four leading and four supportive factors. For each of these factors the respective indexes were constructed and calculated on the basis of 300 Bulgarian SMEs. Through the econometric modelling the research addressed the interaction between two groups of factors. The main findings related to the factors ordering - with some of leading factors stepping back and supporting ones becoming more important in the times of crisis

Ethnic politics and Malaysia’s China Policy: from Tun Abdul Razak to Abdullah Ahmad Badawi: a neoclassical realist interpretation

This thesis is a neoclassical realist study of Malaysia’s China policy from 1970 to 2009 under four Malaysian Premiers starting with Razak and ending with Abdullah, with Hussein and Mahathir in between them. Given the puzzle that despite the prevalence of Malay supremacy and the lingering perception of the ‘Chinese problem’, Malaysia’s China policy has unexpectedly evolved from cautious rapprochement to matured partnership, the primary purpose of this thesis is to assess the relationship between ethnic politics and Malaysia’s China policy. That is, why and how has Malaysia’s China policy evolved from cautious rapprochement under Razak to a matured partnership under Abdullah despite the prevailing ethnic conflict between the Malays and Chinese? To locate an answer, this thesis presents a neoclassical realist model of domestic legitimation to study the relationship between ethnic politics and Malaysia’s China policy under each of the four Prime Ministers. This thesis finds that it was the care for domestic legitimation that drove the Malaysian decision-maker to either continue or change Malaysia’s China policy. Extending further, the systemic pressures in the external strategic environment were mediated within the prism of domestic legitimation, that is, by the perceptions of the Malaysian leader who also took cognisance of the ethnopolitical situation before taking the foreign policy decision to continue or change Malaysia’s China policy. This thesis also finds that neoclassical realism was able to accommodate a menu of policy choices in multilateral and bilateral senses – rapprochement, engagement, deterrence, middlepowermanship, and cultural diplomacy – for Malaysia to manage its relations with China, whether as a threat or an opportunity. This thesis further finds that Malaysia’s China policy had an effect, albeit to varying degrees, on the performance legitimacy of the governing regime, that is, the justification of its right to rule in Malaysia. This thesis claims to be the first-of-itskind in examining Malaysia’s China policy through the lens of neoclassical realism