The idea for this book emerged during planning for a research symposium titled Bridging the gap: Research and practice in transnational education, which was the inaugural event of the TNE-Hub in June 2016. The TNE-Hub is a community of researchers and practitioners in transnational education (TNE) created in an effort to bring together those of who work, research, and have a wider interest in the area of TNE.
Over the past 20 or so years, there have been significant developments in the field of TNE. This does not refer only to the organic growth of TNE (e.g. number of students enrolled) but also to the range of TNE delivery arrangements and the countries involved. The major exporting countries are still the UK, Australia, the USA , Germany, and the Netherlands, while the main importing countries are China, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, and many others. However, in recent years we have witnessed a disruption to this taxonomy of TNE importing and exporting countries. For example, countries like India and China have started exporting their higher education (HE) programmes to other countries through international branch campuses . This trend, of TNE being offered by non-western institutions, will continue to grow as economic activity and demographic trends shift in favour of non-western countries.
The rise of new players in the global higher education market has accelerated the negative impact in the flow of international students, a process which is further worsened by the rise of protectionist policies at national level (e.g. the UK) aiming to reduce the number of international students. Overall, TNE has become a central mode of international higher education, allowing access to higher education for hundreds of thousands of students, in most countries around the world, while at the same time, competition in the global TNE market is intensifying.
Despite this significant growth and the fundamental challenges faced by higher education institutions (HEIs) and national governments, TNE continues to be sidelined as a subject for research and scholarly activity. Often, we refer to TNE researchers as ālone wolfsā who struggle to find support and resources within their academic departments for their TNE research. As result, TNE researchers find themselves in a situation where, while they strive to conduct research in such a dynamic field, they have to work in isolation, thus missing out vital opportunities for collaboration.
At the same time, following a range of developments in exporting countries (e.g. Brexit in the UK) and importing countries (e.g. HE capacity development in Southeast Asia), TNE has been under the spotlight of governments and HEIs. Thus, TNE has been identified as a cure for all ills by several HEIs and government bodies that belatedly discovered it.
However, despite the recent hype in TNE, there is still an absence of systematic market research and accurate dataāa well-known and persistent problem of TNE. This is partly caused by the disregard of TNE as an area of HE strategy and policy that deserves its own space in the research agenda of HEIs and government bodies.
This lack of systematic research and accurate data creates a range of challenges for those who engage in TNE activities. Intense competitionānow emerging from non-traditional TNE exporting, and previously importing, countries such as China and Indiaārequires careful planning and swift implementation of TNE projects. This requires comprehensive market analysis, use of accurate data, and careful evaluation of institutional resources before embarking on any TNE project. Additionally, TNE activities vary in resource requirements, timescale, risk, and institutional strategic commitment. As such, TNE should be carefully considered in the context of the institutional capabilities and wider strategic aspirations. However, the reality is that TNE projects continue to be a result of individual initiatives, usually emerging as result of personal connections of academics, administrators, and researchers. As result, TNE projects often lack the necessary strategic alignment with the institutional wider strategic objectives, which then affects their success and sustainability.
By providing a selection of chapters on different areas of TNE (strategy, quality, organisational culture, and student experience), this book aims to capture some valuable ālessons learntā that can be useful to TNE practitioners and researchers. For practitioners, we believe that there is the need to use an evidence-based approach to plan and manage sustainable TNE projects. Using research and experiential evidence is the best way to manage risk and avoid failure in TNE activities.
This evidence-based approach should be supported by those who conduct research in TNE. Considering that TNE is primarily a business and policy-related activity and less of a theoretical field, TNE researchers should aim to highlight the practical applications of their research findings in a way that supports the evidence-based approach required to plan and manage sustainable TNE projects. As such we believe that research and practice in TNE should be considered as inseparable, and the chapters of this book aim to present how this might look like.
We have had the privilege to work with a superb group of authors who represent a diverse set of roles within the wider TNE world. The diversity of our authorsā background allows to provide valuable inputs from a range of different areas and perspectives, which is a key strength of this book.
This book is organised in four parts: (A) models and strategic considerations; (B) organisational culture ; (C) managing quality; and (D) student experience.
Part A starts with Chap. 2 where Stephan Geifes and Sussane KammĆ¼kker, from DAAD in Germany, outline the recent developments of German TNE and explain the fundamental differences it has in comparison to UK and Australian TNE. This chapter provides a valuable and rich source of information to the German TNE model which, as the authors explain, is a result of a national strategy aiming to strengthen the internationalisation of German HE and to boost regional and bilateral cooperation of a wider scale.
In Chap. 3, Rosa Becker from EP-Nuffic writes about the TNE policy evolution in the Netherlands in the recent years. TNE in the Netherlands is a rather dynamic area which has been at the centre of the HE policy debate. It is indicative of the dynamic nature of TNE in the Netherlands that the author has been updating this chapter until the last minute before the book manuscript submission.
Part A concludes with Chap. 4, where Ofelia Palermo and Angelo Bisigiano from Nottingham Business School and Simon Mercado from ESCP London share their experience on designing and managing dual degree programmes. Considering the increasing popularity of dual degree programmesāespecially amongst traditional HEIs that have been reluctant to embark on TNE activitiesāthis chapter provides a valuable insight on how to build and manage sustainable arrangements of this type.
Part B begins with Chap. 5 where Albina Szeles from Coventry University explains how the Online International Learning (OIL) model is used as a tool for connecting domestic and TNE students and empowering them to become global graduates. Also, this chapter unpacks the concept of intercultural competence as an integral part of internationalisation process for all students.
In Chap. 6, Vicky Lewis, founder of Vicky Lewis Consulting, reports the findings from an interview-based study of international branch campus (IBC) marketing. The study provides insights on the challenges and potential solutions at each stage of the IBC development process. Specifically, this chapter explains how differences in organisational culture , stage of development, and operating context must be recognised in order to optimise relationships and outcomes in an IBC context.
Part C consists of two chapters providing alternative viewpoints on TNE quality management. In Chap. 7, Christopher Hill, from the British University in Dubai, presents that the challenges and opportunities of creating an international research degree programme. The author employs a case study approach using the Malaysia Nottingham Doctoral Programme āa dual PhD programme between Nottingham UK and nine public Malaysian universities. In his chapter, Christopher Hill outlines the value and rationale of partnership programmes and discusses the lessons learned throughout the initial and development stages. This chapter provides insight into key factors to consider and explores the opportunities for institutional growth and development as a result of external activity.
In Chap. 8, Fabrizio Trifiroā, from the UK Quality Assurance Agency (QAA), analyses the Agencyās approach to TNE, focusing specifically on its strategies to strengthen cooperation with host countriesā quality assurance agencies to ensure the efficiency and effectiveness of its oversight of UK TNE. This chapter emphasises the importance for quality assurance agencies to engage with governments, cross-border providers, and TNE students to develop international approaches that are capable of fully harnessing the benefits of TNE for societies while avoiding regulatory gaps and overlaps.
The fourth and final part of this book contains three chapters on TNE student experience. Part D begins with Chap. 9 where David Cockayne, from the University of Liverpool, and Heather Cockayne, from the University of Manchesterās Institute of Education, explore the nature of teaching innovation in TNE. Rather than seeing innovation as stimulated by management, the authors utilise a practice-based approach and argue that teaching innovation is derived from the day-to-d...