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Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal – Vol. 9, No. 2

Publication Date: February 25, 2022

DOI:10.14738/assrj.92.11582. Kavasakalis, A., & Gkiza, T. (2022). European Higher Education Area, Internationalization and Students’ Mobility in 21st Century.

Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal, 9(2). 60-74.

Services for Science and Education – United Kingdom

European Higher Education Area, Internationalization and

Students’ Mobility in 21st Century

Kavasakalis Aggelos

Assistant Professor, Department of Educational

Sciences and Social Work, University of Patras, Greece

Gkiza Theodora

MSc candidate, Department of Educational

Sciences and Social Work, University of Patras, Greece

ABSTRACT

Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) seem to be influenced by the evolutions of

globalization, to modernize and operate according to the knowledge society and

therefore preparing and equipping students with the appropriate knowledge and

skills required in order to respond to new situations imposed by the modern

globalized environment. A principal axis is the internationalization of the teaching

and learning provided in order to increase the competitiveness among institutions,

improve the quality of the provided services and lastly integrate an international as

well as intercultural dimension in the purpose, the functions and the mission of an

institution (De Wit, 2015; Knight, 2004). The aim of the present article is to provide

a theoretical reflection on internationalization and student mobility (which is an

internationalization policy) in European Higher Education Area in the 21st century.

The first section will attempt to delineate the concept of internationalization and

its modern dimensions in the HE, while referring to the ways that is promoted

within the European Area. The second section focuses on student mobility in the

21st century. First, there is a brief description of the history of mobility and then

the relationship between mobility and the Bologna Process is outlined. In addition,

student mobility programs are described as well as the evaluation of students'

experiences who participated in those programs, as shown in relevant research.

Reference is also made to student mobility at the time of Covid-19 spread. Lastly, in

the third section an attempt is made to link the processes of internationalization

and mobility in Higher Education in Europe.

Keywords: Internationalization; student mobility; European higher education area;

Covid-19.

INTERNATIONALIZATION AND UNIVERSITY: INITIAL DELIMITATIONS

Modern dimensions of internationalization in Higher Education (HE)

The dimensions of internationalization in HE are three: internationalization abroad,

internationalization at home and partnerships. The first one refers to the University’s activity

abroad with actions like student, teacher, curriculum and project mobility in foreign countries

as well as the branches of universities. The second dimension refers to all the internal activities

that the universities carry out in order to become known abroad and to reach students in their

own space either with their physical presence or virtually. In order to achieve this, the

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Kavasakalis, A., & Gkiza, T. (2022). European Higher Education Area, Internationalization and Students’ Mobility in 21st Century. Advances in Social

Sciences Research Journal, 9(2). 60-74.

URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.14738/assrj.92.11582

internationalization of the curriculum in order to make it more attractive, the existence of

specialized academic staff for new students, the encouragement of students to participate in

the social and cultural life of the University, etc. are necessary (Georghiou & Laredo, 2015).

According to Vasilopoulos and Mavrogianni (2017), the purpose of international education is

for students to acquire a global citizenship, which refers to the ability to live and work in a

global society and is part of internationalization at home. Finally, the third one refers to the

collaborations that the University conducts with various services abroad, such as schools,

companies etc. in order to seek new knowledge and experiences for students (Georghiou &

Laredo, 2015).

More specifically, internationalization abroad includes staff mobility, degree mobility, the

implementation of the ECTS (credit mobility), and cross-border education. International

students either participate in short-term international programs, which correspond to specific

ECTS, such as Erasmus, or seek degrees when fully participating in a program abroad. The

presence of international students is as particularly important and beneficial for themselves as

it is for the host universities, governments, cities of residence and many HE-affiliated

organizations (de Wit & Hunter, 2015).

According to Brooks and Waters (2011, as cited in Harrison, 2015), the goal of

internationalization at home is to provide a comprehensive picture of internationalization to

students or academic staff who, due to financial or cultural difficulties, are unable to move

through a mobility program. According to Crowther et al. (2000, as cited in Harrison, 2015), the

key components of internationalization (at home) are three: Firstly, diversity can be used as a

resource, leading to more diverse social and academic spaces within Universities. This could

potentially enhance the experience for university students by providing access to

internationalization experiences that would not be available in different circumstances. A

second component is the internationalized curriculum that originates from the conjunction of

knowledge and integrates a wide range of national or cultural contexts into the official

curriculum. It is considered a combination of skills and abilities that enables students to

successfully apply their knowledge outside of cultural boundaries and to develop positive

intercultural relationships. Finally, the building block is a culturally sensitive pedagogy based

on the belief that universities must provide programs that are responsive and make the most

of student diversity. This includes the use of technology in order to provide more intercultural

experiences as well as structured experiences for students with the purpose of interacting

within the classroom (Harrison, 2015).

Internationalization has a significant positive impact on the universities themselves. According

to Denson, Loveday and Dalton (2010), the internationalization of the curriculum increases

students' awareness of international matters, including cultural diversity and makes students

open-minded and citizens of the world. Precisely because they come in contact with issues that

concern the international community, they acquire a different and broader perspective of

things. Thus, the curriculum is strengthened and expanded with more international terms.

Intercultural experiences prepare students for their future professional lives (Mak & Kennedy,

2012) or for the occasion where they need to live in different cultural environments, while

developing their social responsibility and global citizenship (Clifford & Montgomery, 2014).

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Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal (ASSRJ) Vol. 9, Issue 2, February-2022

Services for Science and Education – United Kingdom

At the same time, students are provided with the unique opportunity of mobility, which allows

them to move to a different environment where they can understand the differences and

similarities of the environment in which they live, in relation to the global environment. This

can arise through the different practices followed in the country of destination or through the

student's interaction with people from different cultures (Vainio-Mattila, 2009). Finally,

according to Hayden, Thompson and Williams (2003, as cited in Jibeen and Khan, 2015), the

international characteristics acquired by students have a positive effect on broadening their

spiritual horizons, on their flexibility of thought, on the acquisition of an additional foreign

language and lastly on tolerance and respect towards others. All of those contribute to the

development of students' responsibility and increase their social participation.

In addition, internationalization, according to Knight (2007), strengthens institutional research

and knowledge production, as it provides a wealth of resources, skills and knowledge through

inter-university partnerships. In general, partnerships bring better results and greater

progress compared to individual work, given the transfer of knowledge and logistics

infrastructure. Knowledge transfer, good practices and experience gradually improves, among

other things, the quality of teaching and learning, affecting in that way positively both

universities and students (Wende, 2006, as cited in Khan, Omrane & Bank, 2016). Therefore,

for universities, significant results can occur, such as the strengthening of their international

presence and profiles, the wide recognition of their name and the increase of their

competitiveness (Saisana, d’ Hombres & Saltelli, 2011).

Nevertheless, there are challenges. One danger posed by the internationalization of the

curriculum, according to Eldik (2011, as cited in Jibeen & Khan, 2015), is the loss of cultural and

national identity, as the curriculum tends to homogenize and comply with international

standards.

According to the results of the research conducted by Egron-Polak, Hudson and Sandstrom

(2015), at various universities around the world, a key challenge is the fact that the

international opportunities provided by mobility are accessible, mainly, only to students with

good economic background, as only they can support their living in a foreign country. In

addition, it is quite difficult, according to the participants, to fully control the quality of the

programs provided.

Excessive competition between universities is another important challenge, as it often does not

aim to improve, but rather to achieve a better position in international rankings or to raise the

standards and indicators regarding the internationalization of institutions that usually exist in

institutionalized quality assurance and/or certification procedures. On this basis, many

universities seek partnerships in order to promote themselves and increase their prestige. In

fact, many times, too much emphasis is placed on the internationalization of the university and

other priorities concerning students and academic staff are ignored (Egron-Polak, et al, 2015).

Apart from this, many universities in developed countries see internationalization as a good

opportunity to increase their financial gain by attracting international students and increasing

tuition fees (Scott, 2011).

Another negative point is the so-called "brain drain", which refers to the process by which the

labor force of one country, which has received training in its country of origin, migrates to