The Political Economy of Cross-Border Higher Education in an Era of Complexity: Analysis of the Role of OECD/UNESCO Guidelines in the Development of Quality Assurance and Regulation

Abstract

Higher education is a complicated phenomenon in the modern world, involving a large number of institutions, a diverse student body, a variety of functions and objectives, and a wide range of orientations. The most common types of internationalization in higher education a few decades ago were faculty exchanges and international student mobility, which involves students traveling from one country to another to study at a foreign institution either on scholarship or on their own cost. New forms of education for international students have emerged in recent decades and are referred to as cross-border, borderless, or transnational higher education. These ideas lack a clear, generally accepted definition. The British Council collected definitions of Cross-Border Higher Education (CBHE) from a number of international organizations. This paper outlines the scope of CBHE and examines its various interpretations. The economics of this sector overall is examined, as well as the opportunities and risks associated with the growth of cross-border higher education. The contribution of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) GUIDELINES and the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to the development of quality assurance in CBHE is then thoroughly examined in this paper, taking into account the historical context of the GUIDELINES as well as the changing nature of higher education. The question of whether a change is required or if the GUIDELINES are still useful nineteen years after they were adopted will receive particular attention. The topics of this paper include quality assurance and regulation. It emphasizes how important it is for CBHE to be a part of both external and internal systems at the quality assurance level. Therefore, to externally assure the quality of CBHE in both the sending and receiving countries, agency coordination is necessary in addition to integrating CBHE into the institutions' quality assurance processes. Additionally, this paper recommends that all CBHE projects be covered by higher education institutions' internal quality assurance systems, making the information publicly accessible to potential students and other pertinent stakeholders in the country of delivery.