Abstract:

A study in Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Vietnam, conducted before the COVID-19 outbreak revealed that blended student and teaching staff international mobility based on sharing curriculum resources among different HEIs (higher education institutions) networks was one way to strengthen internationalization due to limited financial resources for live student and teaching staff international mobility. The exploratory research was carried out based on the qualitative research strategy using the expert evaluation method, which engages a group of identified experts in detailed examinations of a particular issue for the purpose of policy investigation, goal setting, and forecasting future situations and outcomes (Encyclopedia of Research Design, 2010). The research demonstrated that the internationalization of HEIs was included as the priority of national policies in the examined countries, however, low numbers of international mobility before the outbreak of Covid19 and the Covid19 pandemic itself required a significant change in internationalization strategies of HEIs. Lack of funding for short-term international mobility of students and teaching staff was indicated by all countries’ experts as the most important issue of internationalization of South Asian universities before the Covid19 pandemic. International mobility is expensive and not affordable for every member of the academic community. The available funds are not sufficient to finance all willing to study or teach abroad and gain international/intercultural experience. Therefore, experts expressed the need to expand and strengthen the benefits of internationalization to more recipients, and ensure the sustainability of all internationalization efforts, by changing the attitude towards internationalization, strategically investing in and evolving blended international mobility of South Asian universities. Blended mobility through virtual and short-term physical training abroad is more cost-effective and provides more opportunities and addresses the lack of funds. However, the study results also revealed that during the Covid19 pandemic individual HEIs lacked technical equipment, mastery of the use of information and communication technologies, and experience in distance studies, both nationally and internationally, students in many parts of countries faced a lack of access to the technical equipment, poor Wi-Fi network or power connectivity, affordability of mobile data. In some countries, degree study delivery in a distance mode in HEIs had not even been legalized, which could strengthen the international dimension of HE (higher education) in these countries through distance blended student and teaching staff international mobility. Distance learning, indeed, could eventually become the new normal in the post-Covid19 era increasing access to international mobility and making efficient use of limited national and HEIs resources, which are shrinking in the post-Covid19 period due to the economic recession. Therefore, the national internationalization policies of these countries must strengthen the technological dimension, support technology acquisition, distance learning, teaching competencies development, and blended international mobility of the academic community in global inter-university networks to share the knowledge internationally.

Keywords:

Internationalization, higher education, South Asia, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, international blended mobility.