Redefining internationalisation in the post-COVID world
The pandemic has brought unprecedented challenges to higher education and has severely impacted international student mobility. How have internationalisation strategies changed and how can universities embrace the challenges to push ahead in the new norms? These are some of the important questions examined in a presidents forum joined by CUHK Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Rocky S. Tuan on 11 January 2023.
Hosted by the Higher Education Leadership Academy (AKEPT), Ministry of Higher Education of Malaysia in collaboration with the University of Malaya (UM), the virtual forum on Reimagining Internationalisation in Higher Education Post COVID-19 featured a panel of distinguished speakers comprising Professor Tuan; Professor Karen O’Brien, Vice-Chancellor of Durham University; Professor Mushtak Al-Atabi, Provost and CEO of Heriot-Watt University Malaysia; and Professor Yvonne Lim, Associate Vice-Chancellor (Global Engagement) of UM.
Professor Tuan remarked on the paradigm shift in international student mobility and shared how CUHK has leveraged technology to rise to the challenges posed by COVID-19. “CUHK is very proactive and was among the world’s first to fully adopt online teaching and learning when COVID-19 hit us in early 2020,” said Professor Tuan. He cited the APRU Virtual Student Exchange (VSE) Programme as one of the many successful examples of how CUHK has been able to continue its internationalisation effort amid the pandemic with the support of technology. He has seen that technology has made international education much more accessible to students, while at the same time helped to reduce carbon footprint.
Professor Tuan highlighted the importance of transnational partnerships to achieve greater impact, and added that the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are ideal common grounds for collaboration.
Professor Tuan sees that the education of young people is of utmost importance in today’s world which is plagued by fake news and geopolitical conflicts. Universities must equip students with skills necessary to tackle the infodemic of misinformation and disinformation, and the ability to value and build diversity.
