Higher education in a global society

Abstract

Globalization, a key reality in the twenty-firsy century, has already influenced higher education profoundly. Globalization is considered as the reality shaped by an increasingly integrated world economy, new information and communications technology (ICT), the emergence of an international knowledge network, the role of the English language, and other forces beyond the control of academic institutions. Internationalization of higher education is the variety of policies and programs that universities and governments implement in responses to globalization. These responses typically include sending students to study abroad, setting up a branch campus overseas, or engaging in some type of inter-institutional partnership. Higher Education in a Global Society is splendid volume of essays that examines emerging issues for advancing higher education across borders. It discusses the compelling challenges and opportunities facing higher education in cultivating world citizens. The several common themes that are further explored throughout this book are ‘‘(1) Students need to have an international experience to be effective citizens while facing the global society, which colleges and university have multiple means to provide. (2) Challenges facing the world call for international research collaborations, which need to be entered into with due diligence by institutions and then be led by the academics. (3) U.S. institutions, who set the standard of higher education in the world, present genuine opportunities to better fulfill their missions and to do so on a global scale. (4) It is necessary and imperative for higher education to clearly articulate to domestic constituencies the benefit for students and society at large of investments in global initiatives.’’ This book is successful in exploring these themes, and it provides new and actionable information to enhance decision making and informs strategic planning. Moreover, it offers a contemporary examination of the business of higher education and areas of potential new research. This book falls naturally into four parts. In Part I, addressing the leadership imperative on campus, the chapter author discusses ‘‘(1) the concept of globalization as it applies to higher education, the positive and negative implications for higher education and whether