Internationalisation Equals Quality? Students’ Perspectives on Quality of Higher Education in Denmark

Abstract

Higher education (HE) institutions in Europe are ascribing greater importance to internationalisation as adding value to the entire institution, whereby the most important benefit identified is improved quality of teaching and learning. Notwithstanding, students’ perceptions of the extent to which quality of education is associated with internationalisation is under-explored. This paper addresses this gap and employs a digital ethno-methodological approach, drawing on 126 h of teaching and learning observation, and 38 semi-structured interviews with Danish and international students enrolled in 8 Masters of Science (MSc) programmes in Denmark. Nuanced aspects of perceptions of quality, relevance and learning were mostly related to two instruments of internationalisation: international staff and an international student body. Results show that diversity is a keyword in students’ discourses, whereby quality often equals internationalisation. However, there is a disconnect between discourses and actual practices of internationalisation, with implications for policies and practices in internationalised HE contexts.