Hans de Wit & Santiago Castiello Gutierrez: New definitions and directions for internationalisation

In January 2023, the EAIE talked to Simon Marginson, Professor of Higher Education at the University of Oxford (UK), to discuss his sense of flaws in the mostly widely cited definitions of ‘internationalisation’ and the need for change. Recently, the Journal of Studies in International Education (JSIE) published an essay written by Hans de Wit, titled ‘Everything That Quacks is Internationalization’ - Critical Reflections on the Evolution of Higher Education Internationalization,’ which carried this forward this conversation about how best to define internationalisation in higher education today. One of the main calls in this essay is to shift our focus from finding the right definition for internationalisation to instead being more concerned about moving the phenomenon in particular directions.

But in which directions should we move? What emerging views and different voices within the field should we pay more attention to? In this episode of the EAIE podcast, host Laura Rumbley talks to Hans de Wit, Professor Emeritus, Distinguished Fellow, and former director of the Boston College ‘Center for International Higher Education’ (CIHE) and Santiago Castiello Gutierrez, Assistant Professor of higher education at Seton Hall University in the United States How can we begin to shape a new and better definition of ‘internationalisation’ fit for the future? What excites or worries these two internationalisation researchers as they consider the current realities in policy and practice? Make sure not to miss this episode of the EAIE podcast! 

About Hans de Wit 

Hans de Wit is Professor Emeritus, Distinguished Fellow, and former director of the Boston College ‘Center for International Higher Education’ (CIHE). He is a Senior Fellow of the International Association of Universities (IAU). He was director of the ‘Centre for Higher Education Internationalisation’ (CHEI) in Milan, and Professor of Internationalization of HE Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences. He is a Founding member/past president of the European Association for International Education (EAIE), founding Editor of the ‘Journal of Studies in International Education’, and consulting Editor Policy Reviews in Higher Education. He has published many books, articles and blogs on internationalisation of higher education and advised institutions, agencies, governments and international organisations such as the European Commission and Parliament, UNESCO, World Bank and OECD.
 

About Santiago Castiello Gutierrez

Santiago Castiello Gutierrez, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor of higher education at Seton Hall University in the Department of Education Leadership, Management and Policy. He is also current co-chair of the Critical Internationalization Studies Network and Associate Editor for the Critical Internationalization Studies Review. Dr. Castiello-Gutiérrez is a scholar-practitioner whose work is centred on the intersection of organizational theory around higher education institutions, their global interconnectedness, and current global policies and practices of internationalization of higher education. As a practitioner he has 15 years of experience serving as administrator of international programs for institutions in Mexico and the United States. For his work as a scholar-practitioner, Dr. Castiello-Gutiérrez was awarded a 2019 Harold Josephson Award for Professional Promise in International Education by the Association of International Education Administrators (AIEA).

Additional Resources

For further insights into the topics touched on in this episode, the following resources may be of interest:
→ ‘Everything That Quacks is Internationalization’ - Critical Reflections on the Evolution of Higher Education Internationalization’
→ Critical Internationalisation Studies Network
→ Research with International Students
→ Global Collective for Study Abroad Researchers and Administrators
→ Simon Marginson: Redefining internationalisation