Simon Marginson: Redefining internationalisation

Perhaps the world’s most widely accepted definition of the concept of internationalisation in higher education is attributed to Jane Knight, in work she published between 1994 and 2004. Since then, many attempts have been made to come up with new definitions, but this has been challenging, especially when looking at staying power and uptake. But how do we begin to shape a new and better definition for internationalisation fit for 2023 and beyond? And how exactly can we take this conversation forward in a meaningful way?

Simon Marginson, Professor of Higher Education at the University of Oxford, decided to tackle this controversial topic in one of his most recent papers titled ‘Is the idea wrong or is the flaw in reality? On the definition of ‘internationalisation’ of higher education.’ In this podcast episode, he joins us to talk about the need for change, the flaws in the current definitional approach to internationalisation, and what the future holds.

About Simon Marginson

Simon Marginson is Professor of Higher Education at the University of Oxford, Director of the ESRC/RE Centre for Global Higher Education (CGHE), Joint Editor-in-Chief of Higher Education, and a Professorial Associate with the University of Melbourne. Simon’s research is focused primarily on global and international higher education, the global science system, higher education in East Asia, the contributions of higher education and higher education as a public good, and higher education and social inequality. At Oxford he team teaches in the MSc Education pathway on Higher Education. Book include Changing Higher Education in East Asia (edited with Xin Xu, Bloomsbury 2022, and Assessing the Contributions of Higher Education (edited with Brendan Cantwell, Daria Platonova and Anna Smolentseva, Edward Elgar February 2023).