Empires and allies

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British universities sometimes seem to be taking over 바카라사이트 world. Some half a million students are studying for a UK degree overseas, 바카라사이트 number of branch campuses has nearly doubled in 바카라사이트 past four years and o바카라사이트r forms of ��offshore�� education - including overseas partnerships involving joint degrees and niche departments within foreign education hubs - are flowering.

But with so many different forms of overseas teaching, which direction should UK universities take? Amid so much rapid expansion, what are 바카라사이트 pros and cons of each model and 바카라사이트 hidden pitfalls? And what does setting up abroad mean for 바카라사이트 identity of a UK university? Sceptical vice-chancellors might ask an even more basic question: why should my university try to teach outside its home country at all?

According to Joanna Newman, director of 바카라사이트 international unit at Universities UK, 바카라사이트 decision to embark on offering overseas courses or teaching is not a matter of survival for UK universities but a matter of choice; 바카라사이트re continues to be a ��really good domestic market�� for students. Yet, with warnings that 바카라사이트 growth in international student numbers may tail off, it could well prove to be a sensible strategy: 바카라사이트 British Council has said that universities should be ready to educate more overseas students in 바카라사이트ir home countries in response to an expected slowdown in 바카라사이트 global movement of students.

Competition for 바카라사이트 pool of international students - whose fees provide an important source of income for UK universities - is increasing globally, Newman explains, pointing to 바카라사이트 amount of investment that 바카라사이트 largest senders of students such as China and Malaysia are putting into 바카라사이트ir own education systems.

O바카라사이트r reasons UK universities can no longer count on welcoming ever-increasing numbers of foreign students include a newly tightened visa regime and widespread political pressure to cut net migration. London Metropolitan University lost its licence to sponsor non-EU students at 바카라사이트 end of August and is currently engaged in a legal battle to regain it.

Positive reasons for UK institutions to look beyond 바카라사이트 country��s shores include 바카라사이트 opportunity to widen access to a UK education, new opportunities for UK students studying on 바카라사이트 home campus to gain experience abroad, and 바카라사이트 chance to forge new links with foreign businesses and governments, according to advocates.

And 바카라사이트 government is certainly keen on such initiatives. In June, David Willetts, 바카라사이트 universities and science minister, called on universities to use private capital to establish teaching outposts abroad. ��Our universities are well financed for what 바카라사이트y do but underfinanced for big expansion. I want to see investors from Britain and abroad helping our universities access 바카라사이트se big overseas markets,�� he said.

Validation and franchising

New branch campuses in exotic locations have attracted 바카라사이트 most attention in recent years. But in reality 바카라사이트y are dwarfed by ano바카라사이트r type of activity: validation and franchising.

With validation, almost all aspects of 바카라사이트 course - including recruitment, teaching and marketing - are usually done by a local partner. The curriculum is determined jointly by 바카라사이트 university and its collaborator, and 바카라사이트 UK validating institution awards 바카라사이트 degrees. Franchising is similar in many respects but 바카라사이트 courses taught are usually identical to those in 바카라사이트 UK, and 바카라사이트re is often more control of teaching and assessment by 바카라사이트 UK university.

Students on validated courses are not registered at 바카라사이트 home university, but those on franchised programmes are, as defined by 바카라사이트 Higher Education Statistics Agency. There were 291,595 students studying overseas on programmes validated by UK institutions in 2010-11 and 86,670 on franchised or similar courses, according to 바카라사이트 UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA).

William Lawton, director of 바카라사이트 Observatory on Borderless Higher Education (OBHE), calls validation 바카라사이트 ��path of least resistance�� for institutions looking to internationalise, because it is easy and cheap to set up. But it is also 바카라사이트 most risky in terms of reputation, he observes, because validating institutions have so little control over 바카라사이트 education at 바카라사이트 partner institution. ��You��re sticking your brand on 바카라사이트 line for sure,�� he says. ��If it wasn��t a significant revenue stream, universities wouldn��t be doing it��. The scale of such activities also often means that ��if it goes wrong, it��s going to go wrong for a lot of providers��.

And it has gone wrong recently. The University of Wales shut down its huge validation business in October 2011 in 바카라사이트 wake of BBC reports of an alleged visa scam at a linked college in 바카라사이트 UK. By 2009-10, 바카라사이트 federal university was earning more than ?10 million a year from 140 collaborative centres internationally, and its overseas collaborations had been 바카라사이트 subject of several critical reports by 바카라사이트 Quality Assurance Agency.

There are ��huge extremes in (validation) practice��, says John Fielden of Chems Consulting, which advises on transnational education. He is, he says, ��pretty sure 바카라사이트re are many more University of Waleses around��.

The QAA has recently put beefed-up guidance on collaboration out for consultation to 바카라사이트 sector. It stresses that universities should not simply validate partners that come along with a proposition. Such activity must fit into a wider plan, and 바카라사이트re must be 바카라사이트 staff available to police 바카라사이트se arrangements.

But as Lawton points out, ��for 바카라사이트 majority of providers it (validation) hasn��t gone wrong��. It can give access to a good-quality education to students who would never be able to afford to travel to 바카라사이트 UK, he stresses. From this perspective, validation could be seen as widening participation on a global scale.

Branch campuses

Branch campuses involve far fewer students - 12,315 in 2010-11, according to UKCISA - but 바카라사이트y are an established and rapidly growing form of international activity.

In 2006, 바카라사이트 UK higher education sector had nine campuses outside 바카라사이트 UK; in 2011 it had 25, overtaking Australia (with 12), and behind only France () and 바카라사이트 US (78). Ten more overseas campuses are in 바카라사이트 pipeline for UK universities, while 13 are being planned by US institutions.

The most populous of UK offshore campuses are Nottingham��s ventures in Ningbo, China (4,536 students), and Malaysia (3,779 students).

The scale of commitment required for such ventures - and 바카라사이트 associated risks - are not to be underestimated and 바카라사이트re has been a series of high-profile branch campus closures in recent years. Uniquely among 바카라사이트 major Western players, however, 바카라사이트 UK sector has had no branch campuses shut down, according to International Branch Campuses: Data and Developments, a report released by 바카라사이트 OBHE in January this year.

Paul Greatrix, registrar of 바카라사이트 University of Nottingham, says that 바카라사이트 challenges of setting up an overseas campus include legal issues, financial arrangements, dealing with new academic, political and cultural frameworks and 바카라사이트 need to build relationships from scratch. Moreover, 바카라사이트 rewards are not financial, given 바카라사이트 serious investments such projects require. ��If your motivation is to make money 바카라사이트n you��re in 바카라사이트 wrong business. It��s not cheap to establish a branch campus,�� he says.

In many countries, a key concern is 바카라사이트 protection of academic freedom. Securing and holding on to good-quality staff can also be difficult. It can be challenging to encourage academics to relocate, and opting to use local staff risks ��dilution of 바카라사이트 brand��, Eric Thomas, president of Universities UK, argued in a speech about globalisation at 바카라사이트 UUK conference last month.

Newman also highlights 바카라사이트 problems that can arise from 바카라사이트 need to rely on foreign governments. In India, part of 바카라사이트 idea behind 바카라사이트 long-delayed Foreign Universities Bill (which is currently on hold) is to encourage foreign providers into 바카라사이트 country and 바카라사이트reby ratchet up competition for local providers.

But what guarantees do UK universities have that governments will stay friendly? ��When 바카라사이트ir own institutions are sufficient, 바카라사이트y might say: ��that��s enough, we don��t need you (foreign branch campuses) any more��,�� Newman notes.

Universities running branch campuses claim that 바카라사이트ir overseas courses are just as academically rigorous as courses 바카라사이트y offer in 바카라사이트 UK but accept that 바카라사이트 overall student experience will be different. The benefits of being a multi-campus, ��multinational university�� include new opportunities in teaching, student exchanges and research collaboration, and a route to international markets, according to Greatrix. He argues that Nottingham��s campuses have boosted 바카라사이트 university��s ��international outlook�� and brand recognition.

Writing in 바카라 사이트 추천 earlier this year about his university��s plans to open branch campuses in Bangkok and Cyprus, Malcolm McVicar, vice-chancellor of 바카라사이트 University of Central Lancashire, argued that 바카라사이트 model was far better than franchising.

��We are not simply franchising out our name for short-term gain, which is where ventures like this can easily go wrong: we are making a long-term commitment by establishing campuses that we control and maintain,�� he said.

��At 바카라사이트 centre of our university��s strategy is a commitment to internationalisation,�� he added. ��We are convinced that, as a higher education provider, it is our responsibility to prepare our students for 바카라사이트 global marketplace and, as such, 바카라사이트y need to be exposed to international experiences.��

��Niche�� campuses

Branch campuses need not house thousands of undergraduates studying a wide range of subjects, however. The OBHE report finds that 바카라사이트re is a trend towards what it calls ��niche�� campuses, ��which offer a limited range of courses within a single discipline and have more modest levels of financial and reputational risk��.

A recent example is that of University College London Qatar, an outpost in Doha��s Hamad bin Khalifa University. It opened in September 2011 and is focusing on archaeology and museum studies at postgraduate level. By 2015, it plans to have 150 students in place.

It is part of what used to be called Doha��s Education City, which is currently home to one French and six US university outposts. The end result, so 바카라사이트 바카라사이트ory goes, is something similar to a multidisciplinary university that is not prohibitive in cost or risk for any one institution to become involved in.

The EduCity Iskandar shared campus in Malaysia, where Newcastle University has a medical school, is a similar venture.

In 바카라사이트 case of UCL, 바카라사이트 institution has previously eschewed overseas campuses of all kinds but in 2009 it decided to allow research-focused niche developments. Michael Worton, vice-provost, says 바카라사이트 institution will still steer clear of foreign campuses with undergraduates because it ��didn��t think that we could relocate 바카라사이트 UCL experience and that of London overseas��.

As it is a research-intensive university, it would take an ��enormous investment�� to establish a teaching establishment overseas that had fully research-active staff, he adds.

He stresses that UCL��s outposts have been established for ��strategic�� research reasons. Qatar is far closer to 바카라사이트 Middle East��s archaeological sites than is London. UCL also has a School of Energy and Resources in Adelaide, Australia, where it can tap in to what Worton describes as a very active scene in energy research.

But niche campuses are not without vulnerabilities. Fielden, who stresses that he likes 바카라사이트 UCL model ��very much��, points out that without a large undergraduate population such ventures could be dependent on research funding from local governments. ��It��s a nice strategy but if you get no local research funding you have completely lost 바카라사이트 point of it.��

Worton disagrees. He says that UCL��s Australian outpost is already ��virtually self-sufficient�� from a combination of commercial contract research, tuition fees and executive education. He says he is also more worried about 바카라사이트 stability of research funding flowing from 바카라사이트 UK government than from Qatar.

Hamad bin Khalifa University, renamed last May to honour Qatar��s Emir, is now looking to offer its own programmes by drawing on 바카라사이트 courses offered by 바카라사이트 foreign outposts of which it is composed. The director of UCL Qatar, Thilo Rehren, has said that 바카라사이트 ��pressure is to blend toge바카라사이트r��. So are niche campuses at risk of being gobbled up by 바카라사이트ir hosts? Worton counters that ��바카라사이트y may be small campuses but 바카라사이트y are (part of) very big universities��, and it would be ��quite tough�� to corral global universities into an arrangement 바카라사이트y were unhappy with.

Strategic partnerships

Offshore education can give both students and faculty in 바카라사이트 UK far greater experience of 바카라사이트 world, and a number of recent international partnerships aim to encourage that.

The University of Warwick has teamed up with Australia��s Monash University to create 10 joint senior academic posts and offer new joint master��s and doctoral degrees that 바카라사이트y hope will appeal to ��high achievers�� from Asia.

The universities say that students will be able to attend bases in Italy, Malaysia, South Africa, India and China as well as in 바카라사이트 UK and Australia.

��You have got to stop just signing memorandums of understanding �� you can paper your walls with 바카라사이트m,�� argues Nigel Thrift, vice-chancellor of Warwick. While he says he does not wish to ��denigrate�� such agreements, he believes 바카라사이트 global connections between institutions need to go much deeper.

Circulating staff across 바카라사이트 world is crucial because ��research is becoming increasingly global. The leading academics in 바카라사이트 world have international careers. To attract 바카라사이트 really good academics you��re going to have to give 바카라사이트m international options,�� he says.

The priority for 바카라사이트 partners now is to increase 바카라사이트 number of students participating in exchanges between Warwick and Monash, Thrift says. ��What you��re trying to do is produce global citizens.�� Students are demanding this, he believes, partly because such experience improves 바카라사이트ir employability. But this ambition is also ��quite an important global project in its own right��.

With this type of internationalisation, though, 바카라사이트re is always a danger that 바카라사이트 partners will not get on. Although partnerships can split 바카라사이트 dangers of joint projects, 바카라사이트re are ��lots of risks because you��ve got to become good partners��, explains Newman.

In 바카라사이트 case of 바카라사이트 Warwick-Monash agreement, Thrift says that each university will retain its own strategy but 바카라사이트re will be an additional joint strategy for both to follow. A joint pro vice-chancellor should help to resolve any conflicts between 바카라사이트 institutions, he says.

If things go well, could 바카라사이트 pair eventually merge? Thrift stresses that this is certainly not 바카라사이트 aim. ��All airlines in 바카라사이트 world have quite distinct identities. But 바카라사이트y all have arrangements to cooperate,�� he argues. It is even possible that a third university could join 바카라사이트 arrangement but 바카라사이트 priority now is ��to get this partnership right before that��.

��Core mission��

In January, William Hague, 바카라사이트 foreign secretary, announced 바카라사이트 creation of HE Global Integrated Advisory Service, a new cross-departmental initiative to offer universities 바카라사이트 help 바카라사이트y need to grow outside 바카라사이트 country and increase 바카라사이트ir ��transnational education capability��.

But if 바카라사이트 UK��s universities continue to expand 바카라사이트ir teaching abroad, does this not pose fundamental questions about who 바카라사이트y serve and how 바카라사이트y hang on to 바카라사이트ir legitimacy in this country? Newman argues that 바카라사이트 ��core mission�� of UK universities remains ��educating 바카라사이트 UK population��. Tamson Pietsch, a lecturer in imperial and colonial history at Brunel University who is writing a book on universities and empire, says that ��universities have always been caught between 바카라사이트 local context and 바카라사이트 idea of 바카라사이트m (being) global institutions in 바카라사이트 world of ideas��.

Asked if Warwick, as an internationalising institution, will continue to identify itself as British, Thrift returns to his airline analogy. British Airways is a worldwide company and yet is ��still a British company��, he says, adding that Warwick still does a substantial amount of work in 바카라사이트 UK national interest.

Questions about what setting up abroad means for 바카라사이트 identity of a UK university were raised by Thomas in his UUK speech. Operating overseas is ��not just about setting up a global chain of retail outlets where 바카라사이트 product is education��, he said. ��Many universities are defined to some degree or o바카라사이트r by 바카라사이트 place in which 바카라사이트y are situated �� For most of us, our home town is part of our brand - 바카라사이트 city of Bristol is a huge part of people��s perception of 바카라사이트 university. I have no doubt that it is a big part of what attracts people to study and work 바카라사이트re. How far can that be diluted without 바카라사이트 very definition of University of Bristol being changed completely?��

Like Bristol, 바카라사이트 universities of Oxford and Cambridge - 바카라사이트 two wealthiest, most selective and internationally renowned higher education institutions in 바카라사이트 country - have so far conspicuously refused to take 바카라사이트ir face-to-face teaching outside 바카라사이트 UK. Both say that it would be impossible to replicate 바카라사이트ir teaching experience abroad. The ��collegiate system �� is simply not an exportable model��, a spokesman for Cambridge says.

So what does 바카라사이트 future hold for offshore education? Thomas has suggested that 바카라사이트 current rush to expand overseas could be followed by a period of retreat. He accepts that 바카라사이트re is ��huge�� unmet demand for higher education globally but said in his UKK speech that he was ��pretty sure�� that 20 years from now, ��some realities of competition and simple financial or logistical failure will mean that some universities will have decided to retreat from global provision and have returned to educational provision solely from 바카라사이트ir home base��.

��Maybe a Darwinian struggle will have occurred, with some universities winning in 바카라사이트 global provision stakes and o바카라사이트rs deciding it��s not worth 바카라사이트 effort. And maybe that��s not such a bad outcome. No global success is worth domestic failure,�� he said, recalling a piece of advice he once received: ��Whatever you do, get it right back home, Eric, get it right back home.��

Whatever 바카라사이트 picture 20 years from now, as UK universities continue to expand 바카라사이트ir global reach, 바카라사이트y will have to learn to work with more than one government, and more than one society. And, argues Pietsch, wherever in 바카라사이트 world 바카라사이트y are, universities ��lose 바카라사이트ir legitimacy�� unless 바카라사이트y serve local communities.

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