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Accelerating Sustainable Higher Education Internationalisation Aspirations: Strengthening International Collaboration in Higher
Education via Foreign Universities Partnerships
*1Nur Ezzati Mohd Nasir, 2Mohd Azmir Mohd Azhari
1Centre for International Relations, Universiti Malaysia Pahang, Kuantan, Malaysia
2Faculty of Manufacturing and Mechatronic Engineering Technology, Universiti Malaysia Pahang, Kuantan, Malaysia
*E-mail: [email protected]
ABSTRACT
International collaborations between higher education institutions bring significant contributions to the overall ecosystem of an organisation, from the personnel, students, and the global community as a whole. The internationalisation of an institution is one of the mechanisms communities adapt to the idea of globalisation. This paper discusses the effective methods of strengthening international collaboration between Universiti Malaysia Pahang (UMP) and German universities via a dual-degree programme. The dual-degree programme is designed to invent graduates who are extensively prepared to face the future challenges of globalisation. The institution has implemented various approaches to strengthen the programme's strong foundation to intensify the primary purpose of internationalisation, such as establishing a comprehensive German language proficiency test to prepare the students for the dual-degree programme. However, language is not the sole approach to boost internationalisation as intercultural skills, extensive academic collaboration programmes, and mobility programmes are interconnected to the idea of internationalisation. These approaches are momentous to ensure the dual-degree programme's efficacy in attaining the purposes of academic collaboration and enriching students' experiences. In addition to the approaches adopted, different initiatives are recommended to improvise the internationalisation notion to facilitate the advancement of the internationalisation programme of the university. In conclusion, the essence of internationalisation requires various concepts to be implemented by the institution to strengthen international collaboration.
Keywords: Internationalisation; dual degree; collaboration
1. INTRODUCTION
Internationalisation has been invented as a revolutionary instrument in higher education institutions worldwide. The concept of internationalisation as a strategic policy is regarded as vast, and diverse as it necessitates a progressive consolidation of various aspects, such as political, economic, shareholders, and academic principles. The dimension of internationalisation is defined as the integrated development of international, intercultural, or globalisation into the aspiration, objectives, or transmission of tertiary education (Knight, 2003) to strengthen the education and research qualities for both learners and the
72 organisation to produce significant beneficiation to the community (De Wit et al., 2015). The globalisation of education has directed a united exertion by higher education institutions (HEIs) around the globe to generate blueprints to initiate and intensify international collaborations in higher education setups. The current trend of global education has initiated the exigencies of HEIs to escalate students' global exposure, infusing internationalisation essence and enhancing their visibilities internationally. Internationalised programmes such as mobility activities and dual-degree courses are equally important in ensuring the effectiveness of internationalisation.
The formulation of dual-degree programmes is considered more systematic and comprehensive to encompass the internationalisation of higher education institutions (HEIs) (Knight, 2011). Generally, dual-degrees contain a variety of principles and aspirations (Chevallier, 2013), as the programmes' purposes are to nourish robust international collaborations, captivate brilliant expertise, and encourage students' mobility (Goodman &
Rulan, 2013). Collaborative academic programmes are believed to have an impactful role in implementing internationalisation strategies where the students can broaden their perspectives and skills to compete in a global market. A dual-degree programme, as executed by Universiti Malaysia Pahang (UMP), is a degree in an identical subject area awarded by two universities, one of which is an international university.
The collaboration between UMP and a German university for a dual-degree programme can lead to the sustainability of partnerships while simultaneously boosting international engagement and academic quality. Thus, this paper discusses the efficient ways of enriching and strengthening the international partnership between Universiti Malaysia Pahang (UMP) and German universities, mainly through a dual-degree programme.
Strategies to Boost International Partnerships
Two distinctive dimensions of governing international partnerships are both institutions' programme delivery approach and responsibilities. The delivery of the partnership programme varies from traditional physical teaching to supported distance learning. On the other hand, partnership responsibilities have numerous features, such as providing comprehensive academic and teaching assistance, effective promotion, and curriculum development (Davis et al., 2000). Efficient international collaborations rely on many other factors, including sufficient resources, contract implementation effectiveness, and scrupulous quality assurance (Davis et al., 2000). Even though the equilibrium between essential and adequate requirements is vague, it is widely accepted that managing international
73 partnerships is the primary key to strengthening the quality of partnership programmes. The nature of the accord between the institutions is one of the most pivotal components of international partnerships management. The endeavour of visits between host and home universities, feasible agreements, and observation arrangements are interconnected to the quality of partnerships (Abramson et al., 1996). Other than partnership management, the other strategy adopted by the institution to tackle the challenges in providing learning and teaching assistance of the German dual-degree offered at UMP is adopting a technological approach to teaching and learning processes. Including technology in learning and teaching activities is believed to be extensively impactful in assisting the students in comprehending the programme's content comprehensively. The other approach that possesses substantial impact in strengthening international partnerships is the quality of the programme offered by the institution, as quality is an important marker in ensuring the sustainability of the programme in the long run.
The German dual-degree programme offered at UMP requires the instructors and the learners to take a new turn in exploring the dimension of learning, especially learning a new language. In order to enhance the learning and teaching experience, the instructors and the learners must invent practical strategies to be implemented in the learning and teaching processes to achieve the programme implementation goals. Exploring various learning and teaching approaches is critical as the syllabus's formulation should cater to the learners' learning requirements with the resources planned and executed in the lessons (Nunan, 1984).
2. GERMAN DUAL-DEGREE PROGRAMME AT UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA PAHANG (UMP)
Successful international collaborations require a diversity of patrons to guarantee the efficiency of the implemented programmes, as establishing a rewarding education partnership is challenging. Numerous catalysts strengthen successful international partnerships, such as continuous commitment, economic factors, educational programmes and learning activities, risk management, and quality. The partner's suitability plays a significant role in having a sustainable academic partnership and an identical vision for collaboration. The key to thriving in a shared vision is an impactful academic collaboration between the institutions. Substantial academic collaboration is a fundamental element in every collaborative formulation, as it can be a profitable investment for both institutions to work concretely in sustaining and enriching the foundation and framework of the
74 collaboration. Internationalisation of the Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in Malaysia is aligned with the 'Global Prominence' shift of the Malaysia Education Blueprint for Higher Education 2015-2025.
Furthermore, to support the agenda of offering extensive innovative programmes, UMP started its international partnerships with German universities as one of its internationalisation strategies. As a recognised technical university, UMP chooses German higher institutions for their technological evolutions and innovative structure of the higher education system. Therefore, UMP believes this initiative will significantly strengthen and enrich the academic quality and internationalisation effort. Moreover, the inclusion of the German University of Applied Sciences or Fachhochschulen (FH) education system into the UMP's undergraduate engineering programmes that started a decade ago has driven the university to initiate an innovative international partnership via a dual-degree programme between UMP and German Universities. Presently, UMP manages several dual-degree programmes, and the university is enthusiastically exploring more partnership opportunities to invent such courses with other universities in Germany.
The Implementation of The German Dual-Degree Programme at Universiti Malaysia Pahang (UMP)
The formulation of German universities' partnerships programmes offered at Universiti Malaysia Pahang (UMP) commenced in 2009, right after the proposal of the Malaysian government to embrace a new engineering education model based on the Fachhochschulen (FH) system for the local technical universities that are categorised under Malaysian Technical Universities Network (MTUN). The FH academic model was explicitly designed to innovate the fields of engineering, technology and business. The purpose of the invention of the FH system is to cultivate the application of practical knowledge (Mckeag et al., 2010).
After decades of development, the FH system has successfully established a comprehensive and potent utilisation of its applied and functional characteristics, as now the features are receiving universal recognition. One of the FH's superior strengths is the infusion of the practical-based programme with sufficient theory application. This academic model equips the students to prepare for the demands of the globalised world. The other uniqueness of the FH system is the impressive background of the teaching staff, as the professors possess a minimum 3-year industrial experience. Thus, the employment of the FH academic model in the national technical and vocational education and training (TVET) is undoubtedly an
75 excellent strategy to strengthen the educational quality and the internationalisation strategy for the specified field in the Malaysian Higher Education Institutions (HEIs).
The implementation of the UMP and Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences (HKA) dualdegree programme started with a visit to Germany on the 23rd of November 2009, and a Letter of Intent (LOI) was signed between UMP and HKA. The institutions’ discussion continued in February 2010 as the UMP academic delegation visited HKA to further review the programme structure. In March 2010, a board from UMP was involved in roundtable discussions with the German companies' CEOs in Malaysia to acquire industrial feedback from industry experts. The HKA team conducted an official audit at UMP in March 2010 to verify the academic facilities and staff requirements before the finalisation of the Mechatronics Engineering programme. The initial discussion of implementing the Automotive Engineering programme between the institutions was also held in the same month. Finally, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between UMP and HKA was signed in Kuantan on the 27th of May 2010. Simultaneously, an MoU between UMP and the German-Malaysian Institute (GMI) was also signed on the same date as GMI is one of the programme feeders.
Figure 1 illustrates the timeline of the execution of the UMP-HKA dual-degree programmes at Universiti Malaysia Pahang (UMP). The implementation was initiated in 2009 and successfully implemented in 2010.
Figure 1: Timeline of the implementation of UMP-HKA dual-degree programmes
November 2009
-Visit to HKA -Signing of LoI between UMP and HKA
February 2010
- Discussing curriculum
development of dual- degree programmes
March 2010
-Roundtable discussion on dual- degree programmes with German based companies in Malaysia
- Verification audit by HKA at UMP
May 2010
-Signing of MoU on dual-degree programmes
July 2010
-First batch intake of dual-degree programme
76 The Structure of The German Dual-Degree Programme Aat Universiti Malaysia Pahang (UMP)
The collaboration programme between Universiti Malaysia Pahang (UMP) and German universities aims to provide extensive exposure to engineering theories and hands-on skills.
The dual-degree programme is formulated to suit German and Malaysian accreditation requirements as this programme offers a close industrial collaboration with engineering experts from Germany. The dual-degree programme is designed to be relevant to the Malaysian and European accreditation standards, as it is fully accredited by the Board of Engineers Malaysia (BEM) and the Engineering Accreditation Council Malaysia (EAC), both of which are recognised internationally. These dual-degree programmes require a minimum of 135 SLT credits, as EAC requires. It also fulfils 210 ECTS credits based on the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS) framework. Furthermore, students are required to undergo a 6-month internship programme in relevant industries. The graduates of the programme are prepared with fundamental skills that are beneficial for them to work with multinational organisations around the globe. The learning experience gained from the German experience professors will prepare them to give an outstanding professional performance to graduate engineers. Upon completion of the programme, graduates will acquire a dual-degree with a certificate from a German university and a UMP certificate.
The Number of Student Enrolments in Dual-Degree Programmes at Universiti Malaysia Pahang (UMP)
Table 1 indicates the number of student enrolments in dual-degree programmes offered at UMP from 2016 to 2021. Even though the number of enrolments in 2018 slightly decreased, the figure grew gradually until 2021. The increment of enrolments starting from 2019 has proven that the UMP dual-degree programmes are proportionate to global standards.
Consequently, international partnerships via dual-degrees programmes demonstrate a substantial component of the global internationalisation of higher education institutions.
Table 1: The number of students intakes for dual-degree programmes
YEAR NUMBER OF ENROLMENTS
2016 36
2017 66
2018 36
2019 49
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YEAR NUMBER OF ENROLMENTS
2020 62
2021 56
*Source: UMP German Academic Collaboration Centre Annual Report 2021
Various implications are allied with standardised degree programmes awarded by two Higher Education institutions. Students who enrol in the dual-degree programme at UMP will be awarded two different degrees, one from the home university, UMP, and the other from the partner institution. The German dual-degree students will have the chance to physically attend lectures conducted by the 'Flying Professors' before going to the partner universities in Germany. The 'Flying Professors' are professors from the universities in Germany who conduct several courses in the programmes at UMP. After ten years of implementation and collaboration, UMP is now harvesting the profits of this collaborative effort. Since 2017, 134 students have secured internships at multinational or German-based companies; in 2021, 14 students completed their internship programmes in Germany. The other prominent achievement of this internationalisation strategy happened in 2020 when UMP witnessed another batch of 20 students had completed their dual-degree programmes. Some graduates secured places to continue their post-graduate studies in Germany; the rest were fully employed by various Malaysian and German-based companies.
3. CONCLUSION
The arrangement of international education partnerships with foreign higher education institutions has culminated in advanced challenges for university administrators. Most of the challenges demand effective and collaborative efforts from all parties to ensure the sustainability of the partnerships. Building and strengthening international collaborations require consistency in various aspects such as communication, partnership management, and the programme's quality. Building a robust and comprehensive structure that demonstrates a continuous commitment to the partnerships is critical. Other than strategies, resources, and reputations, key factors like communication and trust appear to be significant in developing and maintaining effective partnerships between the institutions. Higher Education Institutions' (HEIs) internationalisation strategy entails an ongoing collaborative effort from the institutions to enhance and strengthen the partnership. To produce a rewarding partnership, both institutions must utilise the strengths both parties possess, such as participating in active mobility programmes, venturing into extensive research activities, and
78 exploring new approaches that can strengthen and enrich the agenda of internationalisation.
The expansion of international partnerships is a current trend that functions via international networking, and the sustainability of the partnerships will only work when cooperation and involvement agents are blended into the strategy (Mader et al., 2013). The success of the UMP dual-degree programme with German universities is ultimately connected to the extensive support from internal and external organisations and networking. The surge of enrolment numbers for the partnership programme has again manifested the remarkable quality of the UMP dual-degree programme. It has also further proven that foreign universities' partnerships are influential in enriching the internationalisation agenda.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The authors would like to gratefully acknowledge UMP dual-degree HEI partners and our colleagues at the Centre for International Relations (CIR), Universiti Malaysia Pahang.
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