Analysis of the relationship between internationalization and the quality of higher education.

Abstract

The universal phenomenon of internationalization as a mainstream element of higher education is often based on the assumption that there is value added to the quality of higher education systems when enhancing the international dimension of teaching, research and service (Knight, 1997). Questioning the validity of the assumption, this study examined the relationship between internationalization and quality of higher education. Using the pre-existing data collected originally by Horn et al (2007), Lombardi et al (2003), and U.S. News World and Report (2003), the study conducted the simple correlation analysis and the multiple regression analysis. The research variables included six internationalization variables such as international students, U.S. study abroad, internationalized faculty and scholars, international research activities, internationalized curriculum, and organizational support; and seven quality variables such as research competitiveness, faculty competitiveness, undergraduate competitiveness, advanced training competitiveness, financial stability, constituents’ satisfaction, and institutional reputation. The results showed that there was a positive relationship between internationalization and quality of higher education. Particularly, the presence of international students was found to have statistically significant and positive effects on all the quality variables except for the research competitiveness. Internationalized faculty and scholars had statistically significant effects on advanced training competitiveness and financial stability. Also, the organizational support for internationalization played a significant role in institutional quality enhancement. However, internationalized curriculum was found to have no effect on any quality variables. Based on the results, the study suggests that various internationalization strategies be conducted and measured properly as part of the institutional quality improvement process.