Changing Patterns of International Student Mobility Within the Asia Pacific Region: The Influence of

History, Culture and Language

Christopher Ziguras

8th Asia TEFL Conference, Hanoi, Vietnam

6-8 August 2010

Regional Student Mobility

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‘Core-Periphery’ MobilityEurope

United States

• International student mobility was been predominantly from:

– Post-colonial states to former colonial powers

– Newly-industrialising economies to post-industrial economies

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Regional Mobility

• Over the past decade, as trade and investment between countries in the region has grown, so has student mobility

• More countries are seeking to recruit international students

• Historical, cultural, economic, political and linguistic connections shape patterns of mobility

Inter-Regional Mobility of East Asia and Pacific Students

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Top Ten Host Countries of East Asia and Pacific Students

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Region of origin of international students in the Asia Pacific

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National Patterns of Student Mobility

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Income and International Student Mobility

0.0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

5.0

6.0

7.0

8.0

0 10000 20000 30000 40000

GDP per capita, 2005

Percentage of tertiary age population

studying overseas

NepalLaos

BangladeshPNGCambodia

IndiaIndonesia

Sri LankaPhilippinesFiji

ChinaThailandMalaysia

South KoreaNew ZealandBrunei

Macao SARSingapore

JapanAustraliaHong Kong SAR

United States

Note high mobility rates in small/island states

Income and International Student Mobility

0.0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

0 10000 20000 30000 40000

GDP per capita, 2005

Percentage of tertiary age population studying overseas

Nepal

Laos

Bangladesh

PNG

Cambodia

India

Indonesia

Sri Lanka

Philippines

China

Thailand

Malaysia

South Korea

New Zealand

Japan

Australia

United States

Income and International Student Mobility

0.0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

0 10000 20000 30000 40000

GDP per capita, 2005

Percentage of tertiary age population studying overseas

Nepal

Laos

Bangladesh

PNG

Cambodia

India

Indonesia

Sri Lanka

Philippines

China

Thailand

Malaysia

South Korea

New Zealand

Japan

Australia

United States

More data points are needed to test this curve

Language Influences on Student Mobility

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Anglophone destinations

• Of the 2.8 million students studying overseas for one year or more in 2007, half (1.38 million) were studying in ten countries with English language higher education systems

1. United States

2. United Kingdom

3. Australia

4. Canada

5. South Africa

6. New Zealand

7. Malaysia

8. Ireland

9. India

10.Philippines

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Language of international study in non-Anglophone education systems

• Common language in home and host country (eg. Arabic, Spanish, French)

• Study in national language of host country (eg. Japanese, German)

• Study in programs taught in English:

– English-taught programs in national universities (eg. Korea University, Waseda University, Japan)

– New universities that teach in English (eg. all private universities in Malaysia; Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, Japan; Asia-Pacific International University, Thailand)

– Branch campuses (RMIT International University Vietnam; Nottingham University, China)

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Intra-Regional Student Mobility

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Arab States

•Shared language, culture, religion, history

•Two thirds of Arab states have one or more Arab states in their top five destinations

•Major destination countries• Lebanon 22,674• Jordan 21,509• Saudi Arabia 13,687

•Key issue – students and educators will concentrate in the safest, most cosmopolitan cities in the Arab world

•Most international students are studying in Arabic, or in new English-language hubs in Dubai and Qatar

Jordan

• Top five destination for students from:

– Palestine (1)

– Iraq (1)

– Oman (1)

– Israel (2)

– Yemen (2)

– Kuwait (2)

– Mauritania (2)

– Saudi Arabia (3)

– Syria (3)

– Bahrain (3)

– Qatar (4)

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South Asia

•Long history of cultural and economic interconnection, tense relations since mid C20

•India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka

•Flow of students between neighboring countries negligible, limited by:

• High rate of population growth and capacity constraints limiting supply

• Political tensions leading to suspicion of neighboring nationals

India

• Top five destination for students from:

– Ethiopia (2)

– Bhutan (2)

– Nepal (4)

– Kenya (4)

– UAE (5)

– Mauritius (5)

– Seychelles (5)

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North East Asia

•Familiarity in writing systems, Confucian heritage, long history of interconnection

•Over-capacity in Japan and Taiwan universities

• Major receiving countries• Japan 125,877• China 42,138• South Korea 31,943

•School systems are more focused on English than neighbouring countries’ languages

•Growth in mobility appears to be primarily in programs taught in English

Japan

• Top five destination for students from:

– China (2)

– Korea (2)

– Burma (2)

– Mongolia (3)

– Nepal (3)

– Laos (3)

– Sri Lanka (4)

– Fiji (4)

– Malaysia (4)

– PNG (4)

– Philippines (4)

– Thailand (4)

– Vietnam (4)

– Bangladesh (4)

– Australia (5)

– Indonesia (5)

– Cambodia (5)

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Total= 125,877

China

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Total= 195,503 (includes non-degree students) Data source: China Scholarship Council

• Does not provide source country data to UNESCO

South Korea

• Top five destination for students from:

– Mongolia (4)

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Total= 31,943

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South East Asia

•Diverse languages, culture, religion, history, but long history of regional interconnection

•Commitment from ASEAN leaders to foster integration in higher education

•Many English-language educational institutions with rapidly growing international enrolments

Malaysia

• Top five destination for students from:

– Maldives (1)

– Somalia (1)

– Sudan (1)

– Libya (2)

– Yemen (3)

– Brunei (3)

– Indonesia (3)

– Oman (4)

– Burma (4)

– Singapore (4)

– Djibouti (4)

– Thailand (5)

– Pakistan (5)

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Total = 24,404

Conclusions

• A growing share of the world’s internationally-mobile students are studying in the Asia Pacific region, in a more diverse range of countries

• Some students will continue to study in the national language of the host country, but most of the growth will be in programs taught in global English

• The desire for greater international student mobility across Asia is leading universities to prioritise the development of programs and courses taught in English, as has happened in Europe

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