Malaysia is becoming an increasingly active player in international education and ranks as the 11th largest exporter of education in the world. Malaysia's recognisable advantages in the international education market include its strategic location between the East and the West, cultural diversity, and a relatively stable socio-economic…

This quantitative study provides a snapshot of the eating behaviour of more than 300 international students studying across four campuses of an Australian university. It explores what the students are eating and drinking, their knowledge of nutrition, the extent to which they prepare their own food or rely on fast food and if their behaviour is…

Current published information on the Australian student mobility offshore is reviewed as part of a long-term project aiming to determine the current propensity of Australian higher education students to study overseas and the return on investment that they can expect to achieve. It was found that limited data are available on the current extent of…

This paper explores the main satisfiers and dissatisfiers for international students in Australia's higher educational sector. Using a critical incident technique, this study is conducted with international students of higher education in Australia. Four categories of satisfiers and dissatisfiers emerge from the data which are related to…

This paper evaluates the performance of national higher education systems in 48 countries as measured with 20 variables grouped under the four headings of Resources, Environment, Connectivity and Output. Rankings within each module are then combined into an overall ranking that is topped by the United States followed by Sweden, Canada, Finland and…

The past two decades have seen the development of many global university alliances. Some alliances have taken a bilateral form, others are multilateral. In a period of increasing competition among universities, such alliances represent a curious form of cooperation. They have become more common just as global competition for academic talent has…

In recent times, many key host nations have made it easier for foreign graduates to migrate after graduation. These students are often considered ideal migrants, possessing local qualifications along with a degree of acculturation, language skills and, in many cases, relevant local work experience. For the student, the opportunity to obtain…

Students who travel abroad for study bring with them a wealth of cultural resources and expectations that influence their ability to adapt and acculturate into their new environment. While the ability to fit into their new context is a largely personal endeavour, for students from Confucian heritage societies, the cultural expectations of family…

Research that is conducted across divergent contexts and communities presents challenges. This paper explores the importance of building trusting relationships between researchers and participants to overcome some of these challenges. Using a postmodern perspective it describes practices that merged to form a comprehensive strategy for working…

One aspect of the internationalisation of higher education in Australia has been a large growth in the number of international students enrolled in universities. While this has brought a number of benefits to the institutions, the students themselves report varying levels of satisfaction with their experience. One area which can contribute to…

It has become commonplace for scholars and education managers to talk of the globalisation of higher education. How to provide housing for the growing numbers of international students, however, remains contentious. This paper presents the situation in Australia by analysing the results of two large surveys and official reports published by…

Grade point average (GPA) has been around for more than two centuries. However, it has created a lot of confusion, frustration, and anxiety to GPA-producers and users alike, especially when used across-nation for different purposes. This paper looks into the reasons for such a state of affairs from the perspective of educational measurement. It…

At a time when the number of internationally mobile students worldwide has been growing steadily, the US share of this market has been declining. Since, as it is often claimed, international students are the best ambassadors for their host countries, an effective recruitment strategy is to enhance their learning experience, with the expectation…

This article reports on interview-based research on Chinese students' perceptions of aspects of university study and their reasons for undertaking Australian programmes. In this cross-cultural setting, perceptions of "good" and "bad" subjects were elicited, and the need to standardise or adapt programmes to meet Chinese students' needs is…

An important way to improve access for groups that are under-represented in tertiary education is to facilitate the movement of students from vocational education and training to higher education institutions. However, there is substantial evidence of rigidities and obstacles to such a closer integration between these two sectors. This paper…