Higher Education in Russia and Beyond 2(12) Summer 2017

The new issue focuses on international students, their importance for higher educational institutions and the change they bring.

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In recent discussion on internationalisation, the role of international students as main drivers has been rightly reconsidered. Though there is no doubt that they originally served as a physical trigger to the processes which lead to major change in the formal and informal curricular, and facilitated the transformation of the concept of internationalisation itself, they still remain an important factor which is being recognised as a very important one for further development of international higher education. Albeit international academic mobility is still often favoured as the most vivid and measurable indicator of internationalisation, there is a deepening awareness of the fact that it reflects more significant shifts in the way the purpose and function of tertiary education is being considered and perceived.

There were three viewpoints chosen for introducing and discussing the topic, the first one focusing on general trends of what can make countries more attractive educational destinations for international students and research unveiling the pull factors for leaving home country in search for better academic knowledge and career prospects.
The second outlook presents different models and tool of attracting international students: from perceiving international students as the key factor for the region’s and university development, to seeing strategy for international recruiting as a major instrument of international branding and advancement in world university rankings.
And, finally, the third standpoint is about role international students play in changing and developing university community, which is not possible without involving domestic students on the one and rethinking the strategy for internal communication and students’ services evolution.