On Cooperation and Competition: A Comparative Analysis of National Policies for Internationalisation of Higher Education in Seven Western European Countries

Abstract

The focus of this article is on a comparison of the national policies for internationalisation in seven Western European countries (Austria, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, and the United Kingdom). In this comparison, it will be shown that the trend suggested in previous research of increasing economical rationales for internationalisation and mainstreaming of higher education have persisted during the past few years. In addition, the approach to internationalization in the seven countries has broadened and is no longer mainly about student and staff mobility. Finally, the article shows that changes in the higher education policy context, including international and global developments, have brought about reforms in the higher education systems of the countries; these developments, however, have no uniform impact on the higher education policy and systems.