Internationalisation and Cross-Border Mobility in Indian Higher Education

Abstract

With the end of the Cold War political returns on foreign aid diminished.
Many countries came to recognise trade as a more development-friendly
modality than aid. Internationalisation of higher education also shifted
from aid related cooperation agreements to market mediated cross-border
trade arrangements within the framework of the General Agreement
on Trade in Services (GATS). This article examines the changing face of
internationalisation of higher education with a focus on the Indian experience.
It argues that while internationalisation and cross-border mobility
are mediated by market processes and economic rationality in most countries,
the Indian government’s initiatives to internationalise Indian higher
education are motivated by extending diplomatic relations to enable the
country to play a more prominent role in global affairs.