Dr. Prem Bahadur Thapa

Quality Assurance and Accreditation (QAA-TU) Centre of Tribhuvan University has taken steps for the internationalisation of higher education in Nepal due to growing visibility around the globe. Such an initiative in South Asian region is supported by the Merge: Erasmus+ Programme. With the theme of ‘Improving Internationalisation Practices in South Asian Higher Education,’ it has been co-funded by European Union.
The TU is one of the partner institutions of MERGE to globalise the internationalisation practice of higher education (HE) and ensure the effective quality assurance mechanism. The internationalisation of HE provides the new dimension for teaching and learning processes, and connects the institutions, students, researchers, knowledge, and programmes. The notion of internationalisation of higher education has substantial significance in current global-knowledge society for demanding the consideration of its impact on policy and procedures of many countries and their institutions around the world to engage in this process.
In fact, academic mobility is the internationalisation practice and the mobility can synthesise global inequality. However, the restrictions on international travel due to prevailing risk of COVID-19 have disrupted the internationalisation aspirations but online platforms have provided the opportunity to participate in long-distance educational intuitions. The new dimension of online platform is to establish the collaboration between the universities, thereby helping increase partnerships and recognise the value of flourishing institutional relationships.
Key issues in internationalisation strategies need to prioritise the coordination between the different actors and their proliferation. Integration of intercultural and global dimension is crucial component which is the process of paradigm shift for involving the universal access to lead and expand the higher education. The process is aiming to raise the global critical thinking by gaining the experiences of abroad and cross-cultural communication for working effectively in international settings with diverse cultural adaptability.
Thus, the internationalisation practice has become very relevant issue in higher education and is the forefront operational guiding principles for governments and higher education institutions (HEIs) in worldwide and more specifically important in the countries of South Asia because the concept is not yet well established.
Currently, QAA-TU Centre is disseminating the activities of Merge: Erasmus+ Programme by means of various approaches such as updating collaborative efforts in institution website, arranging meetings with academicians, administrative staffs and students as well as information dissemination through news media that can be shared by the users via social media.
Many Nepali students prefer to go abroad for higher studies due to lack of institutional resources and infrastructures, therefore, it is pre-requisite to understand the internationalisation process which is recognised as the increasing concern in Nepal. There are some foreign students who wish to study and carry out research work in Nepal Himalaya because of its unique geo-environment. Nepal should utilise such uniqueness to attract foreign students for developing the inter-relationship, sharing of experiences as well as performing the joint research activities.
Based on experience of foreign students who are studying in Nepal, others students will also get factual information that will step up the linkage between the universities. Furthermore, Nepali universities are working together with international and national universities for exchange of education, research, and programme mobility. In recent years, the higher education sectors in Nepal are gradually becoming the domain for foreign universities and higher educational organisations.

(Thapa is the director at QAA-TU Centre)