Looking ahead to #TNE2023: Janet Ilieva, Director and Founder (Education Insight)

Going into your upcoming Transnational Education Conference session on risk and due diligence, what are some of the topics you are expecting to be talking about?

TNE should be an integral part of universities' global engagement strategy. While the international strategies of many higher education institutions (HEIs) consider international student recruitment and activities on campus, TNE balances this approach by reaching out to international partners and students in their home locations; it recognises and responds to their needs and priorities. 

Transnational education engagement is about the university's place in the world. At the strategy level, there is a notable shift towards proactive and meaningful engagement through teaching partnerships. This is often with a strong focus on local impact – including the education and development agenda, like widening access to education and international degrees, strengthening the quality and diversity of the local higher education provision, capacity building at the partner institution, supporting local employers by delivering flexible training options and attracting talent to the location of TNE delivery.

With TNE a growing part of the UK's international education offering, why is knowledge sharing on potential risks and effective due diligence important? Are there challenges in raising concerns around risks?

Due diligence is an ongoing process and is responsive to changes in the external environment, such as new policies on TNE and changes in countries' regulatory frameworks.

Having the right local partner offers a huge advantage in navigating the TNE landscape overseas. While many countries have detailed their TNE rules, often, there is a lack of clarity on how the rules are being implemented and what the policymakers' priorities are. Timely access to the right information is critical to the success of TNE. 

Besides your session, which other #TNE2023 session are you most looking forward to?

The conference programme looks excellent. In addition to the session on the Scale of UK TNE, I very much look forward to ‘Addressing equity in transnational education partnerships’.

There is a fine balance between equity and financial sustainability of TNE. Most of the rhetoric within universities has been around justifying TNE on the grounds of its financial returns and export value to the UK. A much more powerful narrative emerges when one also considers the local impact of TNE, such as widened access to HE to under-represented student groups, the employment it generates in the area and upskilling of the local workforce, capacity building at the partner-institutions and contribution to their international competitiveness. 

Tickets are nearly sold out for the Transnational Education Conference 2023, taking place at London South Bank University’s prestigious and modern ‘Hub’ building.