Developing equitable TNE partnerships: where to begin

UK higher education (HE) transnational education (TNE) provision is an important part of institutions’ international activity (Tsiligiris and Ilieva and Hill, 2018). The scale of TNE grew by 9.3% in 2021-2022 with 558,315 students studying for a UK degree outside of the UK (Universities UK international, 2023). Across Africa, TNE provision grew by nearly 4% particularly in Egypt, Nigeria, South Africa and Ghana. Increasingly, African countries are turning to TNE to address challenges in their higher education systems. Similarly, UK universities are looking to grow their TNE provision, with several universities developing partnerships across the continent and many of them aspiring to develop TNE partnerships that are not only sustainable but also equitable in their setup.

Prior studies on research collaborations and equity have highlighted the importance of developing equitable practices between the Global North and Global South, however resources that support UK universities looking to build equitable TNE partnerships with Global South universities are limited. Due to the transformational effect that TNE partnerships can have on a host country’s higher education system and skills market, universities have been looking for TNE-specific resources to build equitable partnerships to address questions, such as: How do we avoid uneven power dynamics in the setup? How can we ensure that TNE provision considers local knowledge and the language of host countries? Does the TNE provision support capacity building and address the challenges highlighted by the host country?  

This insight brief intends to respond to members’ interests in developing equitable partnership and their need for further information. It thus aims to continue the conversation on equitable partnerships with a specific focus on TNE and support UK universities looking to build these in Africa and other parts of the world. To do so, UUKi conducted interviews with 11 individuals from universities and higher education organisations in the UK and in four African countries. This brief sets out what equity in TNE means to UK universities and overseas stakeholders and the barriers to equitable partnerships in TNE. It concludes with a summary of main findings and suggestions that universities may wish to consider when developing TNE partnerships. We are grateful to the UK universities, overseas partners, and organisations for their valuable contribution to this work.

There is no single definition of equity and partnerships. Interviewees discussed the meaning and elements of equity in TNE in context of their own partnerships and organisational objectives. This includes:   

Co-design of programmes

• Interviewees agreed that equity is about collaboration between two or more institutions. This means co-design, co-delivering and co-supervision of the TNE programmes
• co-choosing the right TNE model, costing models and location
• curriculum and pedagogy design that incorporates local knowledge from both sides
• identifying the needs of both institutions and the wider environment

One interviewee described that there were significant benefits to collaboration. For example, their partner’s research methodology skills were advantageous to their institution and similarly, their field work skills were advantageous to their partner.

Clear definitive roles

Interviewees added that equitable partnership means challenging the dynamics of relationships between TNE partners which have historically been giver-receiver relationships. This means: 

• equal division of labour and responsibilities 
• clear understanding of how the partnership should run 
• conversations on roles and task delegation for all partners involved at the beginning of the process
• clear guidance on conflict resolution and space for open conversations if one party feels workload is unevenly split

This is important because the administrative and logistical side of delivering TNE programme can be intensive (Ding, 2018), which was also echoed by interviewees.

Non-monetary value

Interviewees recognised that TNE is an economic benefit, however for equitable partnerships to work, value needs to be redefined outside of the of the perimeters of money. This is because African universities come into conversations on TNE economically disadvantaged in comparison to their Global North peers (Bosire and Amimo, 2018). 

In this case, interviewees stated that equitable partnership means:

• recognising the economic inequalities at play – two interviewees created a unique fee structure for their TNE programme.
• developing partnerships that go beyond money – whilst this is important, interviewees emphasised that their focus is on developing programmes that bring long term impact for all staff and students. 
• restoring power balance – all partners are actively involved in decision making

Another point raised by interviewees was on the restoration of power balance and what this means and what is needed to restore the balance. 

Global North-South relations even in the TNE field have been characterised by giver-receiver relationships in which the decision-making power predominantly lies with the home country which can further perpetuate power imbalances.

Interviewees in Africa particularly echoed that it is imperative in any partnership they enter, their partners see them and treat them as equal and that includes shared decision-making power on all aspects of the partnership.

Knowledge systems

Interviewees across Africa stated that for equitable partnerships to work, there needs to be a better understanding and knowledge of the different knowledge systems that exist across Africa as well as the regulatory environment. Overseas partners need to be open to understanding these systems. 

The interviewees that have established partnerships expressed the time and effort taken to understand the systems to create programmes that merge their strengths and address their weaknesses.                             

They also discussed the scars left by colonialisation. Equity therefore also means building inclusive programmes that are focused on cross pollination of ideas and bring together the strengths of each institution with the aim of supporting universities that have previously been historically disadvantaged by colonialism to have access to linkages and collaborative opportunities.

Mutually beneficial vs equitable partnerships

Interviewees were asked whether they thought there was a difference between mutually beneficial partnership and equitable partnership. Almost all interviewees agreed that mutually beneficial and equitable partnerships are closely linked but differ slightly.

Mutually beneficial partnerships are:

• an exchange between partners where they all receive similar benefits or individuals benefits of similar scale i.e. partner institutions receiving or recruiting the same number of students for a programme
• not always equitable and can be a short-term initiative
• can be one dimensional because it directly speaks to what each partner can or will gain which is often economic benefits
• can speak to what partners need at a specific time and this can then progress to become an equitable partnership over time

In line with previous research, interviewees stated that equitable partnerships are:

• multi-faceted and multilayered
• longer lasting process that requires time, trust and an appetite for risk
• about balance and compromises
• needed to level out historical power dynamics which means the non-economic benefits is as important if not more important than economic benefits
• considerate of the different stakeholders and their needs

Interviewees added that in equitable partnerships, stakeholder needs may change at different stages and one partner may benefit more than the other at different intervals.

Interviews highlighted that equity was becoming a key component of how universities operationalise their TNE partnerships and showed that the main drivers for developing equitable TNE partnerships included strategic objectives, historical and individual links, academic rationale and capacity-building.

Institutional strategic objectives

Interviewees noticed a shift across their institution on how staff and students wanted to work with Global South partners. They imbedded principles of equitable partnerships into their new institutional strategy objectives to inform the way they developed partnerships with current and new partners. This meant creating programmes with partners that drive social purpose, equity and inclusion for all students and staff. 

Historical and individual links

Interviewees agreed that having long standing institutional or individual links with their partners made it easier to develop programmes due to years of established trust and understanding. One of the institutions highlighted that their institution’s indirect links with slavery was an important driver to develop equitable partnerships agreements with African institutions that would address key issues that co-exist for both countries and support capacity building efforts of their partners.

Furthermore, one interviewee mentioned that they had government buy-in to develop TNE partnerships with some of the public universities with their partner country, which made the process smoother. Interviews highlighted that equity was becoming a key component of how universities operationalise their TNE partnerships and showed that the main drivers for developing equitable TNE partnerships included strategic objectives, historical and individual links, academic rationale and capacity-building.

Academic rationale

Universities which established equitable TNE partnerships mentioned that they had a shared intellectual ambition with the partner. This enabled the perfect environment to craft and explore new ideas that is multilayered and multidisciplinary with a deeper focus on education, research, and community.

Bridging the gap 

According to interviewees from institutions in African countries, young people are seeking quality education to enhance their job prospect and security. The growing youth population has led to demand outweighing supply. Whilst in-country governments have implemented initiatives to close this growing gap, the gap is still far too wide. 

Interviewees emphasised that TNE served as one of the ways to realise some of the objectives in their internationalisation strategy such as:

• bridging the widening demand gap
• building capacity and training staff
• helping to reduce the impact of brain drain
• co-developing collaborative joint programmes
• actively participating in knowledge sharing and co-creation
• supporting students who may not have the financial means to travel overseas

Despite the interest in developing equitable TNE partnerships and the recognition of the benefits these partnerships have, there are significant challenges that make their development a privilege and not always feasible for all partners. Interviewees agreed that the main challenges to developing equitable TNE partnerships included funding, fee structures, contextualisation, connectivity and external support.

Funding

All interviewees stated that the main barrier to achieving equitable TNE partnership was a lack of funding for setting up the partnership and supporting students that want to take part in the programmes. This brings several issues:

• reduced scale at which programmes can be developed and optimised
• reduced opportunities for staff and students in the Global South to develop relevant skills to run projects and programmes
• limited access for students from low socio-economic backgrounds to attend university

One interviewee mentioned that the financial constraints experienced by institutions in their home country, in comparison to their Global North counterparts, can impact partners’ outlook on what African universities have to offer. 

Fee structure 

Interviewees highlighted the difficulties in creating fee structures that do not perpetuate further inequalities. One interviewee mentioned that despite creating a new fee structure that allows students from both universities to pay equal fee, for some students, the fee is still higher priced than national average.

One interviewee posed the question:

Interviewees admitted that it is a case of trial and error, and they will continue to review for the duration of the programme.

Contextualisation

Programmes need to be designed to meet local needs of partners, this includes consideration of labour market needs, degree programmes already on offer in the country as well as consideration to local languages and English language requirements to name but a few. While UK providers need to be able to develop, deliver and quality assure the programme depending on the partnership agreement, considering the local language as a medium of instruction where possible may open up programmes to a wider range of students who would otherwise not meet the English language requirements according to one interviewee.

Connectivity and technology

Internet and technology equipment are not accessible to all students which makes attending online classes difficult. One of the interviewees added that this creates two sets of difficulties: 

• ensuring a seamless student experience for all students on the programme, both at home and overseas
• meeting both partner institutions’ carbon and digital footprint objectives

External support

The most frequent answer by interviewees on what support is needed to develop equitable and sustainable TNE partnership was creating spaces for organisations and universities to share knowledge and best practises.

Other notable support includes: 

• connecting universities with overseas institutions that share similar institutional objectives 
• changing the language and narrative around UK HE TNE and supports institutions that want to develop equitable TNE partnerships. 
• lobbying for funding to help institutions that want to develop equitable partnerships and capacity building initiatives

Equitable partnerships in TNE matter. They can open doors to a greater diversity of partnerships and partners that would otherwise be closed. Most universities are at the beginning of building these partnerships and they take time and effort to build. Those involved in TNE partnerships develop their own agreed understandings of what equity and equitable partnerships mean in the context of their provision. 

We collated suggestions from interviewees on the key elements that universities may wish to consider when developing equitable partnerships to enhance the transformational effect of their TNE provision and access a wider range of potential partners.