The Concepts and Rationale for the Internationalization of Korean Higher Education: A Comparative Study

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to investigate how diverse members of Korean universities in South Korea understand the concept and rationale for internationalization of higher education and to compare its results with those of previous study conducted by in 2000 as well. Data were collected from 4 disciplines(Engineering, Natural Science, Business / Economics, and Social Science) at 10 four-year universities in Korea. Questionnaire which were used in 2000 was utilized. The participants represented diverse disciplines and institutions as well as personal backgrounds, such as gender, age, academic rank, and international experience. The major findings of the study were (1) the respondents conceived internationalization of higher education on perspective of internationalized curriulum; (2) Internationalization of higher education is viewed as rewards or incentives that a university or a person can take rather than a public good; (3) The cultural patterns such as roles, majors, institutional types of universities influenced Koreans’ concept and rationale for internationalization of higher education.