International Education Hubs as Competitive Advantage: Investigating the Role of the State as Power Connector in the Global Education Industry

Abstract

This chapter discusses some of the far-reaching implications for governing higher education in International Education Hubs (IEHs) and the potential impact of those implications on an increasingly interconnected global education policy space. As governmental projects aiming at the transformation of selected territories into economically competitive and socially progressive areas through reforming education, states enable a Global Education Industry to flourish by blurring the lines between the roles of public and private players in education. For potentially achieving a competitive advantage in the global economy through the creation of IEHs, states extensively involve global players in the provision of education, training, and research, but also education policy, to achieve a competitive advantage in the global economy through the creation of IEHs. By discussing the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) Vision 2021, a prominent policy outlining the UAE’s (seemingly) steady progression into a global hub for trade and business until the year 2021, the contribution examines the role attributed to education for achieving this transformation. Through the applied theoretical lens informed by Cultural Political Economy, it discusses the implications for governing higher education in such business-driven environments and engages with the role of the state in this development.