International Education Hubs

Abstract

Education hubs are the newest development in the international higher education landscape. Countries, zones, and cities are trying to position themselves as reputed centers of excellence in higher education and research. The purpose of this chapter is to examine the complexities of education hubs within the frame of three generations of cross-border education and the broader phenomenon of internationalization. A conceptual analysis interrogates the primary ideas and assumptions underpinning the definition of an education hub and presents a typology of three different types—student, talent, and knowledge–innovation hubs. Highlights of six current education hub countries—United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Botswana, Malaysia, Singapore, and Hong Kong illustrate that a variety of objectives drive countries to prepare and position themselves as an education hub, including generating income, creating soft power, modernizing the domestic tertiary education sector, increasing economic competitiveness, building a trained work force, and, most importantly, transitioning to a knowledge-based economy.