Transnational education (TNE)

Following discussions with customers and policymakers, we engaged the Observatory on Borderless Higher Education (OBHe), an international higher education research and monitoring unit, to secure a better understanding of the UK HE sector’s TNE plans in the near-to-medium term. This research represented an ‘early-warning system’ to enable us to proactively prepare and develop a sustainable strategy for future requirements, including the provision of bandwidth and network connectivity overseas.

The research focused on two distinct constituencies within HEIs involved in planning and delivery of TNE, those working in the International Office or international strategy and planning (IO), and IT-related or technical staff (IT). The research had two main components: a series of regional focus groups to yield indications of current thinking on network connectivity abroad, and an online survey, live throughout July 2014. Responses were received from an overall total of 84 distinct HEIs – more than half the number of institutions targeted.

Findings and recommendations

The report, published in January 2015, can be found in the outputs section below.

Findings supported broader sector information on the various TNE delivery models, with online and partnership-type operations outweighing branch campuses and respondents placing greater weight on online and distance provision for the future. More surprising, and fundamental, findings included the relative isolation of IT staff from TNE activity decision-making and even overseas network arrangements was a case in point, with many IT staff unable to answer questions on international operations or explain problems experienced in specific countries.

From the report, we identified three main areas to focus support for TNE which we addressed by:

• Developing future plans in consultation with members and stakeholders
• Developing Jisc’s proposition and capability to facilitate provision to overseas infrastructure as a priority; and
• Developing and delivering a coordinated communication campaign to members to extend knowledge both within organisations and across the sector

The final point includes developing a guide or toolkit with information for HEI staff involved in developing TNE technical infrastructure. We anticipate that this will be available in early 2018.

We are committed to exploring new opportunities to support the entirety of Jisc’s member base, and beyond. Contact transnational@jisc.ac.uk for more information.

Our preferred model, where possible, of supporting TNE is through strategic partnerships with research and education networks (RENs) whose communities are active in transnational education.

Through our recent work in China we have developed an approach for successfully working in partnership with RENs which can be replicated in any country around the world.

With over 60,000 TNE students in China studying for a UK qualification, most UK higher education institution (HEI) TNE partners are Chinese universities, all of which are connected to CERNET (the Chinese Research and Education Network). CERNET provides excellent network services to its institutions and has very good connectivity to research and education networks worldwide, but many universities choose to use local internet service providers (ISP) for their international connectivity requirements, limited in accessibility back to the UK, and difficult to engage when problems occur.

What we did

To improve value for money and higher quality connectivity, we successfully established the first Strategic Alliance of its kind with CERNET in December 2013 to provide our members with access to the 10Gbit/s ORIENTplus link between Beijing and London. Our partnership with CERNET has made it possible to improve the connectivity between universities in the UK and China, on a campus to campus basis.

We have been working with universities of Aberdeen, Bangor, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Glasgow Caledonian, Heriot-Watt, Hull, Lancaster, Middlesex, Nottingham, Queen Mary University of London (QMUL), Reading, Royal College of Art, UCLAN and Westminster. Case studies are listed in the outputs section at the bottom of this page.

Complementary to the Jisc-CERNET Strategic Alliance is our China Transit service. This provides benefits to off-campus students and staff in China to access VLE and other IT services based on Janet, the UK Research and Education Network run by Jisc. We have procured a commercial solution with two of three Chinese ISPs (China Telecom and China Unicom) which also gives us direct access for fault reporting and issues management. This service is provided with a focus on the quality of delivery and optimising student access.

Developing strategic partnerships with research and education networks enables Jisc to develop our in-country expertise, which we can pass on to our members in the form of advice, guidance and ongoing support. This includes helping to identify technical issues, providing advice on technology requirements, acting as a point of contact during resolution of issues and troubleshooting ongoing connectivity issues.

Read a case study on how Jisc’s connections to China helped QMUL improve their students’ experience (pdf).

Jisc also helped to improve the point-to-point link between the University of Hull and its China office – contributing to a rise in student recruitment. Read the case study (pdf).

To find out more information, contact transnational@jisc.ac.uk.

In Malaysia we explored a different approach to improving connectivity at UK institutions’ overseas sites. We use our expertise in procurement to develop local solutions for institutions through either the in-country REN or a local ISP, which may be on an individual basis or through aggregating demand on behalf of multiple customers in that country. 

For the pilot project in Malaysia we developed a contractual relationship with Telekom Malaysia to procure and develop connectivity solutions and make use of private peering arrangements. This has enabled three UK education institutions to achieve improvements in quality of provision, resilience and cost efficiencies for their connectivity between Malaysia and the UK.

The two UK HEIs and private school with branch campuses co-located in the same physical location are part of EduCity, a strategically important programme to develop a knowledge-based hub in Nusajaya, Malaysia. Newcastle University opened a medical school 2011, the University of Southampton opened their campus in 2012, and Marlborough College has a substantial international school providing education for early years and secondary students. We have also successfully negotiated a connection to Heriot Watt’s campus in Putrajaya, which resulted in a significant reduction in costs. Read our case study on Heriot-Watt: enabling global working at a global university.

Institutions do not have to be current Jisc members or connected to the Janet Network to participate or be supported in this programme.

A new service

This resulted in the launch of our global connect service.

Currently there is little data available to show how staff and students experience educational technology provisions across countries meaning there is difficulty in ensuring that access and service is equitable across borders.

Jisc is currently piloting a version of the digital experience insights survey aimed towards institutions providing TNE with the pilot running between October 2018 and April 2019. This pilot project is part of Jisc’s TNE support programme.

The aim of the project is to provide data that can future proof wider institutional strategies and decision making to support the overall TNE student experience with an overarching aim of informing initiatives of bolstering student retention and engagement.

Read more about our transnational education insights, including the benefits to participating institutions.

The TNE licensing pilot was initiated in response to a growing demand from university library staff for a simpler way to license resources for their students based overseas.

Read more about the project.

We are aware that a number of UK higher education institutions with partner institutions in China have experienced a degradation in the performance of virtual private networks (VPNs) in recent months.

Jisc, in its role to support our UK members’ TNE activity, working in conjunction with CERNET, the Chinese National Research and Education Network (NREN), has investigated the issue and prepared a short briefing note which is available on request. This is an area which continues to evolve and we will keep you informed on an ongoing basis.

We would welcome your feedback on any aspect of this issue. For any institution interested in more details, please contact Jisc’s TNE team at transnational@jisc.ac.uk.

In March 2016 Jisc established the UK TNE Tech special interest group (SIG) to bring together specialists (from IT, libraries, academic leads, coordination roles and international staff) working on TNE delivery at universities across the UK.

The SIG currently has 34 members from 23 HEIs and aims to build a network to share best practice, provide peer-to-peer advice and guide Jisc on the development of additional TNE support services. New members are always welcome.

We also take a more strategic approach in supporting TNE, both in the UK and globally. We are a member of the Department for International Trade’s (DIT) TNE working group to coordinate UK government’s approach to enhancing current and future TNE delivery.

The group reports to the DIT Education Export Advisory Group, for the education sector to explore global trade and investment opportunities, and discuss how the government can provide support.

We also coordinate work on a global basis through the support of GÉANT, the European collaboration of research and education networks.

We have established a global special interest group (GÉANT SIG-TNE) to develop exchange knowledge and experience on TNE, with a view to developing specific technologies and services both now, and in the future.