First, the author estimates that there are now more than two million tertiary students studying abroad around the world and the number will likely reach eight million by 2025. Of the two million, more than 1.6 million are studying in OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development) countries, with the United States accounting for the largest share - 35 per cent - followed by the United Kingdom (14 per cent), Australia (13 per cent), Germany (12 per cent), France (8 per cent) and New Zealand (5 per cent). Most of these students are from developing countries. Besides the OECD nations, Russia is another major host country, especially for students from Commonwealth of Independent States countries. The 2005 estimated number of foreign students in Russia was around 100,000.

Worldwide, the number of students enrolling in higher education has been increasing rapidly in the past decades, estimated to have topped 100 million in 2003, with sharp rises in China and India. Overall, the private higher education market is said to be worth more than US$300 billion (Bt11.38 trillion). For host countries with large numbers of foreign students, it's therefore a big business.

For Australia, international students generate 13 per cent of the country's service exports, while New Zealand's share is about 8 per cent (based on a 2003 estimate). For the US, which had nearly 600,000 foreign students in 2004, higher education accounted for 4.2 per cent of its service exports in 2003, while the UK's share was about 3.2 per cent of service exports (based on 2000 figures).

On the other hand, international students also study abroad in developing countries such as China, which hosted more than 60,000 students in 2002. Of these, 70 per cent came from other Asian countries, while 12 and 11 per cent came from Europe and the US respectively. Other major host nations include Malaysia (37,000 students in 2003),

South Africa (47,000) and Egypt (27,000).

In addition, more and more foreign higher educational institutes have set up campus or started joint programmes with local institutes in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and China.

In short, economic and business opportunities are abundant for providers and investors in cross-border education. On the other hand, the challenges are no less significant. First, the World Trade Organisation, based on the General Agreement on Trade in Services, decided recently it was time for education to be traded in the global marketplace. While education remains one of the least committed sectors, with less than 30 per cent of member countries having committed to liberalisation, most countries have put more restrictions on primary and secondary

education

than on higher and adult education.

As a result, there has been a sharp rise in the opening of offshore campuses and joint programmes between international and local higher learning institutes in several Asia and Pacific countries where demand for higher

education has been increasing rapidly.

A major concern is that under the guise of globalisation this could lead to dominance by major foreign cultures and value systems from outside the region.

In addition, there has been a growing, but undue, emphasis on the immediate utility of knowledge rather than on fundamental wisdom. Meanwhile, other challenges include the increasingly widespread fake college degrees and diplomas around the world and under-reported corruption cases in higher education.

Last but not least is that higher education appears to have faced a widening creditability gap due to weak accreditation and academic standards.

Nophakhun Limsamarnphun

 nop1122@yahoo.com