Rethinking internationalization of higher education for society from an outside-in perspective

Amid increasing criticism of the internationalization of higher education (IoHE) for its Anglo-centric tendencies, there has been discussion of the need to reconsider the rationales for and approaches to IoHE. Specifically it has been argued that there is an urgent need to focus IOHE more sharply on addressing the many complex and persistent issues faced by local and global communities. As part of the discussion, a new model of IoHE, ‘internationalisation of higher education for society’ (IHES) has been proposed by prominent scholars in the field. This paper seeks to make a positive contribution to the discussion of IHES. Our aim is to refine the concept by integrating an ‘outside-in’ perspective, a viewpoint currently missing from the existing conceptualization of IHES. The paper answers three unique research questions: 1) What are the implications of contemporary societal transitions for IoHE? 2) How can universities use their internationalization activities to more effectively facilitate societal transformations? 3) What are the implications of reforming the rationales of IoHE from the perspective of university–society relations? We highlight that collaborations in higher education between East Asian and Nordic countries offer an optimal platform to explore and promote the potential of a new paradigm of IoHE. Copyright © 2024 The Author(s).