Topic: “Sustaining and Enhancing Cross-border Partnership of Higher Education in the New Normal Context”

Objectives: The year marked the start of the new decade with events and issues that affected all countries worldwide. The COVID-19 pandemic was massively altering the world and all of its activities. Internationalization of higher education institutions was not an exception. The internationalization activities of the higher education institutions were impeded by countries’ lockdown and community isolation. Cross-border partnership development activities were seriously affected. Physical movement of people was all ceased.

In such unprecedented circumstances with new opportunities and challenges, which were called “new normal”, countries, industries, and individuals must build up their own responsive policies, prepare their readiness and adjust themselves to a new way of living, working, and interacting with others.  

In order to adapt to the “new normal” context, innovative ideas and new models of collaboration among higher education institutions were flourished. For example, continued collaboration among higher education institutions against the Covid-19 pandemic was made possible with the aid of innovation in information technology and digitalization in the digital era. Innovative application of information technology was particularly helpful to link the disconnected world. It was, thus, important for higher education institutions to reform the traditional approaches towards partnership in learning, teaching and conducting research under the “new normal” context. 

The Forum on Internationalization of Higher Education 2020 created a platform for researchers, practitioners, and higher education experts to share their insights, studies, experiences and lessons related to sustaining and enhancing cross-border partnership among higher education in the “new normal” context.

Facts and fingers:

• Numbers of foreign universities: 29
• Numbers of Vietnameses universities: 48
• Numbers of Embassies: 16
• Numbers of papers: 26
• Number of participants: 247