THE UNIVERSITY of EDINBURGH

Edinburgh Global

Internationalisation Strategy

Contents1 Principal’s introduction

2 Introduction

4 Our international history

6 Our current international strengths

10 Our aspiration

12 Key outcomes

14 Key actions

16 Measures of success

18 Conclusion

20 Vice Principal’s conclusion

21 Useful contacts

The University is grateful to former Associate Vice Principal Sarah Smithfor her contribution to the work that underpins this strategy.

Principal’s introduction

The overarching priority is to furtherenhance our global presence. We are adistinctly Scottish university based inScotland’s capital, but our reach andaspirations are international and it isin that context we must be measured.We operate on an international stageand this must be reflected in all areasof University life; from our studentsand staff, to our collaborations thattackle problems transcendingnational boundaries, and in theimportant intellectual and societalcontributions we make.

Professor Sir Timothy O’Shea,Principal and Vice-Chancellorfrom The University of Edinburgh Strategic Plan 2008-2012

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IntroductionThe University of Edinburgh has a long and proudhistory as an internationally focused university. Thisstrategy sets out how we propose to build on that stronginternational tradition and reputation to ensure that weare best positioned to contribute and thrive in the yearsahead. Given the ever-increasing pace of changeglobally, we need to be able to act quickly and flexibly.We need to give a sharp international focus to ourconsiderable and broad-ranging strengths in research,learning and knowledge exchange – identifying andmaking the most of emerging internationalopportunities; communicating effectively internally andexternally about the range of our international activity;and continuously improving the way in which we goabout the range of our international work.

Globalisation is set to continue. It will bring newopportunities and new challenges for the nextgenerations of graduates and academics seekingto prosper in and contribute to an increasinglyinterdependent world. It will also bring big new marketsfor providers of higher education, yet significantlygreater competition and greater potential volatility.The implications of the increasing pace oftechnological innovation are likely to be profound.They include a huge shift in demand for ‘borderless’education. The expectations of all students as moresophisticated, informed consumers of learningexperiences can be expected to rise and the ability torecognise and meet such expectations is likely to bea key source of differentiation. We can expectincreasing pressure on resources – human,energy and financial – adding to the impetusto be attractive to international staff, andoffering new international research challengesand opportunities.

We are likely to be carrying out our future rangeof international academic activity in a global politicalenvironment that continues to be very uncertain. This will mean that we must be able to respondquickly and flexibly to perceived or actual barriers to internationalisation.

This strategy sets out how we intend to deliver onour aspiration of becoming a place of first choice inthe minds of the world. The risks of not embracingthis agenda are severe: in this dynamic, exciting andchallenging world, to stand still or even to makeincremental progress will be to fall behind. But if weare successful, we will see clear benefits in terms ofhaving vibrant, internationally focused staff andstudents who are open to, and working with, the bestminds worldwide. We will have recruited studentstoday who will be the international leaders oftomorrow. We will see enhanced resources so thatwe can offer our students continually improvedlearning and living experiences and can make theinvestments that we need to make to develop ourbroad ranging and cutting-edge research agendaover the coming years.

We are already a strong, internationally engaged and respected University. We have set ourselves abroad-ranging and ambitious goal that will build on these strengths but require strong commitment,engagement and ingenuity from all of us to get there.

Globalisation will bringnew opportunities andnew challenges for the nextgenerations of graduatesand academics seeking toprosper in and contributeto an increasinglyinterdependent world.

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The University of Edinburgh has been attractinginternational students and scholars and contributingto international debate for more than four centuries.We have a long history of international expertise.For example, we have been teaching Arabic for morethan 250 years and have had a strong history ofengagement in Africa.

Some of the world’s great achievers and mostdistinguished scholars, academics and scientists havestudied with us over the centuries. These include suchworld-renowned figures as Charles Darwin, thenaturalist and geologist; David Hume, the philosopher;Joseph Black, the founder of thermochemistry; JohnWitherspoon and Benjamin Rush, signatories to theAmerican Declaration of Independence; writersincluding Robert Louis Stevenson, Sir Walter Scott, SirArthur Conan Doyle and J M Barrie; Peter Mark Rogetof Thesaurus fame; Joseph Lister, who introducedantiseptics into surgery; James Simpson, whopioneered the use of chloroform in midwifery andsurgery; James Hutton, the father of modern geology;and Sophia Jex-Blake, who opened the medicalprofession to women in Great Britain.

This strong tradition of academic excellence hascontinued with leading international scholars includingProfessor Sir Ian Wilmut, who led the team that createdDolly the Sheep; Professor Peter Higgs, theoreticalphysicist of Higgs-Boson acclaim; Professor TomDevine, international authority on the history of modernScotland; Professor Fraser J Stoddart, nanotechnologyand chemistry; Piers Sellers, NASA astronaut; andProfessor Annelia Sargeant (Caltech), former Chair ofNASA’s Space Science Advisory Committee and

Director of Caltech’s Owens Valley Radio Observatory.The University is also associated with nine Nobel Prizewinners including Peter Doherty (Medicine), JamesMirrlees (Economics) and Honorary Professor SirMichael Atiyah, who won the Abel Prize (Mathematics).

From our foundation in 1583, the University hasdeveloped a reputation for being one of Europe’sprincipal universities. By the early 18th century, theUniversity was one of the continent’s principaluniversities and a major centre in the European andScottish Enlightenment, a period characterised by anoutpouring of intellectual and scientific accomplishments.As the French philosopher Voltaire famously said ofintellectual thought emanating from Scotland at that time:“We look to Scotland for all our ideas of civilization.”

But it was not just within Europe that the Universitydeveloped a strong reputation. We were the firstuniversity in Europe to admit a Chinese student, HuangKuan, who graduated as a Doctor of Medicine in 1855.And such was our reputation internationally in the 19thcentury that a number of fledgling universities overseas –notably in Canada and the US – used Edinburgh as amodel for their own institutions.

In recent years, our international standing is welldemonstrated by those who have accepted honorarydegrees with the University. Recent honorary graduatesinclude Jose Manuel Barroso, the President of theEuropean Commission; President Mary McAleese ofIreland; Bill Gates, the Chair of Microsoft; ProfessorZhong Nanshan, President of the Chinese MedicalAssociation, who led the scientific team that identifiedthe SARS virus; and Neil Armstrong, the US astronaut.

Our international historyMany of our students come from across the border, theycome from every civilised land; and it is our proudestcompliment, for it means that they think they getsomething here which is not to be got elsewhere.J M Barrie, The Entrancing LifeInaugural address as Chancellor of the University of Edinburgh, 25 October 1930

students the opportunity to learn more about theworld. In partnership with approximately 200institutions worldwide, we also participate in exchangeand mobility schemes that offer students and teachersa challenging and exciting international experience,providing them with new perspectives and anunderstanding of different cultures.

We have built up an increasing number of non-traditional ways of offering teaching and learning tointernational students, such as through distancelearning and joint PhDs. We have considerableinternational expertise within the University andhave developed a number of strong centres ofinternational excellence, for example, the ConfuciusInstitute, the Centre for the Study of the Arab World,the Europa Institute and the Centre of AfricanStudies. We have recently launched a new Centrefor International Development to promote University-wide support and engagement for enhancedinterdisciplinary and cross-college activity relatingto international development. Our internationalexpertise and reputation enables us to provide anenvironment for challenging and importantinternational debates.

We employ more than 640 international academiccolleagues from more than 80 countries around theworld and participate in numerous internationalresearch collaborations, attracting a significant amount

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We are currently performing well internationally acrossa wide range of areas, as evidenced by globaluniversity rankings. The Principal and a number ofcolleagues within the University have played a pivotalrole in acting as ambassadors for the University and indeveloping and fostering international awareness ofwhat we do.

We engage in a range of international groupingsof Universities, such as Universitas 21, League ofEuropean Research Universities and the CoimbraGroup in order to promote internationalisation,academic collaboration, excellence in learning andresearch, and service to society. We shall continue toplay a major part in the European University system,through cooperation and involvement with the Bolognaagreement and its implications.

Edinburgh is a very special place, offering manyattractions for international students and academics,including its wide range of national museums andgalleries, stunning architecture, music and theatre, andeasy access to beautiful and varied countryside. It isalso seen as a safe place to live, compared to manyother cities worldwide. So it is not surprising that it hasbeen ranked the best place to be by internationalstudents. We provide good support for internationalstudents and many opportunities for engagementthrough our international office, clubs and societies,and our faith provision and worship facilities. TheEdinburgh University Students Union is rated highlyby our international students for the wide varietyof services that it offers.

We have succeeded in attracting increasednumbers of international students from morethan 130 countries on the back of our reputation,teaching quality and location. Having a goodproportion of international students offers all of our

Our currentinternational strengths

Having a good proportionof international studentsoffers all of our students theopportunity to learn moreabout the world.

of international research funding. Through innovativeinitiatives to pool research in certain areas, we havebeen able to play a leading role in shaping andtapping into research expertise more broadly. A recentsurvey in the Scientist magazine ranked Edinburgh asthe fourth best place in the world for post-doctorateresearchers to work.

We have developed a range of strategic partnershipsat senior levels with overseas governments, institutionsand organisations, in particular with China where wehave extended our links with academic institutionssuch as Peking University and the Beijing FilmAcademy in fields as diverse as e-Science,engineering, life and medical sciences, and arts andculture. We work in partnership with approximately 40European institutions to facilitate teaching visits for ouracademic staff and we offer numerous collaborativeprogrammes with institutions such as the University ofSydney, University of Trento, Universitat Aachen andl’Universite de la Sorbonne Nouvelle – Paris III.

We have a strong and vibrant network of alumni acrossthe world. Recent alumni include Gordon Brown, theBritish Prime Minister; Douglas Alexander, the UKSecretary of State for International Development; PiersSellers, the NASA astronaut; Dr Michael Cullen, DeputyPrime Minister and Finance Minister of New Zealand; Sir Chris Hoy, the Olympian and world-beating cyclist;and Anneila Sargent, Professor of Astronomy at theCalifornia Institute of Technology, USA.

The University’s strong and broad internationalperformance provides an excellent foundation forus to meet the undoubtedly increasing and ever morecomplex international challenges in the years ahead.

We have been ableto play a leading rolein shaping and tappinginto research expertisemore broadly.

Joel Edmonson,postgraduatemusic studentand Scotland’sInternationalStudent of the Year,with Jimmy Chooat the InternationalStudent of theYear Awards 2007

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The Principal, Professor Sir Timothy O’Shea with Professor MinWeifang, Party Secretary of Peking University, at a ceremony inBeijing to celebrate collaboration between the University and China,152 years after Huang Kuan graduated in medicine from Edinburgh,the first Chinese graduate of any European university

NASA astronautand University of

Edinburgh alumnus,Piers Sellers

Anneila Sargent,Professor ofAstronomy atCalifornia Instituteof Technology, USAand University ofEdinburgh alumna

The UK Prime Minister and University of Edinburgh alumnus,Gordon Brown, with his wife Sarah Brown, fellow alumnus Sir

Chris Hoy and University Principal, Professor Sir TimothyO’Shea, at the University’s Olympic reception in Beijing, 2008

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sustainable income flows through offering increasedopportunities to international students to study here;and offering all of our students increased internationalexperience and understanding that will support them inbuilding a future in an increasingly interdependent world.

Becoming a place of first choice is a process, not anend-state, and will require continuous improvement inwhat we do across a range of areas. Measuring successthrough the perceptions of others internationally meansthat we will focus on how we are seen by all the keypeople we engage with internationally – whether leadinginternational academics, alumni, governments,institutions, students, schools or parents – and will askourselves how we can best demonstrate and delivercontinued and improved quality in what we do to meetactual and future expectations.

Our aspirationOur aspiration is to become a place of first choice inthe minds of the world.

This aspiration puts increasing our internationalreputation for quality – in learning, research andknowledge transfer – at the heart of our future activity. Wewant to develop further our relationships with the bestinternational universities across this spectrum of activity.

Enhancing our international reputation should create avirtuous circle, building further and bigger opportunitiesfor international research partnerships with other world-class universities and institutions worldwide; enhancingour ability to shape and secure increased levels ofinternational research funding; attracting the best mindsto work with us (whether to learn, research or developcommercial opportunities); increasing our ability to secure

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Our aspiration is tobecome a place of firstchoice in the mindsof the world.

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Key outcomesTo reach our overarching objective of becoming aplace of first choice in the minds of the world, wewill seek to achieve the following key outcomes:

• A broad international understanding ofwhat we stand for and what we offer

• Attracting the best students worldwideto study with us

• World-renowned research that attracts thebest academics worldwide to work with us

• Knowledge that is valued and applied bybusiness and government worldwide.

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Key actions

1 We will provide easily accessibleinformation about the range ofour international activity andwhat we offer.

As priorities, we will:

• develop web-based materials to act as a gatewayto the international aspects of the University ofEdinburgh, covering areas such as researchdatabases; graduates and affiliates; academicengagement and expertise; and studentresources; and

• develop our alumni network further so that they canhelp form networks and contacts and buildreputation in key countries and regions.

2 We will offer a learning and livingexperience that explicitly meets theneeds and expectations of internationalas well as domestic students.

As priorities, we will:

• streamline and further professionalise recruitmentand admissions processes for all undergraduateand postgraduate students;

• put greater investment into (and respond quicklyand flexibly to) market research in priority countries;

• offer significantly more postgraduate taught places –the Vice Principal (International) will work with eachof the Colleges and Schools to identify ways ofmeeting the targets set out in the University’sStrategic Plan, including identifying and agreeingappropriate incentives and removing barriers thatmay stand in the way of increasing our offer of goodquality postgraduate programmes and places;

To achieve the breadth of ourambition will require activity andthought touching on a widerange of our business. We haveappointed a Vice-Principal(International) to lead this work,supported by senior figureswithin each of the Colleges andnew Deans (International) foreach of our priority countries orregions, and we will develop asustainable model to fundinvestment in ourinternationalisation efforts.

We will tackle six broadstrands of activity.

5 We will secure a greater volume ofresources from international researchpartnerships and increase the use ofour intellectual property worldwide.

As priorities, we will:

• provide pump-priming money for potentialpartnerships for large international researchgrants; and

• ensure strong links are maintained and enhancedwith key external stakeholders that promote and fund international knowledge transfer.

6 We will continue to develop a stronginternational focus and awareness inall our staff and in all that we do.

As priorities, we will:

• embed the value attached to an internationallyaware and focused approach in key measures,such as performance appraisal, promotion boards,pay reviews and leadership training; and

• seek to attract more international academic staff –reviewing and monitoring proportions at schoollevel; assessing talent pipeline; suggesting ways ofenhancing attractiveness to potential applicants;and providing good support in post.

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• respond swiftly and effectively to internationalstudent feedback to build on strengths and addresspriority areas of concern – starting with improving the accommodation service we offer; and

• offer a range of international scholarships to try toensure that we attract the best and the brightestinternational students who may be prevented from studying abroad due to resource constraints.

3 We will best prepare our studentsto thrive in and contribute to anincreasingly interdependent world.

As priorities, we will:

• establish an Institute of International Expertise which will draw together and better highlightthe wide range of international expertise that wehave within the University;

• support domestic students in gaining greaterinternational experience through a range ofmeasures such as targeted scholarships; new linkswith international partners; and increased promotionof short-term programmes overseas; and

• offer more support on careers, including attractinginternationally recruiting employers and identifyingmore international work placements.

4 We will focus on building strategicpartnerships in a focused number ofcountries or regions.

As a priority, we will:

• focus our efforts where we think we can offer strongadded value to our partners and/or where ourengagement will contribute significantly to our overallaspiration of becoming a place of first choice in theminds of the world.

We will report annually on our progress,drawing from measures including:

• League tables

• Student surveys – National Student Surveyand International Student Barometer

• Share of international research grants

• Brand awareness in countries and regionsof strategic focus

• Numbers and quality of internationalstudents – we have a target of recruiting afurther 1000 non-EU international studentswithin three years

• Existing benchmarking studies oncommercialisation

• Assessment of growth in gross value addedfrom our international student activity.

Measures of success

The aspiration and reach of thisinternationalisation strategy is necessarilybroad, as internationalisation touches on a widerange of activity within the University. It is notsomething that can or should be set in stone –it will need to be refined in the light of what welearn as we take this agenda forward and takeaccount of the inevitably fast-changing externalcontext. Both of these factors mean that successwill be dependent on the energy, goodwill andoutward-looking attitude of colleagues throughoutthe University. Given that support and engagement,building on our existing international strengthsand connections, we will be well on our way todeliver on our aspiration to become a place offirst choice in the minds of the world.

Conclusion

Success will be dependenton the energy, goodwill andoutward-looking attitudeof colleagues throughoutthe University.

Vice Principal’s conclusion

The University of Edinburgh has always beena powerful academic magnet for students andstaff from the four corners of the globe. Wevalue the contributions they make to Universitylife and beyond. Edinburgh alumni past andpresent have gone on to make genuinedifferences to the world. The University’sresponsibility must be to ensure that futurealumni remain fully equipped for modern globalservice. All associated with the University –students and staff, past and present, home andabroad – have a role in Edinburgh Global.This is the roadmap we will follow.

Professor Stephen Hillier,Vice Principal (International)

Useful contactsVice Principal (International)

Professor Stephen HillierInternational Office57 George SquareEdinburgh EH8 9JU T: + 44 (0) 131 650 4296 F: + 44 (0) 131 651 1236 E: Stephen.Hillier@ed.ac.uk

Head of International Office

Alan MackayInternational Office57 George SquareEdinburgh EH8 9JU T: + 44 (0) 131 650 4296 F: + 44 (0) 131 651 1236 E: Alan.Mackay@ed.ac.uk

Dean International (China)

Professor Natascha Gentz Asian Studies8 Buccleuch PlaceEdinburgh EH8 9LWT: + 44 (0) 131 650 4229F: + 44 (0) 131 651 1258E: Natascha.Gentz@ed.ac.uk

Dean International (Europe)

Professor Andrew Scott School of LawOld CollegeSouth BridgeEdinburgh EH8 9YLT: + 44 (0) 131 650 2064F: + 44 (0) 131 650 6317E: Andrew.Scott@ed.ac.uk

Dean International (India)

Professor Abhay Abhyankar University of Edinburgh Business SchoolWilliam Robertson Building50 George SquareEdinburgh EH8 9JYT: +44 (0) 131 650 8075F: +44 (0) 131 668 3053 E: A.Abhyankar@ed.ac.uk

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