Internationalisation of Higher Education and Global Citizenship Education

Staff Development and Capacity Building in Brazil

Given the importance and impact that the process of internationalisation of higher education has had on universities, and consequently on the wider society, there is a need to understand how the process is being conceived and implemented throughout the world. This article is divided into three main sections. Firstly, we discuss the concept of internationalisation of higher education, and its current focus on Global Citizenship Education. Secondly, we analyse the academic discourse on internationalisation within the Brazilian context; we interviewed 14 professors from high-ranking arts and humanities, and science departments, who send their PhD students to spend time in universities abroad, to understand their views on internationalisation of higher education. Our findings demonstrate that research supervisors do not fully understand all of the competencies required for the development of the Global citizenship education model. Thirdly, we suggest a staff development and capacity building programme for research supervisors to encourage internationalisation in terms of Global Citizenship Education.