Challenges and options regarding internationalisation at German universities

Policy papers of international and national organizations in tertiary education describe rapid internationalisation in research and teaching as the engine of globalized knowledge. Rankings – both international and national – nowadays attempt to measure the success of internationalisation using quantifiable and non-quantifiable indicators and thereby make internationalisation efforts comparable across the globe. This article intends to outline some of the pertinent structures of internationalisation in tertiary education, followed by a reflection of weaknesses and challenges commonly associated with internationalisation efforts in Germany before sharing some strategies drawn from our home university – the University of Cologne – devised to address these challenges.