South East Asian Approaches toward Internationalization of Higher Education: Comparing Educational Reforms in Thailand and Vietnam

With Thailand and Vietnam as cases, approaches to internationalization of higher education in the South East Asian region are studied with a focus on global and regional trends, policy advocacy and direction by multi-lateral development banks, through mechanisms and tools at their disposal to understand the different approaches the two cases took in terms of internationalization of higher education.Internationalization of higher education, seen in terms of internal and external dimension, shows a convergence in terms of internal dimension but a divergence in the external dimension giving the notion of normative influence of global and regional trends enhanced by the multi-lateral development banks setting the foundation for the external dimension of internationalization of higher education, which is more dependent on national needs and direction.