This research investigates how international educational collaboration (IEC) as a social activity adapts to global crises: COVID-19 and the Russian's invasion in Ukraine. We focus on Finnish higher education institutions (HEIs) and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) that actively provide IEC activities, such as student exchange, education…

This paper discusses Finnish-Russian relations from the perspective of cooperation in higher education, and particularly Finnish-Russian double degree programmes prior to 2022. It asks how internal stakeholders, in double degree programmes perceived the role of their cooperation from the point of view of interstate relations, and how cooperation…

This study explores the evolving landscape of international higher education partnerships, with a specific focus on the BRICS nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa). These countries, representing a significant portion of the world's population and economy, are redefining collaborative models in higher education, particularly…

What is vocational excellence, why is it important, and how is it developed and for whom? This paper tries to: address the complexity of vocational excellence; explain the different types of centres of vocational excellence (CoVEs), which embody vocational excellence, their missions and functions; and identify good practices that work well in…

Context: International comparative research on Vocational Education and Training (VET) is gaining importance, as global cooperation and mutual learning in VET grows. However, it is characterized by a high degree of complexity, due on one hand, to the heterogeneity of the VET sector, and on the other hand to the unique challenges of international…

Drawing on theoretical discussions on identity construction, the article studies the interrelation between academic mobility and the creation of a common (supranational) identity in the post-Soviet space, which is fragmented by cooperation projects and state-level educational policies. Based on the concept of educational regionalism, the article…

After 2014 student mobility between the EU and Russia has remained high. International academic mobility (IAM) is an important part of the internationalisation of higher education, and the EU and Russia have multiple rationales for it--academic, economic, political and social, among others. This article analyses the rationales of stakeholders at…

The Republic of Moldova is located in a tense geopolitical environment between the European Union (EU) and the Russian Federation. As the EU and Russia have incorporated higher education in their foreign policy agendas, this article analyses (1) whether the higher education policies of the EU and Russia are in competition in Moldova and (2) how…

Problem and goal. Amid the currently advancing (technological, social, techno-social) trends, prominent attention is drawn to skills and competences, which are universal for all spheres of activity -- soft skills, key competences. They are known as universal competences in Russian higher education. The aim of the article is to pinpoint universal…

The article introduces a special issue of "Policy Futures in Education" on changes and challenges in educational policies and systems of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). The countries in the region share some characteristics, such as their historical experience with the authoritarian-socialist or communist rule and its impact on…

The article considers topical issues of a new form of interaction of educational organizations within a regional education system--networking cooperation by means of distance learning technologies. The purpose of the research is to develop a networking cooperation model of educational organizations through distance learning technologies and its…

The study investigates factors motivating universities to engage in international degree collaboration. The Finnish-Russian university framework is used as the locus for studying international collaboration. The paper employs resource dependency and institutional, stakeholder and market push and pull perspectives in a conceptual model explaining…

Scholars from three universities in three different parts of the world--North America, Africa, and Eurasia--across different cultures, disciplines, and contexts, collaborated with the objective of advancing transversal skills and intercultural competences through immersing their students in international virtual teamwork. Students and lecturers…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to determine the possibilities and barriers of the practical application of internationally recognized diplomas of higher education. Design/methodology/approach: The authors used SWOT analysis for determining preconditions and barriers as well as possibilities and threats that are related to the provision and…

Various internal and external determinants influence an education system. External determinants include language, demographics, geography, technology, politics, and financial and economic trends. Religion is also one of these external determinants that can influence an education system, as well as the education systems of the. The BRICS member…