COVID-19 Impact on International Higher Education: Studies & Forecasts
Last update: 26 August 2020
Such an astonishing number of analyses and forecasts have already been published on the possible COVID-19 impact on international higher education that it is easy to lose track. Therefore, the DAAD wants to provide a comprehensive overview of the current state of COVID-19 research and expertise in the field of international higher education. Should you know of any other analyses and forecasts that are not mentioned here, we would be pleased to receive a brief note at studien at daad.de.
Overview
- Impact of COVID-19 on HE internationalisation and international academic mobility worldwide
- Impact of COVID-19 on HE internationalisation and international academic mobility in specific countries or regions
- Impact of COVID-19 on higher education and students in general
- Expert views and forecasts on COVID-19 and higher education
Impact of COVID-19 on HE internationalisation and international academic mobility worldwide
QS, Educations.com and StudyPortals are currently conducting three international surveys of students and prospective students on the COVID-19 impact on their study or mobility plans.
QS Surveys
QS is not only interviewing prospective international students, but also university staff. Results of the QS surveys can be found in these reports published so far:
- The Coronavirus Crisis and the Future of Higher Education (18.08.2020)
- How COVID-19 is Impacting Prospective International Students Across Subject Areas (06.07.2020)
- How Universities can Support and Protect Prospective and Current Students in the Upcoming Academic Year (22.06.2020)
- The Outlook for University Admissions: The Impact of COVID-19 (18.06.2020)
- The Impact of the Coronavirus on Prospective International Students (26.05.2020)
- How COVID-19 is Impacting Prospective International Students at Different Study Levels (08.05.2020)
- International Student Survey Global opportunities in the new higher education paradigm (04.05.2020)
- How COVID-19 is Impacting Prospective International Students Across the Globe (28.04.2020)
- The Impact of the Coronavirus on Global Higher Education (02.04.2020)
The latest QS findings are also repeatedly presented in the form of web talks. The findings of the surveys are also repeatedly summarised on the QS blog.
Studyportals Surveys and Dashboard
At the end of May, Studyportals published the summary report "International Student Plans: The Impact of COVID-19" on their surveys of around 800 internationally mobile and non-mobile students worldwide. Earlier publications of the results of the Studyportals surveys can be found here:
- Overview: The Impact of COVID-19 on International Students Perceptions (April 2020)
- The impact of COVID-19 on student plans (Update 3, April 2020)
- The Impact Of COVID-19 on International Students Perceptions – Part 2: the perception gap between studying at home and abroad (Update 2, April 2020)
- The Impact Of COVID-19 on International Students Perceptions (Update 1, April 2020)
However, a certain amount of caution is recommended with regard to the findings, since the number of interviews is very low for an international student survey (about 400, 600 and 800 respondents, respectively).
In April, Studyportals also published the "COVID-19 report: An outlook for International Student Recruitment", which was based on a survey among higher education professionals from 170 institutions worldwide.
Furthermore, Studyportals has opened its Dashboard to all users free of charge. Here, among other things, the effect of the COVID-19 epidemic on students' search queries to studyportals can be analysed.
The latest Studyportals findings are also repeatedly presented in the form of web talks. The findings of the surveys are also repeatedly summarised on the Studyportals blog.
Educations.com Surveys
The results of the Educations.com survey, which is also still ongoing, can be found here:
- The Impact of COVID-19 on Study Abroad: Latest Survey Results (24.04.2020)
- Student survey results: How has COVID-19 affected your study abroad plans? (23.03.2020)
As with QS, prospective international students were surveyed, as well as current international students.
Bibliometric studies on the COVID-19 impact on international co-publications
Several bibliometric analyses have already been published that examine the extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic has affected international cooperation among academic authors.
A bibliometric analysis conducted by the University of Arizona at the end of July shows that international academic cooperation has intensified in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. Even between the USA and China, there was a significant increase in jointly published journal publications in the field of "Science and Engineering" despite the political tensions between the two countries. The two authors have also published a short summary of the most important results of the study in the online magazine "The Scientist".
A similar finding was reached in an analysis published almost simultaneously by an international research team from the USA, China and Australia. An increase of international co-publications in COVID-19 research between authors from US-American and Chinese research institutions is also shown here. At the same time, the findings prove a comparatively strong concentration of COVID-19 research on a small elite of research nations such as the USA, China, the UK or Japan.
An analysis conducted by the bibliometrics service provider DigitalScience in early June shows the development of publication patterns in COVID-19 research during the pandemic. Relatively constant shares of bi- and multilateral co-publications can be observed, which account for about 15% (bilateral) and about 10% (multilateral) of all publications on COVID-19, whereas publications without international cooperation of authors account for about 75%.
Further cross-national surveys
BridgeU, a private education provider, published the report "How Will COVID-19 Really Impact International Students' Enrolments in 2020 & 2021?". On the basis of two surveys of around 70 student advisors from 41 countries and around 850 students from 83 countries, the report presents forecasts of the COVID-19 impact on worldwide student mobility in the fall and winter semesters of 2020. In the second part, forecasts on further developments in 2021 are also presented, based on data from the BridgeU study planning tool.
The consultancy EY Parthenon has produced a yet unpublished analysis entitled "COVID-19 crisis: Planning towards the new normal - International Higher Education Market", which was reported by Times Higher Education at the end of June ("Pandemic to redistribute international student flows"). The original report was made available to the DAAD on request.
The Erasmus Student Network (ESN) conducted a survey of almost 22,000 current students at European universities in March on their experiences in connection with the corona pandemic. A web talk explaining the findings can be accessed on Facebook.
In April, the Australian Educational Consulting Agency IDP interviewed nearly 7,000 international university applicants in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK and the US about the consequences of the COVID-19 epidemic on their mobility plans. A summary of the most important findings can be found at the ICEF Monitor and the PIE News.
A further COVID-19 impact survey of over 600 European higher education institutions from 38 countries (in the EHEA) or their staff was conducted by the European Association of International Education (EAIE) in February and March 2020.
ResearchGate has also conducted a snapshot survey among international scientists on its platform and has already published findings.
Impact of COVID-19 on HE internationalisation and international academic mobility in specific countries or regions
Germany
At the end of July, Sazana Jayadeva from University College London (UCL) published the analysis "The impact of Covid-19 on postgraduate-level student migration from India to Germany". It is based on qualitative interviews with Indian master students as well as observational data on online social media used by Indian students to prepare for their stay abroad.
At the beginning of July, the DAAD presented the results of a survey among the International Offices of German universities in its report "COVID-19 and the impact on international student mobility in Germany". 172 of the total of 268 HRK member universities had taken part in the survey. The DAAD also published an interview on the most important findings of the survey with Study Director Jan Kercher (also available in French) and a corresponding press release. Summaries of the main findings were also published by the PIE News and the Study Travel Network.
Fintiba, a private consulting agency for international students interested in Germany as a host country, published a survey of 350 students from 66 countries in mid-May. This shows: Most students are still very interested in studying in Germany. The study was also reported on by the PIE News, among others.
UK
In mid-July, the University of Manchester published a survey of 19 Chinese counselling agencies that support students in planning their studies abroad. The study focused on the agencies' assessments of the current perception of Great Britain as a possible host country among Chinese students. University World News summarizes the most important results of the survey.
The British Council, DAAD's sister organisation in the UK, has also already conducted a snapshot survey on the COVID-19 impact at British universities. Similar to the IIE, the focus here is on Chinese students who represent by far the largest group among international students in the UK. The more than 10,000 respondents in this survey included Chinese students who are already studying in the UK as well as Chinese applicants at British universities.
Netherlands
Nuffic, the DAAD's sister organisation in the Netherlands, published the English version of the results of a survey of around 650 upper secondary school and vocational students at the beginning of July. The report examines the influence of the Corona crisis on their plans for educational stays abroad: Are students still going abroad in 2020/21?
At the end of May, Nuffic had already published the results of a survey of over 900 "potential" international students from non-EU countries: "How is COVID-19 affecting international students' plans to study in the Netherlands". At the end of July, the results of a follow-up survey of another 1,300 international students were published: "How is COVID-19 affecting international students plans to study in the Netherlands? - Part 2".
Finland
EDUFI, the DAAD's sister organisation in Finland, published the analysis "Impact of COVID-19 on higher education student mobility in Finland" at the end of June. In this analysis, the COVID-19 impact on the outbound mobility of Finnish students and the inbound mobility of international students in Finland are examined on the basis of higher education statistics (more than 4,000 students in each case).
USA
At the beginning of July, the Student Experience in the Research University Consortium (SERU), published the results of a survey on international students' perceptions and concerns during the pandemic. The report "International Students’ Experiences and Concerns During the Pandemic" gathers responses from over 30,000 students at five large public research universities in the United States. Summaries of the most important findings have been published in ICEF Monitor, the PIE News and Times Higher Education.
The Institute for International Education (IIE), DAAD's sister organization in the US, has conducted two "Snapshot Surveys" on the COVID-19 impact at US universities and has published the findings here:
- COVID-19 Effects on US Higher Education Campuses: From Emergency Response to Planning for Future Student Mobility (14.05.2020)
- COVID-19 Effects on US Higher Education Campuses: Academic Student Mobility to and from China (06.03.2020)
In addition, the IIE has published various infographics on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on student mobility in the US and Canada and on international student mobility. You can find the infographic on Canada here.
Diversity Abroad, a US organization that promotes diversity in international student mobility, published a survey in mid-June among nearly 1,000 internationally mobile students from US universities and their perceptions of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Australia
The Australian University of Technology Sydney (UTS) published the study "The Experience of International Students Before and During COVID-19: Housing, work, study, and wellbeing" in early October. It is based on two surveys of international students in Australia before (August to December 2019) and during (June/July 2020) the COVID-19 pandemic. The most important findings were summarized by Times Higher Education, among others.
The Conversation published the findings of a previously unpublished survey study by Swinburne University in Melbourne on the mobility plans of Chinese students in times of the COVID-19 pandemic. The number of respondents here was only around 1,000. The focus of the survey was the evaluation of Australia as a host country for Chinese students.
The Australian Population Research Institute published the report "The Crisis in the Overseas Student Industry: How should government respond?" Among other things, the report forecasts that the number of international students in Australia will decline by approximately 50% by mid 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The most important findings of the report were also summarized by University World News.
China
In mid-July, the University of Manchester published a survey of 19 Chinese counselling agencies that support students in planning their studies abroad. The study focused on the agencies' assessments of the current perception of Great Britain as a possible host country among Chinese students. University World News summarizes the most important results of the survey.
At the beginning of July, University World News presented findings from a previously unpublished survey study by Lingnan University in Hong Kong. For the study almost 3,000 Chinese students were interviewed about the effect of the corona pandemic on their international mobility.
In mid-June, the private Chinese education service provider New Oriental Overseas Vision Consulting published the findings of a study on the plans and preferences of Chinese students with regard to studying abroad ("Report on Chinese Student's Overseas Study"). However, the survey data was already collected from January to March 2020, i.e. at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic was still in its early stages. Nevertheless, there is already evidence of a shift in the interest of Chinese students from the USA to the UK. The most important findings of the study were also summarized by the PIE News.
The Conversation also published the findings of a previously unpublished survey study by Swinburne University in Melbourne on the mobility plans of Chinese students in times of the COVID-19 pandemic. The number of respondents here was only around 1,000. The focus of the survey was the evaluation of Australia as a host country for Chinese students.
At the end of March already, the Chinese umbrella organisations of educational guidance agencies, BOSSA and COSSA, published the findings of two surveys on the COVID-19 impact on student mobility in China:
India and South Asia
At the end of July, Sazana Jayadeva from University College London (UCL) published the analysis "The impact of Covid-19 on postgraduate-level student migration from India to Germany". It is based on qualitative interviews with Indian master students as well as observational data on online social media used by Indian students to prepare for their stay abroad.
The private consulting agency Global Reach conducted a previously unpublished survey of around 1,600 prospective international students from South Asia (India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka), which was reported in mid-June in The Piew News ("South Asia study abroad interest remains high").
There are also several surveys available for Indian (prospective) students on the COVID-19 impact on their plans abroad. QS published the report "Indian Students Mobility Report 2020: Impact of COVID-19 on Higher Education Choices" in May, which is based on a survey of current Indian students. Unfortunately, the report does not contain any information on the number of respondents.
In addition to this, there are two surveys of private Consulting Agencies. The central findings of the survey by Yocket are presented here, the survey results of Shiksha are available here and here.
Impact of COVID-19 on higher education and students in general
Global and cross-national analyses
The private education service provider Pearson published the findings of its "Global Learner Survey" at the beginning of August, in the course of which more than 7,000 people aged between 16 and 70 were interviewed worldwide from the beginning to mid-June 2020 on the subject of learning and its future development. The HEPI blog has summarised the six most important trends in higher education.
In mid-July, QS published the report "How Universities are Addressing the Coronavirus Crisis and Moving Forward", which contains the results of a worldwide survey of university staff. Unfortunately, the report does not contain any information on the size of the sample or the regional distribution of the respondents.
Within the framework of the Slovenian research project "COVID-19 Social Science Lab", more than 31,000 students from over 100 countries worldwide were surveyed on the topic "Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Life of Higher Education Students" between 5 May and 15 June 2020. The questionnaire is based on the COVID-19 survey of the "European Students' Union" and examines the impact of the pandemic on the life, teaching and learning of students, their social contacts and their emotional handling of the crisis situation. The central aim of the CovidSocLab research project is to investigate in particular the socio-economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has been less studied to date. For this purpose, in addition to the student survey, bibliometric analyses, a survey of public institutions worldwide and an international comparative analysis of government action in the context of the COVID-19 crisis will be conducted.
At the end of June, Times Higher Education published the findings of its THE Leaders Survey, for which 200 university leaders from a total of 53 countries worldwide were asked about their experiences and assessments of the COVID-19 pandemic. Topics of the survey included the experience with digital teaching, the political support of the respective governments and the effects on university funding, university marketing, university staff and research. The survey data can also be downloaded as an Excel file.
In May, the International Association of Universities (IAU) published their survey report "The impact of COVID-19 on higher education around the world". The survey analysis is based on replies from administrative staff at 424 HEIs in 109 countries. Results are analysed both at the global level and at the regional level in four regions of the world (Africa, the Americas, Asia & Pacific and Europe). IAU also collects media reports on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on international higher education, sorted by different world regions (see tab "Global News"). In mid-August, the IAU also published the report "Regional/National Perspectives on the Impact of COVID-19 on Higher Education", which includes, for example, national perspectives from the USA, India and Hungary as well as a European perspective on the handling of COVID-19 in international higher education.
The Systemic Risk Centre at the London School of Economics and Political Science published the discussion paper "Revenge of the Experts: Will COVID-19 Renew or Diminish Public Trust in Science?". The paper attempts to predict the impact of the corona pandemic on societal attitudes and views towards scientists and science itself. Times Higher Education has summarised the most important aspects of this forecast.
The Boston College Center for International Higher Education (CIHE) published a special issue of its journal "International Higher Education" (IHE) in early May, focusing on the many challenges relating to the COVID-19 crisis, how it is affecting higher education around the world at the national, institutional, and individual levels, and what some of the future implications may be.
The World Bank maintains a continuously updated overview of school and university closures worldwide, including the number of pupils and students affected in each country.
The UK NARIC research team is also tracking announcements on school and university closures and changing exam arrangements worldwide. They also published the report "The Effects of COVID-19 on International Secondary Assessment" in mid-May.
A similar international monitoring project is the "Coronavirus Government Response Tracker" (OxCGRT) of the University of Oxford. In contrast to the monitoring projects of the World Bank and UK NARIC, this project does not only look at school or university closures, but also at other government measures in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, such as bans or restrictions on public gatherings, curfews and travel restrictions. From the respective implementation level of the nine types of measures considered, an index value between 0 (no corresponding measures) and 100 (complete implementation of all measures) is calculated for the OxCGRT. However, the index values of all nine individual measures considered can also be viewed in separate world map overviews. It is particularly helpful here that not only the current status can be viewed, but also the development of the implementation of measures to date can be traced with the help of a slider. The central disadvantage of the OxCGRT is that university closures are not considered as a separate measure or index value, but are considered together with school closures.
Science Business is running the live blog "R&D response to COVID-19 pandemic", which reports on how the crisis is impacting research and innovation, and what governments, funders, companies, universities, associations and scientists are doing to stop or cope with the pandemic.
Further web publications on crisis management at universities in times of the COVID-19 pandemic are available from the Chronicle of Higher Education and QS:
- The Chronicle of Higher Education: Coping With Coronavirus: How faculty members can support students in traumatic times
- QS: Improving Your Crisis Management: How to Future-Proof Your Student Mobility in Times of Crisis
Finally, there is also a survey by HolonIQ's Global Executive Panel, for which more than 2,000 leaders in the public and private education sectors worldwide were asked about their assessments of COVID-19 effects (in March). The most important findings of this survey have already been summarised by the ICEF Monitor.
Studies and simulations on university operation under pandemic conditions
In early August, five researchers from the three US universities California Institute of Technology, Middlebury College (Vermont) and Johns Hopkins University published the preprint article "Markedly heterogeneous COVID-19 testing plans among US colleges and universities". This gives an overview of the very different COVID-19 testing plans among US colleges and universities. A report on the study can also be found at Inside Higher Ed.
Also at the beginning of August, researchers at Siena College in the US published the results of a simulation study of university teaching in compliance with the COVID-19 distance rules on Inside Higher Ed.
At the end of July, researchers from Harvard and Yale University published the simulation study "Assessment of SARS-CoV-2 Screening Strategies to Permit the Safe Reopening of College Campuses in the United States". A summary of the most important findings of the study has been published by Inside Higher Ed.
In mid-July, a biology professor from the Georgia Institute of Technology in the US presented his calculations on the number of possible deaths in the event of a complete reopening of the university in the fall semester. The most important results and implications of these calculations can also be found on Inside Higher Ed.
In mid-June, researchers at Cornell University in the US published a simulation study that concluded that more students may be infected with COVID-19 during an online semester than during an in-person semester. The reason for this is that the university can better control an outbreak by continuous testing on site.
At the beginning of June, two US professors published a working paper containing simulations of the effects of various measures to prevent infection chains on campus. Inside Higher Ed summarizes the most important findings of the simulation study.
In another article, Inside Higher Ed also reports on another simulation study as well as an experiment that deals with the concrete implementation of social distancing measures in the context of university teaching. The California Institute of Technology has used 3D simulations to calculate which capacity levels would be possible for two exemplary rooms under current social distancing requirements. A professor at Salve Regina University investigated the practicability of (simultaneous) online and classroom teaching in a teaching experiment. Inside Higher Ed contrasts his very negative results with the contrary assessment of a professor at Grand Valley State University, who refers in particular to so-called "active learning strategies", as they are used, for example, by experts of the Center for Teaching at Vanderbilt University.
Studies and findings on gender-specific corona effects for scientists
Various scientific or bibliometric analyses of gender-specific COVID-19 impact on the publication output of scientists have already been published. The findings of these studies to date indicate very uniformly that the scientific publication output of women is much more negatively influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic than that of men:
- Peterson Gabster et al.: Challenges for the female academic during the COVID-19 pandemic (18.06.2020)
- Vincent-Lamarre et al: The decline of women's research production during the coronavirus pandemic (19.05.2020)
- Andersen et al: Meta-Research: COVID-19 medical papers have fewer women first authors than expected (13.05.2020)
- Frederickson: COVID-19’s gendered impact on academic productivity (11.05.2020)
- Amano-Patiño et al: Who is doing new research in the time of COVID-19? Not the female economists (02.05.2020)
- Dolan/Lawless: It Takes a Submission: Gendered Patterns in the Pages of AJPS (20.04.2020)
The research team led by Prof. Philippe Vincent-Lamarre from the University of Montréal in Canada and Indiana University in the US also runs the ongoing monitoring project "Monitoring women's scholarly production during the COVID-19 pandemic", which also allows interactive creation of own data analyses.
In addition, 35 women scientists published the joint article "Women in science are battling both Covid-19 and the patriarchy" on Times Higher Education in mid-May. At the end of June, Times Higher Education also published the findings of a specially commissioned bibliometric analysis on gender-specific consequences for the publication output of women scientists, again with clear findings: "Pandemic lockdown holding back female academics, data show". Further media contributions, some of which were based on small surveys or queries to scientific journals, were published in Nature, The Lily, The Conversation and the Guardian.
Web talks and townhalls on COVID-19 and higher education
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QS:
- Coronavirus Research - June Update from QS' Surveys for Universities and International Students (03.06.2020)
- What the Future Holds for Higher Education after COVID-19 (23.04.2020)
- The New Virtual Student Journey – Changing Dynamics as a Result of Coronavirus (14.04.2020)
- Responding to Coronavirus: Initial QS Survey Insights from Students and Universities (26.03.2020)
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Studyportals:
- International Student Recruitment in the Times of Global Crisis: New Strategies, Innovations and Risk-Mitigation for Business Schools (26.05.2020)
- Marketing Data Analysis and Interpretation: The Beauty & The Beast – Coronavirus edition (28.04.2020)
- COVID-19 Dashboard for Higher Education - Walkthrough training (2)
- COVID-19 Dashboard for Higher Education - Walkthrough training (1) (16.04.2020)
- COVID-19 impact: risks, opportunities & coping strategies for International Higher Education (31.03.2020)
- ICEF:
- Web talk series on the Future of Higher Education, hosted by the International Association of Universities (IAU)
- The Future of Higher Education: Perspectives on Reopening Strategies at Universites Around The World (07.07.2020)
- The Future of Higher Education: Internationalization Strategies Post-COVID-19 (30.06.2020)
- The Future of Higher Education: COVID-19 Impact on Higher Education Around The World (09.06.2020)
- Web talks series "The Future of International Education: Leadership Perspectives from Around the World", hosted by UC Davis
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AAP Public Dialogue Series of the Alliance for African Partnership:
- Dialogue #6 - COVID-19 Impact in Africa: Opportunities for Partnership and Engagement (08.07.2020)
- Dialogue #5 - Coping with Mental Health Impacts of COVID-19 in Higher Education: Responses and Lessons Learned (24.06.2020)
- Dialogue #4 - The economic, food security, and livelihood impacts of COVID-19 in Africa: Lessons learned and policy responses (10.06.2020)
- Dialogue #3 - Educational Access at Higher Education Institutions in the Age of COVID-19 (27.05.2020)
- Dialogue #2 - Global and Continental Partnerships and Collaboration in Higher Education Post COVID-19 (13.05.2020)
- Dialogue #1 - COVID-19 Pandemic: Responses and lessons learned from African universities (29.04.2020)
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NAFSA (Association of International Educators) International Education Town Halls:
- Policy & Advocacy in the Time of COVID-19: What You Can Do to Support International Education (29.04.2020)
- Public Health and International Education – What’s now and what’s next (14.04.2020)
- Responding to a Worldwide Health Crisis and Travel Restrictions (20.02.2020)
- Web talk series of the Centre for Global Higher Education (CGHE)
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Web talk series of the Presidents' Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration
- COVID-19 Crisis and the Impact on International Populations in Higher Education and Beyond (12.05.2020)
- COVID-19 Crisis and the Impact on Undocumented/DACA Students and Their Families: What Campus Leaders Need to Know (27.04.2020)
- COVID-19 Briefing: How International & Immigrant Populations in Higher Education are Impacted, What Campuses Leaders Need to Know (27.03.2020)
- JIO web talk "Internationalization of Higher Education in the post COVID-19 era – Challenges & Opportunities for India" by Dr. Allan Goodman & Dr. Francisco Marmalejo (14.05.2020)
- Web talks by Carnegie Dartlet, focussing especially on the COVID-19 impact on the U.S. college world
- Science Business web talk "COVID on campus: Will R&D ecosystems survive?" (22.04.2020)
- Intead townhall "The New Abnormal" (16.03.2020)
- Chronicle of Higher Education web talk "Promoting Health on Campus During Covid-19" (15.07.2020)
- Web talk "The Role of International Collaboration and Culture regarding the COVID-19 Pandemic" hosted by Tohoku University (10.07.2020)
Europe
In mid-June, the European University Foundation launched an online database for Erasmus students, in which European universities can indicate whether they will accept exchange students in the winter semester 2020/21 and whether they offer online courses. Universities can enter their data via the Erasmus Dashboard.
UK
In mid-July, Times Higher Education reported on a survey by the National Union of Students (NUS) among approximately 1,000 students in Great Britain and their assessments of possible teaching conditions in the winter semester.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies, a British think tank, published the analysis "Will universities need a bailout to survive the COVID-19 crisis?" at the beginning of July, which contains an assessment of the financial consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic for British universities and a forecast of possible university failures. Times Higher Education and WONKHE have reported on the most important findings, and a critical comment on the analysis can be found on the HEPI blog.
The private consulting agency London Economics has already conducted two studies on corona effects for British universities on behalf of the British University and Colleges Union (UCU). In April, the report "Impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on university finances" was published, which attempts to assess the financial consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic for universities. The most important findings of the study were summarized by WONKHE and also presented in a virtual WONKE event.
In May, another study was published, based on a survey of about 500 higher education applicants, which examines the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on their study plans: "Impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on university deferral rates and student switching".
The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) regularly publishes up-to-date data on the current number of applications, most recently at the end of June. In April, UCAS also published the results of a survey among school leavers to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their study plans. Two contributions by Clare Marchant and Sander Kristel, Chief Executive and Chief Operations Officer of UCAS respectively, were also published on the WONKHE blog in April and June .
Netherlands
In mid-May The Association of Universities in the Netherlands (VSNU) published the report "Universities in times of corona: How Dutch universities are working together and offering solutions during the corona crisis". The VSNU also maintains a continuously updated overview with COVID-19 updates on the situation at Dutch universities.
USA
Three researchers from the University of Southern California published the results of an analysis of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on students in the US on Inside Higher Ed in early August. The basis was data from the "Understanding America Survey".
The two private consulting agencies Tyton Partners and Digital Promises published the results of two surveys on online teaching in the US spring semester at the beginning of July. For the first survey, teachers were asked about their experiences with the switch to online teaching, for the other undergraduate students. Inside Higher Ed summarizes the main findings of both surveys.
The Chronicle of Higher Education maintains a continuously updated "List of Colleges' Plans for Reopening in the Fall", which also includes a graphic overview of these plans.
The Art & Science Group, a private consulting agency in the field of higher education, has conducted three surveys among high school leavers since March to examine the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on their study plans. The most recent of these surveys was conducted at the end of June and a summary of the most important findings has been published in the Chronicle of Higher Education. The most important findings of the first survey from March can also be read at the Chronicle of Higher Education. The results from April can be found here.
Two further surveys of high school leavers were published in April by the private educational consulting agencies Brian Communications (survey of about 400 parents) and Encoura (survey of about 7,000 high school leavers).
The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center published an updated version of its "Spring 2020 Current Term Enrollment Estimates" at the end of June. The data show that the COVID-19 pandemic has apparently not yet had a major impact on student enrollment in the spring semester, regardless of student demographics or the type of institution. The results can be individually analyzed and filtered in a dynamic dashboard. Inside Higher Ed has summarized the most important findings.
The American Council on Education (ACE), a higher education association that represents the interests of over 1,700 US universities and colleges, has already conducted three surveys on COVID-19 effects among US university presidents. The number of respondents was 192 (April survey), 310 (May survey), 300 (June survey) and 270 (July survey).
- College and University Presidents Respond to COVID-19: July 2020 Survey (30.07.2020)
- College and University Presidents Respond to COVID-19: June 2020 Survey (25.06.2020)
- College and University Presidents Respond to COVID-19: May 2020 Survey (21.05.2020)
- College and University Presidents Respond to COVID-19: April 2020 Survey (22.04.2020)
Inside Higher Ed has also already conducted three surveys on the COVID-19 impact among US university presidents. However, the number of respondents is lower than in the ACE surveys, with 97 (June survey), 172 (March survey) and 187 (April survey).
- Responding to the COVID-19 Crisis, Part III: A Survey of College and University Presidents (29.06.2020)
- Responding to the COVID-19 Crisis, Part II: A New Survey of College and University Presidents (27.04.2020)
- Responding to the COVID-19 Crisis: A Survey of College and University Presidents (27.03.2020)
All three surveys were also presented in a webcast, whose recordings and presentation slides are available here (Part 1), here (Part 2) and here (Part 3).
At the end of July, Inside Higher Ed also published the findings of the annual "Survey of College and University Business Officers", which focuses on the possible financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on US universities. A webcast on the results of the survey can be accessed here.
Carnegie Dartlet, a private college marketing agency, provides an extensive collection of information, surveys and web talks on the COVID-19 impact on the U.S. college world.
In mid-May, the Wall Street Journal made a video contribution on the question "How the Pandemic Could Transform Higher Ed". To better understand the challenges facing U.S. colleges and universities, the WSJ spoke with administrators, students, and a higher education futurist.
In April, the private survey agency Bay View Analytics conducted a Snapshot Poll of over 800 employees of over 600 US universities on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the digitalization of teaching. The survey was reported by Inside Higher Ed, among others.
In March, the US-American Art & Science Group also interviewed nearly 500 prospective college students in the US on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their study plans. The most important findings can be found in the Chronicle of Higher Education.
McKinsey regularly publishes articles on US university governance in times of COVID-19:
- COVID-19 and student learning in the United States: The hurt could last a lifetime (01.06.2020)
- COVID-19 and US higher education enrollment: Preparing leaders for fall (21.05.2020)
- Best practices for an unusual US admissions cycle amid coronavirus (30.04.2020)
- Getting the next phase of remote learning right in higher education (23.04.2020)
- Coronavirus: How should US higher education plan for an uncertain future? (03.04.2020)
- Coronavirus and the campus: How can US higher education organize to respond? (30.03.2020)
Canada
The Canadian university magazine "University Affairs" offers a continuously updated overview with COVID-19 updates on the situation at Canadian universities.
ICEF also held a web talk in early June on "Survive, Revive and Grow - How Canada is handling the Coronavirus Pandemic", now available as a video.
Australia
The University of Technology Sydney published the ten-part podcast "The New Social Contract" between 3 May and 1 July, which highlights various aspects of the COVID-19 impact on Australian universities. The episodes are 30 to 60 minutes long and are all available free of charge.
A study published in late June by the Centre for the Study of Higher Education at the University of Melbourne calculates the financial consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic for individual Australian universities: "Modelling Individual Australian Universities Resilience in Managing Overseas Student Revenue Losses from the COVID-19 Pandemic". A summary of the most important findings of the study can be found in the PIE News.
Latin America
The Center for Latin American & Latino Studies (CLALS) at the American University in Washington, DC, published a study on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on Latin American universities in early June. The study is based on a survey of university staff at more than 50 universities in Latin America. The most important findings of the study were also published in summary form on the CLALS blog.
Expert views and forecasts on COVID-19 and higher education
In recent months, numerous expert views and forecasts on the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic for the international higher education world have been published on the relevant media outlets and blogs. In general, we would like to draw your attention once again to the QS blog and the Studyportals blog, which both contain numerous articles on the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on international higher education. In addition, especially University World News, Times Higher Education, WONKHE and the blog of the British Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI) constantly publish relevant expert articles and forecasts.In the following you will find a collection of particularly relevant articles from recent weeks and months.
University World News
- Neither online nor on-campus: Against a binary approach (van Rooijen , 04.07.2020)
- The new global university in the post-COVID-19 world (Benhayoun, 04.07.2020)
- Ditch COVID-19 equaliser myth and Eurocentric curriculum (Mitchell, 03.07.2020)
- What have we learned and how will HE change post COVID-19? (Mitchell, 26.06.2020)
- We need to reimagine higher education, not just repair it (Marmolejo, 13.06.2020)
- A severe risk of growing inequality between universities (Marinoni/de Wit, 08.06.2020)
- How to strengthen internationalisation post-COVID-19 (Hudzik, 06.06.2020)
- COVID-19 hits HE capacity building ties with Global South (Aarts, 06.06.2020)
- Universities face common problems – They need to share information (MacGregor, 06.06.2020)
- Leveraging alumni power to adapt to COVID-19 disruption (Edersheim, 06.06.2020)
- Towards a flexible and adaptable HE after COVID-19 (Chao Jr, 03.06.2020)
- Business model of internationalisation is falling apart (de Wit, 23.05.2020)
- Relationships vital in post-COVID internationalisation (Montgomery, 16.05.2020)
- Is the pandemic a watershed for internationalisation? (Leask/Green, 02.05.2020)
- Are we at a transformative moment for online learning? (Altbach/de Wit, 02.05.2020)
- Higher education internationalists need to be disruptive (Hudzik, 02.05.2020)
- Lessons for international higher education post COVID-19 (Burquel/Busch, 25.04.2020):
- The future of international HE in a post-mobility world (White/Lee, 18.04.2020)
- Putting fairness at the heart of higher education (Brown/Salmi, 18.04.2020)
- COVID-19 and the ethical responsibility of universities (Stückelberger, 11.04.2020)
- Data collection is key to HE response on COVID-19 impact (Martel/Rumbley, 09.04.2020)
- Post pandemic outlook for HE is bleakest for the poorest (Altbach/de Wit, 04.04.2020)
- How COVID-19 could accelerate opportunities for IHE (Odgen/Streitwieser/ van Mol, 04.04.2020)
- Admissions and equity challenges for HE post COVID-19 (Atherton, 04.04.2020)
- How will higher education have changed after COVID-19? (Dennis, 28.03.2020)
- Will coronavirus end international HE’s flying addiction? (Mitchell, 26.03.2020)
- Five years to recover global mobility, says IHE expert (Mitchell, 26.03.2020)
- COVID-19: The internationalisation revolution that isn’t (Altbach/de Wit, 15.03.2020)
Times Higher Education
- The pandemic must not be allowed to erode universities’ student focus (Ghantous, 02.07.2020)
- Covid-19 is no longer a short-term crisis for higher education (LeFevre, 30.06.2020)
- Michael Crow: crisis should herald cooperation and differentiation (Bothwell, 10.06.2020)
- Pandemic ‘confirms face-to-face teaching is here to stay’ (Ross, 04.06.2020)
- We must seize the chance to enhance internationalisation in higher education (Garcia, 03.06.2020)
- Public trust in scientists ‘will decline in wake of Covid-19’ (Bothwell, 02.06.2020)
- Post-Covid, internationalisation must be more flexible (Lorber/Prem, 19.05.2020)
- Is this the crisis higher education needs to have? (Devinney/Dowling, 14.05.2020)
- University partnerships could redress the international student decline (Mouzughi, 06.05.2020)
- Crisis-driven online exam shift ‘chance to boost academic integrity’ (Ross, 15.04.2020)
- Could the corona virus force positive change in higher education? (Lerman/Sen, 09.04.2020)
- Covid-19 could be a curse for graduates but a boon for universities (Hillman, 02.04.2020)
- Coronavirus: global student flows to suffer ‘massive hit’ for years (Bothwell, 26.03.2020)
- Global HE as we know it has forever changed (Marginson, 26.03.2020)
- We must still keep fighting for greater internationalisation (Smith, 26.03.2020)
WONKHE
- Rhythm and blues: Covid-19 and the disruption of the academic cycle (14.07.2020)
- Could the response to Covid-19 help build more inclusive learning environments? (05.07.2020)
- Consider the castaways of remote academic working (25.06.2020)
- Students should be partners not passengers in the Covid community recovery (25.06.2020)
- Covid-19 must not derail efforts to eliminate equality gaps (22.06.2020)
- Now would be a very bad time to treat students like children (22.06.2020)
- Four pillars of good practice that will help WP teams recover from Covid-19 (22.06.2020)
- What does it mean to offer a full student experience this September? (21.06.2020)
- Finish the story: parallels between the financial crash and higher education after Covid-19 (19.06.2020)
- Time to redirect internationalisation efforts where they are most needed (18.06.2020)
- Covid-19 could be a catalyst for a more supportive, inclusive education (18.06.2020)
- Let’s lose the deficit language about online education (02.06.2020)
- What would a socially distant student experience be like? (12.05.2020)
- Can we plan for a socially distanced campus? (06.05.2020)
HEPI's Blog
- Universities are showing great leadership on Covid-19. They should now seize opportunities to tackle climate change and other sustainable development goals (22.04.2020)
- Looking after international students during the Covid-19 crisis – and after (09.04.2020)
- Crisis and change for higher education: some reflections from history and the First World War (08.04.2020)
- Eight interventions for mitigating the impact of Covid-19 on higher education (30.03.2020)
- Universities will be changed forever by the Coronavirus crisis – and its aftermath (23.03.2020)
Other, mixed sources
- Inside Higher Ed (12.07.2020): Effective Teaching Online
- New York Times (08.07.2020): College Courses Online Are Disappointing. Here’s How to Fix Them
- MSM (01.07.2020) The Reimagined University Amid COVID-19: An Interview with Marguerite J. Dennis
- Medium.com: The Future of Study Abroad Is Zoom Calls (29.06.2020)
- Higher Education Today (29.06.2020): When Pandemics End, by Allan E. Goodman
- World Education News + Reviews (12.05.2020): COVID-19 Emergency Responses in Education: Possible Unintended Consequences
- ICEF Monitor (06.05.2020): The future of education is online, at least for now
- The PIE News (24.04.2020): Interest in studying in Germany grows as Covid-19 response praised
- The Chronicle of Higher Education (15.04.2020): Will the Pandemic Usher in an Era of Mass Surveillance in Higher Education?
- ICEF Monitor (15.04.2020): Measuring COVID-19’s impact on higher education
- Inside Higher Ed (14.04.2020): Reimagining Higher Education Post-Coronavirus
- Inside Higher Eduation (14.04.2020): Harnessing Technology for Global Education
- The Chronicle of Higher Education (13.04.2020): How Economic Collapse and a World War Transformed Higher Ed — and Why Things Will Be Different This Time
- Forbes (13.04.2020): The Coronavirus Pandemic Has Unleashed A Revolution In Education: From Now On, Blended Learning Will Be The Benchmark
- Medium.com (09.04.2020): Readying for the Future: COVID-19, Higher Ed, and Fairness
- Worlds of Education (09.04.2020): “What the Covid-19 Pandemic will change in education depends on the thoughtfulness of education responses today”
- ICEF Monitor (01.04.2020): Looking ahead: Scenario planning and recovery forecasts for international education
- Medium.com (26.03.2020): The Great Disruption: How COVID-19 Changes Higher Education Instruction
- ZDNet (Dignan, 22.03.2020): Online learning gets its moment due to COVID-19 pandemic: Here's how education will change