PhD-FLSHASE-2016-20 The Faculty of Language and Literature, Humanities, Arts and Education DISSERTATION Defence held on 12/09/2016 in Luxembourg to obtain the degree of DOCTEUR DE L’UNIVERSITÉ DU LUXEMBOURG EN SCIENCES POLITIQUES by Ligia Deca Born on 22 December 1982 in city of Constanța (Romania) UNDERSTANDING THE INTERNATIONALIZATION OF HIGHER EDUCATION AS A POLICY PROCESS THE CASE OF ROMANIA Dissertation defence committee Dr Robert Harmsen, dissertation supervisor Professor, Université du Luxembourg Dr Harlan Koff, Vice-Chairman Professor, Université du Luxembourg Dr Justin Powell, Chairman Professor, Université du Luxembourg Dr Dorota Dakowska Professor, University of Lyon 2 / ENS Triangle Dr Niilo Kauppi Professor, University of Jyväskylä; Directeur de recherche, CNRS Understanding the internationalization of higher education as a policy process The case of Romania Doctoral candidate: Ligia Deca FLSHASE/ IPSE Supervisor: Prof. Robert Harmsen University of Luxembourg 1 Abstract This doctoral thesis analyzes internationalization of higher education in Romania as a both an international norm diffusion process and as a discrete policy process, in a wider context of post- communist transition. It is conceived as a study of policy for policy, with the explicit aim of contributing to better decision-making at the national and institutional levels. As such, it is intended to facilitate a strategic pursuit of internationalization strategies in Romania, which may further inform our understanding of other similar (post-communist transition) national cases. The research objective is to understand the internationalization of higher education as a distinct policy process at the national and university level, by using a five-point star model of the policy field, which highlights the multiplicity of actors involved and acts as a ‘cat’s cradle’. A multi-theory approach for higher education governance is used for unpacking the complexity of this policy field. Stakeholder and resource dependency theories are employed for understanding the articulation of the interests, capacities and interactions between the actors, while discursive institutionalism is used to look at the role of ideas (norms) mobilized by actors to influence policy change and to construct policy frames. In terms of scope, the thesis addresses the rationales, drivers and impacts of internationalization of higher education, as well as its strategic use by relevant actors. The conclusion yields that internationalization in Romania, especially at the national level, is more a fruit of the existing context – the overall globalization trends, the Bologna Process and the EU pre- and post-accession policy processes – than a deliberate strategic pursuit based on either foresight or long term planning. Political and economic rationales are predominant, to the detriment of those linked to social and cultural considerations, given the competing pressures linked to the demographic downturn, reduced public funding to universities, the perceived need to ‘catch-up with Europe’ and the global competitiveness imperative. Another finding is that internationalization of higher education has never reached the stage of policy formulation at the national level and in most Romanian universities; it was used as a legitimating discourse within higher education reform, but a genuine commitment to comprehensive internationalization policies was lacking, leading to an over-reliance on European programs and a narrow focus on mobility and research partnerships. When looking at the agents of change, it can be inferred that success in pursuing internationalization activities was mostly influenced by policy entrepreneurs and leadership commitment and continuity, regardless of the institutional profile. At the same time, Romania has proven to be an exceptional laboratory for understanding internationalization as a distinctive public policy process within the higher education sector. This is due to the double centralization legacy of the higher education system (caused by its Napoleonic model of higher education system and the communist influence) and the over-sized influence of international actors in policy reform (e.g. UNESCO CEPES and the World Bank). A number of the overall conclusions, mainly aimed at improving decision- making at the national level, are also potentially relevant for a wider regional audience: the need to minimize the over-reliance on international funds and technical assistance of international organizations; limiting over-regulation based on international norms; and improving the national role in the global discussions on internationalization and fighting double discourse. This latter aspect points to the difficulties of replicating policy concepts across borders in a non-contextualized form, especially when domestic contexts differ significantly from the pioneering setting of a given policy. 2 Acknowledgements This thesis has been developed in the context of my research work at the University of Luxembourg, Institute of Political Science, under the supervision of prof. Robert Harmsen. My involvement in the Romanian higher education policy process has started early on, from my early student movement activities over a decade ago. I have been fortunate to be able to use my experience of the system (with different hats) to develop a study on the internationalization of higher education. In all this time I had the support and encouragement of many extraordinary individuals, to whom I owe my intellectual journey of the past four years. Firstly, I would like to dedicate this thesis to Germain Dondelinger, long-time coordinator of higher education in Luxembourg, artisan of the birth of the University of Luxembourg and founding member of the Bologna Process Follow-Up Group. He was a true believer in the humanistic role of higher education and its role in building a value based Europe, in which everyone could fulfill its potential and live a happy life. I owe my inspiration to apply for a doctoral position at the University of Luxembourg to him; he was also a model in combining a hands-on public service career with an academic interest, for both a societal and personal benefit. His optimism, love of life and witty remarks were dearly missed since his early departure in 2015. My personal journey to take this thesis to completion was not easy. Life, as it happens, presented me with many challenges and opportunities, and there were times in which I doubted I would make it to shore. My coordinator and companion in this journey was my thesis 3 supervisor, Prof. Robert Harmsen, who accompanied me every step of the way. He believed in me and made sure that my thesis would develop so as to reflect my interests, future career goals and personality. He never gave up on me, despite not being the easiest PhD candidate to supervise and always tried to allow me enough freedom and sufficient guidance to do everything I felt I had to, while also finishing my doctoral project. My most intellectually stimulating conversations about politics, international relations, cultural traditions, Europe, ice hockey (that I knew absolutely nothing about) and life, in general, were with him and I was fortunate to feel his friendship in the past few years. I would have not made it without you, Robert. I hope I will make you proud. My doctoral project would not have been possible without the support and guidance of Profs. Justin Powell and Harlan Koff, which looked at my work in the past years and gave me wonderful advice on how to make the best of my time and research curiosity. Their advice was highly appreciated, but also their respect towards me as a member of the team and not just a PhD student. Gangolf Braband and Anna-Lena Högenauer were there for every little detail I needed and accompanied me with helpful advice and much-needed friendship and support. Also, I have been fortunate enough to benefit from the unweavering support of Klaus Iohannis, the Romanian President. Besides asking me to join his team as Advisor for Education and Research, he also insisted on me taking the time to finish my doctorate and making sure I had everything I needed to make this a reality, despite the fact that he emphasized education as the main project of his current mandate. My gratitude is beyond words. 4 In the Romanian context, I also enjoyed tremendous help from my mentors, colleagues and friends. Prof. Adrian Curaj and Prof. Lazăr Vlăsceanu always believed in me, understood my needs and provided unconditional understanding and advice. Cristina Fiț, Robert Santa, Dana Alexe, Irina Geantă, Alin Filimon, Koen Geven, Martina Vukasovic and many others helped me gather data and made sure I had all the information I needed to complete my work, while serving as on-call feedback providers and debate partners. Cezar, my fiancee, had to bear the brunt of my absence, long hours, emotional outbursts and endless postponing of life, in general, in order to make this thesis a reality. I cannot thank him enough for standing by me, being a real sounding board for my ideas and understanding all my frustrations, even when I probably deserved something else. I wish to thank all those interviews or whose time I benefitted from in order to delve into the intricacies of internationalization of higher education as a policy process in Romania. Their openness and cooperation helped me a great deal. I also had wonderful advice and ideas from Hans de Wit, Eva Egron-Polak, Alberto Amaral, Cristina Sin, Pedro Teixeira, Jamil Salmi, Dorota Dakowska, Anne Corbett, Alex Usher and many others that I was fortunate enough to work with in the past years. Finally, I would like to thank my mother, my sister and my grandparents, who stood by me and supported me unconditionally, despite their concerns or wish to have me nearby. The past four years have been quite a journey, started with the desire to understand better what I had witnessed first hand in terms of international processes and their domestic translation. It had been more than a quest with an academic purposes for me, leading to a 5 discovery of my cognitive limits, trying to go beyond them and then making it back to a concrete project.