Internationalisation at a Distance and at Home: Academic and social adjustment in a South African distance learning context

Abstract

With the rise of technology and distance learning, a recently new type of internationalisation of higher education seems to be emerging in Southern Africa higher education, which we coin as Internationalisation at a Distance. In this empirical study, we aim to provide an initial attempt to theorise this form of Internationalisation at a Distance through an in-depth analysis of 1141 students’ experiences while studying at the largest distance learning institution in Southern Africa. Using an adjusted version of the Student Adaptation to College Questionnaire (SACQ) instrument developed by Baker and Siryk (1999), we have explored the study experiences of international students living at a distance, as well as South Africans and international students living in South Africa. Our regression models indicate that academic adjustment is significantly predicted by emotional adjustment, attachment towards the institution, access to technology, and internationalisation at home students. The results highlight the need for a much more complex narrative around internationalisation in distance learning settings in light of technological advances, requiring a potential reconsideration of what internationalisation ‘abroad’ and ‘at home’ might mean.

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