Changes in Online Education for International Students: Opportunities and Challenges

Keywords: Student mobility; international students; online education; virtual education; program management in higher education

Abstract: This article focusses on the online education opportunities for students in general and for international students in particular. In the first part of the article, we focus on three unique student populations that can benefit from online learning: (1) Students from underdeveloped countries. Some of these students, who are considered potential talents in their countries, move physically to a developed country and then stay to work and settle there. Thanks to online learning they can obtain high quality education while in their countries which they can then develop. (2) Ultra-Orthodox religious students. The religious norms of these students often required them to study in gender segregation. Online education allows them to enjoy the fruits of education (and later contribute to the job market as professionals), circumventing the constraints of physical mixing in the classroom. (3) Students studying management and /or consulting professions. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the world of work has partially shifted to remote work, using ICT. It is important that students, especially in management and consulting, experience innovative ways of studying for at least part of their degree, in order to be proficient in what the world of work expects them to know. The second part of the article details the correct manner of implementing online education so that it is suitable for every student, but especially for these international virtual student populations, with their cultural, technological, linguistic and other study challenges and complexities. Implementation of these ideas has implications for program management in higher education.