Abstract (eng)
The topics of ‘internationalization of higher education systems’, ‘cross-border cooperation’ and ‘student mobility’ is gaining attention in the public debate and empirical HE research. This also applies to the two Member States of the European Union Belgium and Austria. But: the scientific discourse fails to appear in this very sensitive issue. Especially, the areas of organizing and financing international student mobility show country-specific problems and political conflict areas.
Belgium [French-speaking region] and Austria – which are confronted by asymmetric mo-bility flows and the absence of financial compensation – already faced an EU-Treaty viola-tion proceeding instituted by the European Commission. The decisions of the jurisdictions C-65/03 [01.07.2004] and C-147/03 [07.07.2005] of the European Court of Justice stated – with respect to the promotion of mobility of students and the equivalent admission of students from co- Member States [EU] – that essential articles of the EC Treaty have been violated. The existing provisions were referred on grounds of nationality as indirect discrimination of EU citizens. Belgium and Austria rejected the allegations of the Commission since they perceive rather a 'discrimination' of their higher education system, due to a lack of sensitivity and solidarity of other parties.
This paper addresses this framework – the complexity of the processes of internationaliza-tion in higher education – and builds up a discussion. Comparative representations of mo-bility flows, structural resources and standpoints of international experts will be analyzed contextually for a future-oriented and objective discourse. This work is a contribution to traceability, a systematic classification and interpretation of the currently conducted and necessary debates on international cooperation and mobility in higher education – with special consideration of the above-mentioned conflict: The Austrian-Belgian Education-Saga with the European Commission.