Document Type : Original Article
Authors
1 Associate Professor, Department of Education, Faculty of Humanities, Arak University, Arak, Iran
2 Assistant Professor, Department of Education, Faculty of Huminites, Arak University, Arak. Iran,
3 MA in Education,, Department of Education, Faculty of Huminites, Arak University, Arak. Iran,
Abstract
The present study was conducted with the aim of identifying and hierarchically structuring the barriers to the internationalization of Iraq’s higher education system. The research method was a case-study with a modeling approach. The statistical population consisted of key experts, including faculty members of Iraqi universities, from whom 28 individuals were selected through purposive sampling. The data collection tools included documents and a self-interactive researcher-made questionnaire. To analyze the data, the Interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM) technique was used. The results showed that nine factors play a role as barriers to the internationalization of Iraq’s higher education system. The findings also revealed that the lack of dynamic political exchanges with developed countries functions as the most fundamental barrier. Additionally, the low ranking of Iraqi universities in international rankings, the lack of necessary infrastructure and facilities, the absence of facilitation in the student admission process in political and administrative dimensions, the lack of coherent macro-level national policymaking in academic interactions, the absence of a dynamic and receptive structure in Iraqi higher education, and the insufficient sense of social, security, and political safety for international students were identified as key underlying barriers. Furthermore, localized and indigenous curricula and the lack of sufficient global attractiveness of Iraqi universities were identified as surface-level barriers—essentially consequences of the more fundamental underlying factors.
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