Formation of global mobility competencies through virtual academic exchanges and transnational alliances

Abstract

The relevance of the study lies in the deepening of digital transformation in higher education and the growing role of virtual forms of internationalization in conditions of limited physical academic mobility. Under these circumstances, the development of global mobility competencies, which ensure the effective participation of education seekers and scientific and pedagogical workers in the transnational educational and scientific space, becomes particularly important. At the same time, the lack of established approaches to the institutional integration of virtual academic exchanges and insufficient coordination of educational standards complicate the realization of the potential of such formats. The purpose of the article is to provide scientific substantiation of the theoretical and practical foundations for the formation of global mobility competencies in the higher education system through the use of virtual academic exchanges and transnational alliances of higher education institutions in the context of the digital internationalization of the educational environment. Research methods include theoretical analysis of scientific sources on the problems of internationalization of higher education, the competence approach and digital mobility, comparative analysis of models of virtual academic mobility, generalization of the experience of transnational alliances of higher education institutions, and systematization of analytical data on the evaluation of educational results. Results. The content and structural components of global mobility competencies in the conditions of virtual academic interaction are characterized. It has been established that the effective formation of such competencies requires the institutional integration of virtual exchanges into formal educational programs, the coordination of learning outcomes and the use of common evaluation criteria. It has been shown that virtual formats of academic mobility are functionally equivalent to traditional forms of international mobility when supported by appropriate organizational and pedagogical mechanisms. The main scientific and practical problems associated with digital inequality, the fragmentation of academic recognition, and the asymmetry of educational standards have been identified. Conclusions. It has been established that virtual academic exchanges and transnational alliances among higher education institutions can be considered a stable, reproducible tool for the development of global mobility competencies, provided they are systematically institutionalized. Prospects for further research include the development of validated tools for assessing global mobility competencies, empirical analysis of the long-term educational effects of participation in transnational alliances, and improvements in mechanisms for integrating virtual mobility into quality assurance systems in higher education.