INVITATION:

The Dean, School of Education under the College of Education and External Studies (CEES), cordially invites you to the PhD Public Defense of the following candidate:

Name of the Candidate: Ms.Birabwa Elizabeth

Title of Thesis: 

Faculty Engagement with Strategies for Internationalization at Home in Makerere University

Date:  Monday 15th  December 2025.

Time: 9:00am – 12:00pm

ABSTRACT

Faculty are mandated to teach, research and engage in knowledge transfer. With the advancement of internationalisation, travel abroad is envisaged to enhance students’ international and intercultural competencies. However, given that not all students may be able to travel abroad, higher education institutions are urged to prepare locally competent and globally relevant graduates. Whilst faculty are responsible for the training of these students, there is dearth of phenomenological investigations concerning strategies that faculty adapt in the training of the non-mobile students anticipated to work in a highly globalised international and multicultural society.   Whereas several studies have been conducted in relation to faculty engagement in internationalisation, studies concerning strategies adapted by faculty based in their lived experiences in internationalisation at home are minimal. This study therefore sought to investigate; (i) How faculty engage with institutional strategies for internationalisation at home in Makerere University (ii) How faculty engage in individual strategies for internationalisation at home in Makerere University. This study was anchored on the transcendental phenomenology by Edmund Husserl in the interpretive world view. Categorising the ten colleges that constitute Makerere University according to Biglan’s typology of academic disciplines; I purposely selected sixteen (16) faculty for individual interviews. Using thematic analysis, four themes emerged from the study namely; enabling environment, human- resource oriented initiatives, student-oriented initiatives, research and collaborations.  The study revealed that, faculty engagement in internationalisation strategies manifests diversely as engagement in; scholarly mobility, collaborative research, international student mobility programmes, integration of internationalisation and intercultural dimensions into the formal and informal curriculum. The study concludes that; while the university creates an enabling environment for faculty engagement, there is a dearth of an international relations policy framework, limited visibility of the international relations office at the departments and there were limited efforts to support faculty engagement in internationalisation strategies. The study therefore recommends that Makerere University fast-tracks the development of the internationalisation  policy framework, strengthens the international office with additional mandates, establishes international coordination offices at the colleges to support the coordination of academic activities, supports deliberate integration of international and multicultural aspects in the curriculum, supports faculty engagement in international mobility through increasing the funding at the departments.

 Supervisor:

Professor Ronald Bisaso

Doctoral Committee:
1.Professor F.E.K Bakkabulindi
2.Dr. Florence Nakamanya
3.Dr. Gerald Bwenvu
4.Dr. David Onen

Your presence and participation will be highly appreciated as we support the student in this important academic milestone.