'Mushrooming' branches may turn out to be poisonous

Universities around the world have trumpeted international branch campuses as concrete evidence that their "brands" can compete on the global stage. They are seen as footholds in new markets and ways to tap into otherwise inaccessible research. But two analyses that highlight the failure of several branch campuses offer warnings about the potential perils of following the fashion for international expansion. Philip G Altbach, director of the Centre for International Higher Education at Boston College, writes in a recent edition of International Higher Education journal: "Branch campuses may...