This paper explores how mobility is experienced differentially in international education, through a comparison of two ostensibly very distinct student groups. Both groups have non-UK citizenship and have studied, or are studying, for a British higher education degree – one in the UK, the other in Hong Kong. Through a dual focus on the materialities and mobilities within international higher education, we consider the extent to which physical mobility across borders is a defining feature of the experiences and outcomes of those engaging in international education. We argue that combining perspectives of mobilities and materialities challenges simplistic dichotomies of im/mobility amongst students and unsettles the boundaries between onshore and offshore international education. Our paper provides a more granular and nuanced understanding of the relationship between im/mobility, international higher education and social reproduction. Copyright © 2023 Taylor & Francis.

In the context of increasing disciplinary interest in ‘geographies of education’, this article looks at the particular phenomenon of cross-border schooling (CBS), wherein children are involved in daily boundary crossing for education and engage in a (usually) arduous commute. Here, we draw upon a recent research project involving CBS at the Shenzhen–Hong Kong border. We consider three aspects of this border crossing that were significant in the project’s findings: the materialities of the border; the importance of routine (and rhythm); and the daily experience of tiredness and relentless exhaustion for the children and parents involved. The article also highlights the themes of ‘Changing Places’ (especially how they are known and experienced) and ‘Globalisation’. Copyright © 2021 Taylor & Francis Ltd.

This paper examines the under-explored relationship between young people's transitions to higher education (HE) and the opportunities afforded by transnational education (TNE) programmes, with a focus on understanding the contemporary situation in Hong Kong. A fascinating association has developed, over the past decade, between the expansion of TNE in the territory and the government's commitment to providing continuing education'. We explore what this relationship might mean for the young people directly affected by these new opportunities, by drawing on 70 in-depth interviews with students/graduates. Our sample is, what Brinton [2011. Lost in Transition: Youth, Work, and Instability in Postindustrial Japan. New York: Cambridge University Press] has termed (in another context), Hong Kong's educational non-elite'. We ask: how does this non-elite' negotiate the shifting terrains of educational provision in an era where credentials (particularly at degree-level) are seen as everything'? Our paper contributes directly to discussions around young people and (international) education, and considers frankly the specific role that transnational HE plays in the education/employment transition of thousands of (hitherto neglected) individuals in contemporary Hong Kong.
[Copyright of Childrens Geographies is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14733285.2013.850851]