Investment in International Higher Education and Students’ Job Engagement in Nigeria

Over the years, there has been an increased investment in international education particularly because of the employment advantage that it provides. However, how well this form of education promotes employment opportunities and job engagement among graduates remains under-researched. This study examines the effect of investment in international higher education on students’ job engagement in Nigeria. Four research questions were answered and three hypotheses tested in the study. Survey design was adopted in the study while a total of 384 graduates who have studied abroad were sampled using snowballing sampling approach. The instrument used for data collection was named “Investment in International Higher Education for Students Job Engagement Questionnaire” (IIHESJEQ) which was face and content validated with a Cronbach Alpha reliability index of 0.82. Out of the 384 persons sampled for the study, 318 graduates (192 males and 126 females) representing 82.8% responded to the instrument and their responses were used for analysis using mean, standard deviation z-test and regression analysis at 0.05 level of significance. The result of the study showed that the students perceived that international higher education has both social and economic relevance. The amount spent on their education, duration of educational stay and number of countries visited significantly contributed to the students’ job engagement. Slow pace of technological adoption and cultural variations were part of the barriers to the internationalization of higher education while implementing hybrid education was seen as part of the strategies identified for internationalizing higher education in Nigeria. The study recommended the realignment of higher education curriculum to capture global realities as a way of promoting internationalization of higher education in Nigeria.

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