Recognition of the achievements and works across borders is the cornerstone of internationalization of education. Inadequate recognition of qualifications can result in inequality and reduced access to further study, professional recognition and employment. Different models for qualifications recognition are used globally, and all must find the balance between ensuring global portability and recognition, and independence.
This session will explore two case studies. The Australian Qualifications Framework is a national guide which benchmarks different levels of qualifications from schooling through to higher education. This allows for verticalization of courses and clear lifelong learning pathways for students. It is an essential tool for Australia's recognition of qualifications under the UNESCO Conventions on Higher Education (both global and regional).
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) adopted the ASEAN Qualifications Recognition Framework (AQRF) in 2016. The AQRF is a regional common reference framework which functions as a device to enable comparisons of qualifications across ASEAN member states. As a guide, it facilitates recognition of qualifications across member states by providing an agreed comparison of different levels of study, benchmarked at a national level such as in the Australian Qualifications Framework. The AQRF allows member countries to maintain their independent systems and does not demand national reform, while relying on the quality standards and delivery in each country and institution. It improves mobility between member states, allowing individuals to access high quality education across the region as well as professional recognition.

Following the successful partnership between the Australian Embassy in Brazil and FAUBAI through the Internationalisation of Education Webinar Series, we'd like to propose a session on the importance of the ever-growing interculturality debate on internationalisation of education. This session, like the webinar series, is aimed at promoting connections between Brazilian and Australian Higher Education Institutions by looking at a different aspect of internationalisation in order to present best practices, strategies and benchmarks between both countries. 
Integrating new voices and diversifying the classroom is one of Australian universities' strengths. Australian universities are sites of considerable cultural diversity, due to large numbers of international students studying together with domestic students of diverse backgrounds. Although this provides an incredible opportunity for intercultural interactions and the nurturing of cosmopolitan identities, there is still a lot of work to be done about applying learnings and capabilities built through placing students in diverse settings and effectively internationalising our campuses and creating engagement in the classrooms and between institutions.
This session proposes to present different case studies by Higher Education Institutions from the State of Victoria in Australia and how they have promoted effective and comprehensive engagement with different people and ideas on Australian university campuses and what more can be done in this space. This session seeks to promote a debate on notions of interculturality and polycentrism between Australian and Brazilian institutions.

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly disrupted traditional models of international student mobility, reshaping higher education landscapes worldwide, and encouraging Australian universities to adapt their internationalization strategies. This session will explore the impact of the pandemic on internationalization strategies, and innovative approaches adopted by Australian universities to foster collaboration opportunities in a post-pandemic world. 
While traditional approaches such as student exchange programs remain important, after the pandemic, partnerships with international institutions are being strengthened enabling collaborative research projects, and joint degree programs. In a post-pandemic scenario, embracing innovative strategies that leverage new technologies can help surpass geographical barriers and create new paths for international collaboration and knowledge exchange. 
This session proposes to share a perspective on the new internationalisation strategies adopted by Higher Education institutions from the state of Victoria, Australia, after the pandemic. We will invite representatives from Victorian universities to discuss the current challenges faced by their institutions, share current collaboration opportunities, and invite the audience to a debate on what more can be done to facilitate partnership with Brazilian higher education institutions.