English as a Language of Academic Communication in an International Environment

The relevance of the study is due to global trends in the internationalization of education, which put English as a lingua franca (further – ELF) at the center of academic communication, intercultural interaction and scientific cooperation. The problem is the need to strike a balance between the standardization of English-language academic discourse and the preservation of cultural diversity and equality of access to knowledge in non-English-speaking countries. The purpose of the study is to identify the peculiarities of using English as a lingua franca in the academic environment; the object is the process of academic communication in the context of globalized higher education. The methodological basis is based on interdisciplinary approaches of sociolinguistics, applied linguistics, discourse analysis and statistical comparative analysis of UNESCO, OECD/EU and Eurostat data. The study found that ELF functions as a dynamic communicative system in which language becomes a tool for shaping academic mobility, inclusion and integration of knowledge. Based on the analysis of data from six countries (the Netherlands, Sweden, Finland, Singapore, South Korea, and China), the study reveals an increase in the share of English-language programs and international publications, which confirms the role of ELF as a catalyst for global education. At the same time, the risks of language asymmetry and the need to form a polycentric academic culture where English does not displace local academic traditions have been identified. The practical significance of the results lies in the possibility of using them to develop strategies for a bilingual academic environment in Ukrainian universities, to develop English Medium Instruction programs and courses in intercultural academic communication. The results prove the idea that ELF is not just a language instrument but also a sociolinguistic one emerging as a new paradigm of the worldwide educational interaction.