Charting the course of digital collaboration: a bibliometric analysis of COIL literature

Internationalization is at the core of higher education and institutions are exploring sustainable solutions to develop a comprehensive framework for internationalization. Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) is a sustainable solution in which two cohorts of faculty and students from geographically and culturally diverse backgrounds can collaborate and interact thereby gaining skills to function in a multicultural and diverse global community. Practices of COIL would help to enhance inclusive and equitable education that would help promote lifelong learning among the beneficiaries. Despite the abundant benefits that COIL offers, research on COIL is still in its nascent stage and is more concentrated in developed high income countries. In this study, the researchers have adopted the bibliometric approach to systematically study the existing literature, explore research gaps and identify emerging research areas in COIL. The results of this analysis would help academicians, researchers, policymakers, and international cells in institutions to strategize and formulate policies to popularize COIL as a sustainable solution for higher education. This would be especially beneficial to developing and emerging economies. The study has theoretical, managerial and societal implications for policy makers, researchers and academicians in higher education institutions.