Article published in:
Journal of English-Medium Instruction
Vol. 1:1 (2022) ► pp. 29–47

Towards multilingualism in English‑medium higher education

A student perspective

| Universidad Complutense de Madrid
| Universität Wien

Reflecting the global push for internationalisation, higher education institutions (HEIs) have experienced a surge in English-medium education in multilingual university settings (EMEMUS). Of the many topics and angles pursued in the equally vast research landscape, multilingualism has so far received comparatively less attention, especially when approached from the perspective of students. By combining recent conceptualisations of multilingualism and of EMEMUS, this paper offers a qualified literature review, discussing four research scenarios that foreground different student groups and some of their multilingual experiences and practices. Based on the ROAD‑MAPPING framework, such discussions retain a level of detail that allows for a comprehensive interpretation across scenarios, offering insights into the complexity and fluidity of multilingualism within EMEMUS.

Keywords: multilingualism, EMEMUS, ROAD‑MAPPING, students, higher education
Article outline
  • Introduction
  • English-medium education and multilingualism through the ROAD‑MAPPING lens
  • EMEMUS from the student perspective: Current conceptualisations of multilingualism
    • Scenario 1: Focus on local students and bilingualism
    • Scenario 2: Focus on local and international students and trilingualism
    • Scenario 3: Focus on local and international students and multilingualism
    • Scenario 4: Focus on international students and multilingualism
  • Moving ahead in foregrounding multilingualism in EME research
  • Implications and final remarks
  • Notes
  • References


This article is currently available as a sample article.

Published online: 21 January 2022
https://doi.org/10.1075/jemi.21018.daf
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Towards multilingualism in English‑medium higher education