Leveraging Higher Education Policy for Educational Diplomacy: A Mixed Methods Exploration of International Students as Soft Power Agents

Abstract Amid global power dynamics, higher education has emerged as a strategic domain of soft power and educational diplomacy. This mixed methods study examines the soft-power-related resources, institutional conditions, and agency-oriented dispositions associated with Turkish higher education institutions (HEIs), drawing on survey data from 407 international students and qualitative insights from 11 students and 8 institutional staff. The findings indicate generally favorable perceptions of attraction and future engagement shaped by factors including scholarships, institutional affiliation, and length of stay. However, challenges such as language barriers, bureaucratic hurdles, and limited social integration constrain satisfaction and institutional trust. By foregrounding international students’ voices, the study advances scholarship on higher education policy by conceptualizing international students as situated actors whose experiences and future-oriented practices illuminate micro-level processes of soft power production and prospective transmission, rather than as passive recipients of state strategy. It concludes that the soft power potential of Turkish HEIs depends on their capacity to convert attraction into sustained relational engagement through reforms in admissions, student services, and institutional coordination. The study offers practical policy recommendations for states and policymakers seeking to leverage higher education as a sustainable tool of soft power.