This report provides an overview of scholarship programmes that enable higher education students from Southeast Asia to study both within and beyond the region. It also explores key higher education stakeholders’ perceptions of the benefits and challenges of these programmes, and offers their recommendations for the development of an intra-ASEAN scholarship programme (IASP) aimed at enhancing regional student mobility. The findings are based on 10 national reports produced by consultants from each of the 10 ASEAN Member States (AMS). The research involved data collection from 253 surveys and 145 interviews with various stakeholders, including government officials, university leaders, student mobility coordinators, and representatives from the private sector and non-governmental organisations.

The key findings reveal the strong receptiveness and support for an IASP due to the positive outcomes yielded from existing student mobility schemes such as enhancing collaboration and partnership among stakeholders, significant student transformation, promoting institutional internationalisation strategies, and strengthening regional ties for the regionalisation efforts and harmonisation of higher education space in ASEAN. At the same time, persistent challenges are recognised by informants, especially driven by differences in resources, readiness, and visions for what the IASP should achieve. These aspects highlight a collective action problem that necessitates various actions, such as clarifying the primary objectives for establishing the IASP, defining fair and transparent systems for contributions to and benefits from the programme, and aligning coordination and regulatory structures among Member States. These efforts are essential not only to enhance intra-regional student mobility but also to strengthen ASEAN’s regional identity.