Global uncertainty and job challenges underscore the value of internationalisation in higher education to support professional development, especially in pedagogical fields of activity. Innovative and creative educational approaches are needed to advance the internationalisation of courses and programs that prepare higher education students to teach in globalised classrooms. The transnational Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) project offers students from Germany, Australia, and South Africa an online international experience as they engage with peers. The project’s planning focuses on intercultural sensitivity and competence in international education and the exploration of educational systems in the three different national contexts. The project started in 2021 between Universität Hamburg and Griffith University. In 2022, the University of Pretoria became a third participant and then in 2023, the third round of the collaboration took place. To explore student experience of the COIL collaborations, the research methodology involves analysis of communications on the online platform and semi-structured interviews. The data analyses focus on themes to understand students’ experiences associated with the diversification and expansion of content, context and learning processes. A view of an effective internationalisation project is offered, that resonates with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4, which emphasizes inclusive and equitable quality education. The construction and development of opportunities anchored to a well-developed internationalisation strategy for tertiary schools in this new global citizenship space requires a new perspective on internationalisation. The findings support the further development of tailored, internationalised programs that can play a role in increasing employability, networking and projects that stimulate educational research awareness of the opportunities in international education.