Technological Spotlights of Digital Transformation in Tertiary Education

In the current globalization trend, digital transformation is an indispensable requirement that affects all aspects of life. Within the education domain, it creates opportunities for tertiary education institutions to replace traditional teaching, learning, research, and operation methods with more innovative, creative, and cost-effective methods. This article aims to examine recent technological advancements to promote the transformation in tertiary education. Our research methodology consists of two main activities: 1) identifying relevant literature on the use of technology to promote transformation in tertiary education by adopting PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines; 2) conducting a thematic analysis based on the findings of the literature review; to explore the relationships between them in order to better understand the link between technological trends and digital transformation in tertiary education. The findings indicate that the current technology trends that are being concerned and deployed in the educational environment are Artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, blockchain technology, and other relevant platforms and technologies such as Social networks, Mobile platforms, Big data analytics, Cloud computing, Robotic Process Automation, Virtual reality and Augmented reality and Additive manufacturing. The article also discusses the adjustment of tertiary education in the process of digital transformation with the support of technology and points out the shortcomings as well as research directions in the coming time.