• Dr Juan Manuel Zolezzi, in his traditional statement to the University Community, asked everyone to give support to the new 3,900 students that entered Universidad de Santiago this year. Our institution has a 166-year history in training professionals and contributing to the development of the country and the world.

Dr Zolezzi stressed that the beginning of this academic year has a very special meaning, because a large number of our new students have benefited from tuition-free higher education.

He said that this goal had been yearned for years and has been achieved after “a long and hard road travelled”. 

He also mentioned the importance of the Chilean education reform as a milestone for the country.

The statement

Besides greeting the university community at the beginning of this academic year, he invited the authorities, academics, professionals and administrative staff “to make the new 3,900 students feel welcomed in these classrooms for they entrusted their professional and personal development to us. With big efforts, they have entered higher education and they have chosen our university for its tradition, quality and prestige. Our mission is to show them that they made the right decision.”

“This academic year has a special meaning to me and to everyone in this institution, as a significant number of these students have benefited from tuition-free education. It is the beginning of a goal that had been yearned for years and has been achieved after a long and hard hard road travelled,” he said. 

He asked senior students to support new students by helping them and answering to their questions, so that this experience turns a happy chapter of their life.

“Undoubtedly, this will be a fundamental year for the education reform. We expect it to be ready and implemented this year and we hope it becomes a real tool that contributes to people’s dignity. It should provide free and quality education for all talented youngsters as a right guaranteed by the Chilean State,” he concluded.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

• In the release of September 15^th, the well-known QS World University Rankings show that Universidad de Santiago de Chile has consolidated its position as the third best university of the country.

The prestigious QS World University Rankings that evaluate the 900 best universities worldwide released the 2015-2016 report on September 15^th. In this release, Universidad de Santiago de Chile keeps the position that it reached last year and consolidates its third place nationwide, behind Universidad Católica De Chile and Universidad de Chile, but above Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez and Universidad de Concepción, among others.

Universidad de Santiago, led by Dr Juan Manuel Zolezzi, keeps in the 451-460 rank of the QS World University Rankings. The survey highlighted some aspects of Universidad de Santiago, a public and state higher education institution, like Employer Reputation that ranked the 187^th place in the overall world ranking, and Academic Reputation, that ranked the 220^th place in the overall world ranking.

In South America, Universidad de Buenos Aires ranked the first place. It climbed 74 places in comparison to the previous survey and it is now in the 124^th position in the overall world ranking. In this regional sub division, Universidad de Santiago de Chile ranked the 14^th place.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

• resident Juan Manuel Zolezzi, the highest authority of Universidad de Santiago de Chile, made official the agreements with two of the most renowned higher education centers in Europe and Latin America. This will allow the exchange of experiences, joint research and student and academic exchange. 
• These cultural, academic and scientific collaboration agreements add up to previous agreements that President Zolezzi has signed with other universities in different continents. This confirms the important position of Universidad de Santiago in the international context, showing the strength of its work as a state and public university.
• On this occasion, President Zolezzi was accompanied by academic authorities from different faculties, like Administration and Economics, Engineering, Chemistry and Biology and the Technological Faculty.

On July 27^th, Dr. Juan Manuel Zolezzi, President of Universidad de Santiago- accompanied by authorities from the Faculty of Chemistry and Biology- and Dr Carlos Alvarado Cerezo, President of Universidad de San carlos de Guatemala (USAC), signed a cultural, academic and scientific collaboration agreement, which main goal is to strengthen the relation between the two institutions, in accordance with the project of state, inclusive and pluralistic education that they both share.

A week before, on July 20^th, Dr Zolezzi signed a cooperation agreement with the University of London, confirming the strong conviction of President Zolezzi that building links with worldwide renowned institutions is a must.

Several university authorities attended the meeting, like Jorge Friedmann, Dean of the Faculty of Administration and Economics (FAE); Orlando Balboa, Head of the Department of Economics; Aurelio Butelmann, Head of the Department of Administration, and Arturo Cerda, Head of the Department of Accounting and Auditing, among others.

The agreement

Universidad de Santiago and Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala signed a joint cooperation framework agreement in order to share experiences, methodologies and initiatives in the areas of teaching, research and cultural development. In this context, joint activities in these areas are expected to significantly contribute to both institutions.

Local authorities recognized the importance of the agreement. According to the Guatemalan government, this initiative “Will further strengthen the already stable friendship and cooperation links between Guatemala and Chile. It marks a new starting point, with different plans and programs for academic cooperation that will be very useful to students and, particularly, to teachers who seek to improve the development of their cognitive skills to better respond to the new demands of the Guatemalan society.”

Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala

Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala is the oldest and the most traditional university in that country. It is a unique public institution at the forefront of the development of education and cultural policies.

Its guidelines are common to the ones of Universidad de Santiago, as “It includes a ‘democratic culture’ with a multicultural and intercultural view, related and committed to the environmental, humanist, social and scientific development, with an effective, dynamic and updated management system and with optimally used resources to reach its goals and objectives. It trains professionals with ethical values and academic excellence.”

In search of excellence

The agreement signed by President Zolezzi in Guatemala City is part of the goal set by the university authorities in order to consolidate the institutional growth at a national and international level. The idea is to search for academic initiatives that enrich students’ training and promote additional values which are important in the labor world, such as innovation, adaptability and team work.

This initiative is only one of the significant steps taken in this regard by our Corporation lately. In June, Dr Juan Manuel Zolezzi visited several community colleges in California, USA; he signed a memorandum of agreement with Luis Lorvão, Portugal Ambassador to Chile, for the creation of the Portuguese Language Center in the Faculty of Humanities of Universidad de Santiago, and he signed a comprehensive cooperation agreement with Universidad Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, among other activities.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

• The participants evaluated the meeting very positively, as it provided constant feedback and the possibility to learn about new teaching methodologies from concrete experiences in the Centre for Vocational Training Tknika, in Spain. Tknika is well positioned and has a long experience in the field of technical vocational training.
• Antonio Gil and Víctor Arias, experts in project-based learning, were the keynote speakers. This method is focused on the student’s performance and it encourages his/her to lead his/her own progress. The researcher Kitte Marttinen, a Finnish expert in educational innovation, also participated in the activity.
• “The concept of challenge is interesting. I think we are going to see the way of implementing this method that involves making students to face a challenge that demands their intellectual and practical efforts,” Gabriel Bosque, director of Liceo Industrial de Nueva Imperial, said.

 

When technical vocational training is getting increasingly stronger, our University contributes with new knowledge for the directors of technical vocational schools managed by Universidad de Santiago (under the system of delegated administration) who participated in an intense activity, in order to learn innovative methodological experiences in the field of technical education. The activity was held on July 8th, here, in Santiago.

Some of the participants were: Patricia Silva Sánchez, director of Instituto Comercial Eliodoro Domínguez Domínguez, Santiago; Marcelo Riquelme, director of Liceo Industrial de Angol, Angol; Gabriel Bosque, director of Liceo Industrial de Nueva Imperial, Nueva Imperial; and Aliro Ramírez León, director of Liceo Industrial Presidente Pedro Aguirre Cerda, Rancagua. The heads of the pedagogical and vocational training units of these schools also attended the activity.

They all learned about the experiences and new methodologies presented by Antonio Gil de Gómez y Víctor Arias Rodríguez, Spanish experts from the renowned Centre for Vocational Training Tknika, Basque Country, and by Dr Kitte Marttinen, Finnish researcher with a long experience in educational innovation.

This valuable initiative is part of the school directors’ training program coordinated by the academic in charge of the administration of these institutions, Jorge Torres Ortega. He said that it was a rewarding activity because it was focused on concrete actions to improve technical vocational education, in a context in which a lot is spoken but little is done. “I do not know if someone in Chile is working on this at the level we are at the University,” he said.

Professor Torres invited the Spanish researchers to participate in the meeting to provide the above school directors with new methodological and management tools. With regards to Antonio Gil, Torres highlighted his experience using the project-based learning (PBL) approach that will provide and innovative view in the country, because it makes students to be protagonists of their own learning.

Universidad de Santiago has maintained a partnership with Tknika since last year. “Besides, in August there will be a scholarship competition for technical vocational schools’ teachers. That is why I particularly asked them to inform us about the specialization alternatives in the centres of the Basque Country,” he said.

The voice of the experts

The project-based learning (PBL) is a competence-based model for technical training teaching developed by Antonio Gil and Víctor Arias. Roughly, this method is focused on the student’s performance and it encourages him/her to lead his/her own progress.

According to Antonio Gil, the PBL means an evolution, a new way of facing the learning process, in accordance with current times.

“We have realized that education is evolving and shifting to this type of teaching. It is no longer the type in which the teacher knows his/her subject very well and then recites it to the student and, if the latter is paying attention, he/she will learn; and if he/she gets distracted, he/she will not learn that much,” he explained. 

In this sense, the researcher thinks that the student is the protagonist and the teacher should be a facilitator that provides the necessary tools for the student to have the results expected for the process. 

For his part, Víctor Arias highlighted that implementing these new technologies would involve big efforts. “Teachers need more training, and therefore, more resources are required,” he said.

The participants

According to Patricia Silva Sánchez, director of Instituto Comercial Eliodoro Domínguez Domínguez, “Listening to the experts from the Basque Country was an interesting experience, because they have had very good results with these innovative initiatives and good results in technical vocational education.” She highlighted the novel approach proposed by the PBL, in which the student is an essential agent in the educational process and which dynamics gives the student important tools for his/her professional development.

“The learning process is student-centred, as he/she starts looking for information; he/she plays different roles in the working groups and together they are able to reach the final results. This is the work that they have to face when they enter the world of work.”

Marcelo Riquelme, director of Liceo Industrial de Angol, said that the activity was important because it provided significant feedback on world-wide successful experiences that could improve the projects already implemented in Chilean institutions.

“It is really important because we are implementing projects in that direction. We still have work to do, but having this type of exchange and learning about these experiences will help us a lot,” he said.

Gabriel Bosque, director of Liceo Industrial de Nueva Imperial, said that the meeting was very significant. “The opportunity of having these experts here, listening to them directly and having the possibility of asking questions, generates a quite interesting interaction that will allow us to improve the implementation of our own projects.”

However, Bosque stressed that one of the main hurdles in introducing new pedagogical methodologies in the classrooms of our country is the paradigm change that it involves.

“This is the main problem posed by any deep, structural change in education, in general. We teachers were historically trained in one paradigm, so it is hard for us to change methodologies,” he said. However, he thinks that basing the educational process on challenges is really innovative and attractive.

“The concept of challenge is interesting. I think we are going to see the way of implementing this method that involves making students to face challenges that demand their intellectual and practical efforts,” director Bosque said.

According to Aliro Ramírez León, director of Liceo Industrial Presidente Pedro Aguirre Cerda, the activity was rewarding, because it opened paths to learn about state-of-the-art educational methodologies.

“For us, all training initiatives are welcome, because they allow us to compare what we are doing with what they are doing in Europe,” he said.

Finally, he described the occasion as a call for innovation. “We are completely aware that we must innovate,” he concluded.

 

Translated by Marcela Contreras

• The 2015 QS University Rankings: Latin America states that our University is the third best higher education institution in Chile. This is, undoubtedly, the consequence of meeting the institutional strategic guidelines and objectives.
• Universidad de Santiago is the 16^th best university in Latin America, out of more than 300 institutions. Universidad de Santiago pushed Universidad de Concepción into the fourth position. Universidade de Sao Paulo ousted Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile from the first place.
• According to the report, Universidad de Santiago stands out in indicators like academic reputation and web impact, in which it reached the third and fourth place, respectively.
• In the survey, QS considers seven essential indicators: academic reputation, employer reputation, faculty/student ratio, papers per faculty, citations per paper, proportion of staff with a PhD, and web impact.

The last version of the QS University Rankings: Latin America stated that Universidad de Santiago is the third best higher education institution in Chile, followed by renowned universities: Universidad de Concepción, in the fourth place; Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, in the fifth; Universidad Austral de Chile, in the seventh; and Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María, in the eighth place.

Besides, our University is the 16th best university in Latin America, out of more than 300 institutions included in the survey. According to the report issued by QS, it stands out for its academic reputation, what places it among the first eleven institutions.

In Chile, Universidad de Santiago is not only one of the three best higher education institutions: it also stands out in indicators like academic reputation and web impact, in which it was ranked the 3rd and 4th place, respectively.

Methodology

The survey is based on a methodology that includes seven essential indicators: academic reputation, employer reputation, faculty/student ratio, papers per faculty, citations per paper, proportion of staff with a PhD, and web impact.

The academic reputation is the indicator which has been given the higher weighting (30%). It is related to the prestige of every institution. It is based on two large worldwide surveys that involve academics and business people.

The employer reputation indicator (20%) relates to the renown that every university has in the world and the impact it has on its graduates’ employability. 

The faculty/student ratio indicator has a weighting of 10% of the overall score.

According to QS, the number of papers per faculty indicator (10%) reflects the size of the universities, their strength and impact of their research works. 

The citation per paper indicator (10%) refers to the number of research works being conducted at every faculty of a university. 

The proportion of staff with a PhD indicator (10%) refers to the number of academics holding this degree and working at the faculties of a university. 

The web impact indicator (10%) provides an insight into the impact and efficacy of every university on the Internet.

Efforts that reflect the excellence

The third place obtained by Universidad de Santiago corresponds with the efforts made by the university community to improve its standards for academic excellence.

In this sense, the Institutional Strategic Plan (PEI, in Spanish) 2011-2015, states that Universidad de Santiago’s mission “seeks to reach the highest standards in quality, innovation and relevance, in an environment of mutual respect for others, freedom of thought, diversity and social inclusion, providing space for discussion and proposals in a multidisciplinary and pluralist dialogue.”

In addition, Universidad de Santiago has signed several agreements with renowned foreign institutions and countries. For example, the Memorandum of Agreement signed last January with the University of Oxford (United Kingdom) that involves the implementation of an experimental laboratory in order to conduct research on Social Sciences.

Likewise, the agreement signed by our university and Universidade de Sao Paulo- top at the 2015 Latin American QS Ranking- seeks to promote academic outreach through conferences, teaching and research activities, and student exchange, both at a graduate and undergraduate level.

Besides, the six years (2014-2020) of accreditation given by the National Accreditation Commission (CNA-Chile, in Spanish) to Universidad de Santiago are the result of the constant efforts made by the University to strengthen the different areas of the institutional work.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

• The National Institute of Industrial Property recognized Universidad de Santiago as the second Chilean university at filing the highest number of patent applications in 2014. “Chile has a scientific tradition that places the country at the forefront of the Latin American productivity, and numbers reflect this fact, like the second place reached by Universidad de Santiago (last year).” The award ceremony was held in the context of the World Intellectual Property Day.

Once again, Universidad de Santiago was among the three most outstanding universities in the patent category- a category related to the rights given by the Chilean State to an inventor for the development of a new technology- in the annual award ceremony organized by the National Institute of Industrial Property (Inapi). 

The ceremony was held at Patio Los Naranjos of Universidad de Santiago and it was headed by Katia Trusich, Under Secretary of Economy, Development and Tourism, and Inapi’s NationalDirector, Maximiliano Santa Cruz. The Under Secretary said that last year was a consolidation period for Inapi. And she added that the challenge now is to set out a long-term strategy to allow “the development of industrial property considering the specific requirements of the country with regards to productive development, innovation and business ventures.”

For his part, Inapi’s National Director emphasized that our institution has a very important commitment with regards to patent application processing. “In Chile, universities are doing a good job at patenting and, if they are considered all together, in 2014 they almost doubled the number of patent applications filed, in comparison to the previous year.”

Besides congratulating Universidad de Santiago for its great work and interest in patent matters, she said that our University “is making big efforts to obtain patents, something that should be continued and promoted. Generating new knowledge through scientific activity at universities is an essential tool for economic, social and cultural development.”

“Chile has a scientific tradition that places the country at the forefront of the Latin American productivity, and numbers reflect this fact, like the second place reached by Universidad de Santiago in the national patent application ranking of 2014”, Maximiliano Santa Cruz said.

Luis Magne, Head of the Department of Technology Management of Universidad de Santiago- the unit in charge of processing patent applications of the University, among other tasks- said: “Universidad de Santiago continues to keep its spirit of technological university, so it puts an emphasis on applied research and innovation in order to contribute to the society welfare and to have an impact on Chile and the world.”

According to the information given by the Department of Technology Management, in 2014, Universidad de Santiago filed 23 new patent applications with Inapi, doubling the number of patents filed in 2013. This placed the University in the third position of the ranking that year. In addition, it filed 44 invention and protection patent applications with international agencies.

These patents are related to the fields of Sciences, Engineering, Technology, and Chemistry and Biology, and most of them belong particularly to the areas of Biotechnology, Manufacturing and Aquaculture.

Universidad de Concepción was at the first place in the patent application ranking while Pontificia Universidad Católica was at the third place.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

• The Montevideo Group Association of Universities is meeting this week at the ECLAC’s office in Santiago. The activity gathers together representatives of more than 30 state universities of Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay. The program is focused on the analysis of “Reformas Universitarias y nuevos desafíos en la región”. According to Dr Juan Manuel Zolezzi, the Universidad de Santiago’s highest authority and head of the activity, having been chosen by the Association to host the Council of Presidents’ meeting, “means recognition of our experience.” 

The Montevideo Group Association of Universities (AUGM, in Spanish) has become one of the most significant groups in Latin America, as it gathers the most important state universities of Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay. This time, Universidad de Santiago is hosting the 67^th meeting of the Montevideo Group‘s Council of Presidents.

The activity is being held (April 27^th-28^th) at the Raúl Prebisch conference room of the ECLAC’s office in Chile.

On this occasion and in a context in which the Chilean Education Reform is a “must” topic at debate, Universidad de Santiago organized the forum “Reformas universitarias y nuevos desafíos en la región” (University reforms and new challenges in the region), where representatives of different Latin American public universities, as well as authorities and national and foreign experts, will discuss the processes and challenges the university reform involves.

President Juan Manuel Zolezzi

According to Dr Juan Manuel Zolezzi, the Universidad de Santiago’s highest authority and head of the activity, having been chosen by the Association to host the Council of Presidents’ meeting, “means recognition of our experience.” 

“We are part of almost all work committees of the Association and we head many of them, so this is in recognition of the work we have done,” President Zolezzi says, although he believes that the political and social context of our country adds “an attractive component”. 

Dr Zolezzi considers that Chile and its Education Reform made unanimous the decision of having the meeting here. The university presidents of Latin America “have great interest in being at a country where a large Higher Education Reform is being made.” 

“Every situation is unique and there are no recipes to implement a reform, but I think this debate will enlighten us,” Dr Zolezzi added.

International experience in state education

The Latin American meeting gathered university presidents with considerable experience and a very visible relation with their States. Dr Zolezzi says that “In most South American countries, free education is not part of the debate: it is a reality,” although he acknowledges that there are also experiences of private universities in different countries that are worth to know.

In President Zolezzi’s opinion, “Every situation is unique and there are no recipes to implement a reform, but I think this debate will enlighten us. We can agree with some of the systems that have been implemented but we can also disagree with others,” he says.

“The variety of approaches will be the most enriching thing of the activity. I think few people in this field in South America are not aware of what is happening in Chile, so I think this (meeting) will be a contribution to the development of our country.”

This forum precedes the Montevideo Group Council of Presidents meeting, in which a collaboration agreement between ECLAC and AUGM is expected to be signed.

Besides, the new president of this group will be elected, who will replace Dr Albor Cantard, President of Universidad Nacional del Litoral, in Argentina.

Finally, Universidad de Santiago de Chile will present the project “Biblioteca Latinoamericana de las Memorias” to the Council of Presidents.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

• Once again, Universidad de Santiago responds to “the appeal for help from the Chileans affected (by floods and mudslides in the north of the country). And the primary reason for responding is that we are a state and public university that is committed to society and common wealth,” President Juan Manuel Zolezzi said.

• “Our university cannot ignore an emergency situation like this, so we invite everyone to participate in this solidarity campaign,” he stressed during a coordination meeting with Manuel Arrieta, the Vice President of Student Support; Marta Matamala, the President of Feusach, and Diego Flores, a Student Senior Adviser.

• The purpose of the campaign is that all members of our university community contribute with five-liter bottles of water, that are essential good for the affected people in the Antofagasta and Atacama regions.

• Besides, the university continues collecting basic medicines, non-perishable foods, infant formula and baby food, batteries, diapers (both for adults and children) and basic cleaning supplies, in Room #511 (at the EAO facilities), at the Vice Presidency of Student Support’s Office and at the campus main entrance. The goal is to send soon a truck with a shipment of 10 tonnes of goods to help people in the north.

   

  Historically, our University has contributed to society in national emergency situations. This time will not be the exception.

  Facing the tragedy occurred in the north of Chile for the heavy and unusual rains, our University has started a solidarity campaign to help people affected by this tragedy. 

  The challenge is to fill a ten-tonne-capacity truck with basic goods, like non-perishable foods, blankets, mattresses, diapers (for adults and children), cleaning supplies, pet food and, mainly, bottled water. The truck is expected to leave Santiago on April 02^nd for Atacama and Antofagasta.

  With this idea in mind, Dr. Juan Manuel Zolezzi, President of Universidad de Santiago; Manuel Arrieta, Vice President of Student Support; Marta Matamala, President of the Feusach (the University Students Federation), and Diego Flores, a Student Senior Adviser, met on April 31^st. They invited the University community to contribute to the campaign. Donations are being collected at three different points: Room #511 (at the EAO facilities), at the Vice Presidency of Student Support’s Office (Paseo Los Naranjos) and at the campus main entrance (Av Libertador Bernardo O’Higgins 3363, Estación Central). 

  Social commitment

  During the meeting, President Zolezzi highlighted once again that Universidad de Santiago responds to “the appeal for help from the Chileans affected (by floods and mudslides in the north of the country). And the primary reason for responding is that we are a state and public university that is committed to society and common wealth.”

  “Our university cannot ignore an emergency like this, so we invite everyone to participate in this solidarity campaign,” he said, referring to students, administrative staff and academics.

  “I invite each member of this community to collaborate with this first step: the most urgent supporting help. We want to focus on the motto “one community member, on bottle of water”, in addition to all the other contributions the community may want to make,” Dr Zolezzi added.

  For her part, Marta Matamala, President of the Feusach, said that solidarity is a “basic pillar” for building a fairer society.

  “Our University is unique in its social role. We are future professionals, with a commitment to society. Being touched by people in precarious situations is an essential part of the imprint of this University,” she said.

  Volunteers

  Besides sending basic goods, the University Presidenct, the Feusach and the different faculties are evaluating the possibility of doing volunteer works in the affected areas.

  President Zolezzi said that he is in contact with Universidad de Atacama, a former campus of Universidad Técnica del Estado, “because we feel morally committed to it,”  to define the areas of greatest needs.

  The School of Medicine, the School of Obstetrics and Child Care, and the School of Psychology are among the schools and departments that could initially contribute by sending student volunteers.

   

  Translated by Marcela Contreras

• The  Memorandum of Understanding signed today in the United Kingdom establishes an unprecedented partnership between that renowned English university and a Latin American institution to implement an experimental laboratory focused on conducting research on Social Sciences.
• In his address, the President of Universidad de Santiago, Dr. Juan Manuel Zolezzi, said that this centre means “a new development path for Social Sciences in Latin America, the beginning of a new model for the future development of science collaboration between the United Kingdom and Chile, and the first step towards the creation of a global centre for the experimental analysis of public policies.”
• The memorandum will be valid for four years and both institutions will work in partnership for the implementation of the Centre for Experimental Social Sciences (CESS) of Santiago that is expected to produce a significant volume of academic publications and become a benchmark consultancy for the region. “The research carried out by this centre will have a big impact on the social and economic development of Chile and Latin America, through the consolidation of common research lines and their integration,” President Zolezzi said.

​

At the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed today between that university and Universidad de Santiago de Chile for creating the Centre for Experimental Social Sciences (CESS) of Santiago.

It is an unprecedented partnership between the University of Oxford and a Latin American higher education institution focused on developing Social Sciences and promoting scientific collaboration across the region.

In his speech at the Nuffield College Tower Room, President Juan Manuel Zolezzi said that the CESS will open “a new development path for Social Sciences in Latin America and will begin a new model for the future development of scientific collaboration between the United Kingdom and Chile.”

President Zolezzi added that, as a state and public university, Universidad de Santiago “owes much to the society it belongs to,” and stressed the importance of receiving a fair treatment from the Chilean State, with more inclusion, equality and free education, because “at present, Chile is the country with the most expensive and most unequal education system in the world.”

For the above, he showed himself pleased for joining forces with Nuffield College of the University of Oxford. Nuffields’ model for approaching Social Sciences views Social Sciences as active in society, rigorous, ambitious and with the courage to question, evaluate and propose alternative ways for the development of society. President Zolezzi explained that this approach shows a path for Universidad de Santiago that can contribute to evidence inequalities and produce knowledge for developing better public policies.

“Universidad de Santiago de Chile will contribute to this project with all its skills and will go beyond strict compliance with the objectives proposed by both institutions,” he said. These objectives include conducting joint research projects, laboratory experiments, assessing public policies, exchange, cooperation and teacher training, and developing continuous education programs, among others.

Challenges

The ceremony was attended by the highest authorities of the renowned British university, particularly by representatives of the Nuffield Centre for Experimental Social Sciences, who will be in charge of implementing this collaboration agreement that will allow these institutions to work together from two different regions in order to deal with the big challenges faced by the developing world.

CESS Santiago is expected to become a model in the region and a future global centre for experimental research and evaluation. “This is the first step towards the creation of a global centre for the experimental analysis of public policies,” Dr. Zolezzi said. “The research carried out by this centre will have a big impact on the social and economic development of Chile and Latin America, through the consolidation of common research lines, the joint participation of Social Sciences researcher from different countries, and the strengthening of these sciences,” he added.

The Memorandum of Understanding was signed by the President of Universidad de Santiago, Juan Manuel Zolezzi; the Director of CESS Santiago, Juan Carlos Oyanedel; the Warden of Nuffield College, Sir Andrew Dilnot, and the Director of the Centre for Experimental Social Sciences, Raymond Duch.

The agreement considers the research teams of Nuffield and Universidad de Santiago as strategic partners with regards to funding research studies for requesting and implementing consultancy projects in Latin America.

The agreement also establishes the implementation of an experimental laboratory overseen by both institutions, so that the CESS generates a significant volume of academic publications. The agreement will be countersigned in March this year, in Santiago.

Translated by Marcela Contreras

• The comprehensive cooperation agreement will formalize the pre-existing relation between Universidad de Santiago and many French institutions and will provide co-funding for students of Universidad de Santiago who want to pursue internship programs in that country. President Juan Manuel Zolezzi and the Cooperation and Cultural Action Counselor of the Embassy of France, Patrick Bosdure, made the agreement official in a ceremony attended by the directors of the doctoral programs offered at Universidad de Santiago.

 

Keeping in mind that the School of Arts and Crafts- the alma mater of our University- was inspired by the French education system, the President of Universidad de Santiago, Juan Manuel Zolezzi signed a collaboration agreement with the Embassy of France, represented by its Cooperation and Cultural Action Counselor, Patrick Bosdure, in order to strengthen research and academic links between both countries.

The agreement signing ceremony was held a few days ago at the Casa Central of Universidad de Santiago, with the presence of the Pro President Pedro Palominos; the Vice President of Outreach and Engagement, Sergio González; the Director of the Graduate Studies Office, Gloria Cárdenas, and the Head of the Department of International and Inter-University Relations, Carol Johnson. The Director of the Neuroscience Doctoral Program, Rodolfo Madrid; the Director of the Science Doctoral Program with Major in Mathematics, María Isabel Cortez, and the Director of the Science Doctoral Program with Major in Physics, Luis Eugenio Hamm, were also invited to the ceremony.

The French diplomat said that one of the goals of his work in our country is to promote student exchange. “Student mobility is extremely important. In Chile, we have more than 350 agreements with different universities and it is very rewarding to sign agreements that are really effective from their beginning,” Patrick Bosdure said.

He said that, for France, it is very important to organize inter-university collaboration in the framework of agreements like the one recently signed, because they are an example of effective cooperation, and in the future, this relation could be stronger. He added that he is receptive to receive projects and research proposals, because doctoral studies are a priority.

President Zolezzi said that he was pleased for the opportunity of formalizing the agreement that will lead to strengthen the links that professors and different departments of the university have already developed with many French higher education institutions.

For his part, Pro President Palominos said that our University is really interested in this kind of agreement with countries like France, because the institution needs to have more accredited doctoral programs and to broaden its areas of knowledge. This idea was reaffirmed by the Director of the Graduate Studies Office who said that this exchange program is ideal for students to make new contacts and develop networks.

According to the Director of the Neuroscience Doctoral Program, Rodolfo Madrid, this is a very good time for signing the agreement: as the program is new, efforts are being made to strengthen the agreements that favor student exchange and improvement of programs.

Dr. María Isabel Cortez also valued the agreement “because it is very useful for students, particularly for Mathematics students, an area in which we have a strong collaboration with France, but at a project and professor level. Although she thinks that an internship of two months is not enough, “it will help students to build networks and make contacts to progress with their projects and to interact with more people than they usually do.”

Open contest

Carol Johnson, Head of the Department of International and Inter-University Relations, explained that the agreement gives the opportunity of engaging two-month research internships at high quality research centers in France to at least seven doctoral students whose dissertation projects have been approved. Universidad de Santiago and the Embassy of France made a commitment to provide the students with co-funded scholarships.

The application period is open between December 18th and March 13th. During this time, applicants should collect the required documents. Students will be staying in France between June and December 2015. For further information, click on http://www.postgrado.usach.cl/es/noticias/se-abre-convocatoria-becas-para-estadias-doctorales-en-francia

Translated by Marcela Contreras