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The opening of this day of reflection was led by the Ambassador of Chile, Gabriel Ascencio, the Undersecretary General of Higher Education of Ecuador, María del Pilar Troya, and María Teresa Marshall of the Council of Rectors of Chilean Universities.
Universities belonging to the Council of Rectors were invited by SENESCYT to an exchange of best practices and reflection on the elements that make up higher education systems in the search for quality and academic excellence.
The objective of this first day has been to provide an academic space for the exchange, analysis, reflection and promotion of good practices in higher education that allow the strengthening of collaboration networks between Ecuador and Chile.
Four areas of common interest have shaped this exchange agenda: academic innovation, strengthening postgraduate studies, research development, and internal quality assurance systems. Participating universities from the Council of Rectors were the University of Chile, the University of Antofagasta, and the University of Talca. Participating universities from Ecuador were the National Polytechnic University, the Higher Polytechnic School of the Coast, the University of the Armed Forces, the Higher School of Chimborazo, the Central University of Ecuador, the Technical University of Ambato, and the University of Cuenca.
The Chilean Ambassador, Mr. Gabriel Ascencio, was present at the opening of the event. Following this, the Undersecretary General for Higher Education, María del Pilar Troya, gave an initial presentation on the guidelines, development, and results of the higher education reform in Ecuador, highlighting its progress and challenges. Simultaneously, Ms. Teresa Marshall of the Council of Rectors of Chilean Universities presented the state of higher education in Chile, the role of the Council of Rectors of Chilean Universities (CRUCH), and guidelines for future reform.
In the exchange panels, the topic of academic innovation was presented through case studies from Chile (M. Inés Icaza, University of Talca) and Ecuador (Elizabeth Larrea, Council of Higher Education of Ecuador). Later, quality assurance systems were addressed with presentations by María Luisa Granda (ESPOL, Guayaquil), Rosa Devés (University of Chile), and M. Inés Icaza (University of Talca). These topics generated significant interest among Ecuadorian universities in understanding the quality assurance processes implemented by Chilean universities and their academic innovation processes. Both are priorities that higher education institutions in Ecuador must address very quickly. The presentation on the situation in Ecuador was particularly interesting and provided insight into the scope of the changes being implemented.
Following the same logic of exchange, the analysis of the state of research systems in universities in both countries was addressed. In this case, the presentations by Flavio Salazar (University of Chile) and Marcelo Oliva (University of Antofagasta) contributed to understanding the trajectory of the Chilean system in science, technology, innovation, and creativity, along with the strategic visions of each university. From the perspective of Ecuador, Mr. Rodríguez's presentation (Central University of Ecuador) provided an analysis from a historical point of view, along with the strengths and weaknesses of scientific development in Ecuadorian universities.
Postgraduate situation
The final part of this meeting addressed the state of postgraduate studies. Rosa Devés (University of Chile) spoke on behalf of Chile, highlighting the value of doctoral programs for university development, considering them the fundamental driver of academic change toward excellence. This presentation was complemented by a presentation on the evaluation of the postgraduate system in Ecuador, given by Jaime Gallegos (Pontifical Catholic University of Ecuador). These presentations demonstrated a significant asymmetry between the experiences of both countries and, at the same time, expressed interest in collaborating to contribute to the development of postgraduate studies in Ecuadorian universities.
The four panels culminated in discussion sessions designed to delve deeper into each topic—quality, postgraduate studies, academic innovation, and research—and address the specific concerns of the participants. This session facilitated networking for future collaborations.
At the end of the day, in addition to thanking SENESCYT for organizing the event and especially María Francisca Bustamante for her efforts, it was deemed important to continue these academic meetings. Among the possible avenues for collaboration were the organization of an exchange program in Chile led by CRUCH, and the exploration of agreements for scholarship programs and academic mobility.
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