Rector of USACH at CRUCH Internationalization Commission plenary session: "Overcoming migration barriers is key to internationalization"«

With the presence of the rector of Usach and head of the commission, Dr. Rodrigo Vidal, representatives of the CRUCH universities met to work on the migration problem and the challenges of internationalization in Chilean higher education.

On Friday, August 23, the plenary session of the Internationalization Commission of the Council of Rectors of Chilean Universities (CRUCH), The meeting's main objective was to address the challenges of migration by attracting advanced human capital to the country's universities and to explore possible solutions.

The plenary session included the participation of the rector of Usach, Dr. Rodrigo Vidal Rojas, who, in addition to hosting this session, is the rector in charge of the Council's Internationalization Commission. Also present was the team from the CRUCH General Secretariat, headed by María Angélica Bosch Cartagena, and representatives from the international areas of 25 of the 30 universities in the organization.

The session began with remarks from Rector Vidal, who welcomed everyone, emphasizing that Usach is always open and available for anything that fosters dialogue and working towards common goals.“We are happy and proud that you are here. I've said it before, because that's how we feel: the University of Santiago, Chile, is the university for all of you.”,” he said.

He continued, emphasizing the importance of the work carried out by the commission, and noted that “Internationalization is a great aspiration for universities, but it's also a necessity. This working meeting is important for several reasons: because we face fundamental barriers, such as immigration law, and because we need to agree on what we mean by internationalization.”Vidal emphasized that «"Overcoming migration barriers is key to internationalization"».

Subsequently, the rector of Usach offered his full support to promote and encourage dialogue.“I want to thank you because this work is fundamental. If we can reach an agreement on what we collectively understand as internationalization, incorporating all our perspectives, if we can define our indicators, and if we move forward with the immigration law, we will take a giant step forward.”, he noted.

Then he took the floor Marcos Avilez Aros, Director of International Relations at the University of Talca and President of the Internationalization Commission, who began by acknowledging the hospitality and support of the Department of International and Interuniversity Relations (DRII) of Usach and expressed that “What the rector said is absolutely in line with the work of the committee. The goal is ambitious for all of us, but also necessary. Today we will certainly be able to make progress and have a very productive conversation.”.

It is worth noting that the Internationalization Commission seeks to strengthen internationalization in CRUCH universities as a process that impacts the quality of all university functions, generating guidelines and recommendations for its implementation. Its objective is to promote CRUCH's recognition nationally and internationally as a benchmark for the development of internationalization policies within the Chilean higher education system.

Within this framework, the participants' work was developed in three groups. The first group addressed “"Optimizing immigration law to promote academic internationalization"”, The first, whose purpose was to review and simplify immigration law to facilitate the arrival of international talent and raise awareness among legislators about the need for regulatory adjustments. The second, meanwhile, worked on the “Definition and evaluation of internationalization”, whose intention was to collaborate in clearly defining internationalization objectives and ensuring that they are aligned with the institutional goals of each university. Finally, the third group reflected on “Internationalization models”, with the intention of developing and presenting different models of internationalization that can be adopted by universities.

“The CRUCH Internationalization Committee is a highly cohesive group that helps us jointly promote priority issues for our universities. Hosting this plenary session has been an institutional joy, as it has allowed us to support this collaborative work.”,” he said Fernando Olmos Galleguillos, Director of International and Inter-University Relations at the University of Santiago, Chile.

Finally, it is important to mention that internationalization is not only a strategic objective, but also an imperative for raising the quality and competitiveness of higher education in the country. Only through joint efforts will it be possible to attract and retain highly skilled human capital, key to facing global challenges and contributing to Chile's sustainable development in the international context.

AuthorAlexander Rivera (DRII USACH)

PhotographManuel Urra (USACH Communications)