The International Affairs Office of UFRO and its unit for National and International Student Mobility welcomed the international students, who decided to still carry out their studies at UFRO during the first semester of 2020, online. The students from Brazil, Spain and Mexico opted for remote learning with online classes, which they will be attending.

Coronavirus is causing major changes in our way of life, but there are people who are still doing their best to achieve their goals, as in the case of some foreign students who have decided to continue their student mobility at the Universidad de La Frontera (UFRO) as planned, even though the conditions have changed due to quarantine and social distancing.

A total of 12 international students will be staying in Temuco to pursue their studies at UFRO, which announced the implementation of virtual education for the first academic semester of 2020 as a response to COVID-19.

Most of them are young students from Mexico and their reasons for continuing at UFRO are mainly based on the possibility of obtaining an equally significant learning experience thanks to the implementation of online classes, a strategy that has been adopted for all undergraduate programs.

Rector Dr. Eduardo Hebel insists that the first priority for UFRO is the health and well-being of the entire university community, and of course, also of the students who come from abroad. “It is absolutely necessary to fulfill the safety measures established by the health authorities and to take certain precautions,” he explained.

The Director of the International Affairs Office of UFRO, Dr. Lorena Vieli, explained that also another group of students will study at UFRO, attending classes from their home countries, in this case three students from Brazil, one from Spain and two from Mexico. “Our intention is to contribute with whatever is necessary to make their experiences more valuable. Many students came with the expectation of getting to know a new culture and a different university, and we are doing our best to help these students to achieve their goals, even if it is in a non-presential way.”

VIRTUAL WELCOME

The reception of the international students at UFRO has been mainly focused on sharing significant aspects of the Chilean culture and social life. Therefore, several activities were organized for the students, including a conversation about the social outburst in Chile, carried out by the psychologist Diego Espinoza, and a conversation about gender equity, carried out by the team of professionals of the UFRO Office for Gender Equity.

The initial meeting was attended by the different units of the Vice-rectorate for Undergraduate Affairs, with the participation of Felipe Opazo of the Language Coordination Center and Felipe Muñoz, who is in charge of the General Electives. The Coordinator of the unit for National and International Student Mobility, María Consuelo Sánchez, thanked everyone for their participation and explained that they are currently working on the process of registration and enrollment for the international students and on providing internet connectivity grants to 9 students who applied for the aid.