The authorities of the Internationalization Office of the Universidad de La Frontera held a meeting with Patrick Flot, the Counselor for Cooperation and Cultural Action of the Embassy of France in Chile, and Francisca Acevedo Canala-Echevarría, the UFRO academic and Honorary Consul of France for La Araucanía, to define strategies to strengthen the partnership and determine future actions for student collaboration.

Continuing the path of internationalization, the Universidad de La Frontera (UFRO), through its Internationalization Office, held a meeting with representatives of France in Chile to discuss actions and strategies that are being carried out within the framework of the current agreements between the French Institute and UFRO, highlighting the student mobility programs and joint research projects, as well as defining possible fields of future collaboration that allow to enrich the academic and cultural experience of the students.

The participants in this meeting were the Director of the Internationalization Office, Lorena Vieli del Río; the Undergraduate Student Mobility manager, Antonia Espinoza Corzo; the Counselor for Cooperation and Cultural Action of the Embassy of France, and director of the French Institute in Chile, Patrick Flot; and the UFRO academic and Honorary Consul of France for La Araucanía, Francisca Acevedo Canala-Echevarría.

“Our visit aims to strengthen the relationship of cooperation with the Universidad de La Frontera, which helps us to promote and increase student mobility between Chile and France, considering all instruments available regarding science and the universities, to bring together the ecosystems of universities from both countries, Chile and France. Therefore, the idea is to continue establishing these partnerships and cooperations, since we understand the collaboration between universities as a main pillar for our bilateral relationship,“ commented Patrick Flot.

Francisca Acevedo Canala-Echevarría highlighted the impact of the current agreements between UFRO and the French Institute. “During the meeting, we were able to analyze the actions carried out within the current agreement between the Universidad de La Frontera and the French Institute, where student mobility between both countries and the scholarships for graduate students stand out. In addition, we achieved to propose future actions that help to consolidate this partnership even more. An example would be the introduction of French as a general training elective subject for undergraduate students, to continue strengthening the academic and cultural exchange between Chile and France,“ she explained.

The meeting was a significant step towards the consolidation of international collaboration networks between France and the Universidad de La Frontera, searching for new cooperation opportunities that will open up new possibilities and continue with the promotion of cultural, academic, and scientific exchange between both countries.

“This is an example of a concrete collaboration between UFRO and the Embassy of France, through Campus France and the French Institute, seeking to promote the internationalization of our graduate programs and to carry out various actions that involve undergraduate students, allowing that the students can access different benefits, such as co-financing for student mobility in French institutions, thus strengthening their networks, and complementing and connecting their knowledge,“ indicated Lorena Vieli del Río, the director of the Internationalization Office of UFRO.

Written and translated by: UFRO Communications Office