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UWI TODAY
– SUNDAY 2ND AUGUST, 2015
OUR CAMPUS
Traditionally, higher education
in the Caribbean region has been
viewed predominantly in a regional context. However, in a globalized
era, higher education has now become a global phenomenon as
universities worldwide not only strive to prepare their graduates to
become productive global citizens, but also endeavour to attract foreign
students by the use of information communication technology (ICT)
for the delivery of education. In addition, we now adopt a collaborative
approach to building internal capacity and conductingmeaningful and
impactful research.TheUWI also views Internationalisation as ameans
to building diversity in its staff and students, enhancing its quality by
embracing international best practices and extending its reach beyond
the shores of the English-speaking Caribbean.
It is within this context, that the 2012-2017 Strategic Plan of The
University of the West Indies identifies ‘Internationalisation’ as one
of its six strategic perspectives. This strategic plan is now in its fourth
year, and since then, The UWI St. Augustine Campus has made, and
continues to make tremendous strides in its internationalisation
thrust through its Office of Institutional Advancement and
Internationalisation (OIAI) and its Office of Research Development
and Knowledge Transfer (ORDKT).
In June, I was invited to the 19
th
Conference of Commonwealth
Education Ministers (CCEM) in the Bahamas where I was privileged
to make a presentation entitled,
“Internationalisation of Higher
Education –The UWI Experience”
. My presentation highlightedThe
UWI St. Augustine Campus’ involvement in its internationalisation
thrust; showing our geographic and thematic diversity as it relates
to our partnerships with India, China, the EU, the ACP region, the
Caribbean Basin/Latin America, Canada and the United States.
It is critical that I convey the value of Internationalisation of
Higher Education, as I am of the firm belief that the success of any
university depends on its ability to forge strategic alliances with global
international partners. Internationalisation of higher education is
one of the ways a country responds to the impact of globalization,
yet at the same time respects the individuality of the nation.
Internationalisation of higher education can also be considered the
process of integrating an international/intercultural dimension into the
teaching, research and service functions of the institution.
However we
define internationalisation, it is undeniably important.
Universities
engage in internationalisation for a number of reasons; such as:
to foster human development through understanding and respect
across nations; to expand and sustain various avenues for economic
competitiveness; to promote academic entrepreneurialism; along with
preparing citizens for employment by foreign-owned firms. Equally as
important are its benefits of being able to prepare citizens to operate
in a multi-cultural and diverse work environment.
What has The UWI been doing to internationalise?
Given the importance of internationalisation of higher
education, The UWI has been working steadily at enhancing its
internationalisation agenda. We have done so through - institutional
partnerships, new programmes, student mobility (both ways), staff
recruitment, research partnerships, quality & accreditation, external
examinations, co-supervision of students, study/travel grant &
institutional visit allowances. Further we have established the Centre
for Language Learning (CLL), and the Diplomatic Academy of the
Caribbean (DAOC). Incorporated in our programme is an added
component where we facilitate visiting professors. The UWI has
also adhered to the implementation of the ACS Initiative (a special
tuition fee arrangement for countries of the wider Latin America and
Caribbean region), along with establishing three international offices.
Some of our internationalisation initiatives and efforts are as
follows:
Partnering with India
In January 2012 I was pleased to be part of a 12-day state visit to
India. Our university’s relationship with India is one of the longest-
standing international partnerships for The UWI. This state visit to
India climaxed with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding
(MOU) with the Government of India for three chairs at UWI St.
Augustine, located across various disciplines including Chairs in
AyurvedicMedicine, IndianHistory, andHindi.The chairs are selected
from some of the most senior professors in India and rotate every two
to three years. This project is therefore a model arrangement of inter-
institutional and inter-governmental partnership.
Partnering with China – Confucius Institute
In early June 2013, we had an official visit from the Director
General of Hanban, Madam Xu Lin. During this visit we signed an
MOU with the Confucius Institute Headquarters of China for the
establishment of a Confucius Institute at The UWI St. Augustine
Campus in the presence of the President of the People’s Republic
of China, His Excellency Xi Jinping, and the Prime Minister of the
Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the Honourable Kamla Persad-
Bissessar. Although the Confucius Institute can be considered to be in
its early stages of development it is with great pride that I can say that
we have achieved much and made significant strides in just one year.
Partnering with China – China Agricultural University
The UWI St. Augustine Campus took our relationship with
China even further, as we embraced the China Agricultural University
(CAU) as our partner institution through our arrangement with the
Confucius Institute. I must say that our partnership with CAU is very
unique. This is because, although our institutions are partnering in
the main areas of language and culture, we have taken it a step further
to collaborate in the area of sustainable agricultural development.
China Agricultural University is the most important university in
agriculture and nutritional sciences in China and UWI St. Augustine
has a long history in agricultural teaching, research and innovation.
Our partnership is therefore a natural fit. I also wish to note that the
Government of Trinidad and Tobago awarded our institution 200
acres of land at Orange Grove on the Churchill-Roosevelt Highway.
These lands are now being utilized by our agricultural field station to
support a robust approach to sustainable agricultural development
informed by recent research and integrated with commerce, business
and entrepreneurship techniques. We are currently partnering with
China Agricultural University to create an Agriculture Innovation
Park at Orange Grove. We are confident that this will be a model to
re-engineer the way our country, and the wider region, produces food
and how agriculture will be perceived in Small IslandDeveloping States
in the future. This is a great example of technical cooperation at work
for capacity development.
International Partnerships – Academic Programmes
The UWI St. Augustine Campus has also been building global
partnerships to build quality and capacity in the academic programmes
we offer. For example, in response to the lack of professional sports
management currently experienced in the Caribbean, The UWI St.
Augustine Campus, in collaboration with the Centre International
D’Etude Du Sport (CIES), and under the auspices of FIFA, introduced
a Postgraduate Diploma and MSc in Sports Management. We
also continue to partner with the University of Flensburg, and the
Flensburg University of Applied Sciences, in Germany to deliver an
MSc in Renewable Energy. Recently, UWI ROYTEC also signed a
Memorandum of Understanding with the International American
University (IAU), to deliver several new medical programmes such
as the Associate and Bachelor’s Degree in Pharmacy; the Pharmacy
Technician Certificate, the Emergency Medical Technician Diploma;
the Hospitality Certificate; and the Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing
among others.
Partnering with Trinity College
The UWI St. Augustine Campus also signed an MOU with
Trinity College, Connecticut which cemented years of institutional
collaborationwe hadwith that institution.This was a Student Exchange
Agreement which allowed for “Trinity in Trinidad” students (part
time) to be counted against full time UWI students going to Trinity
for a semester or a year. Trinity College faculty has also conducted
multiple visits to Trinidad and to the St. Augustine Campus in order
to develop collaborations.
More recently, we had a historic ‘sod turning’ ceremony for “The
UWI Trinity House” to be located right at The UWI St. Augustine
Campus. We are indeed breaking new ground with this initiative, as the
construction ofThe UWI Trinity House allows another institution - in
Trinity College - to have a physical presence on the grounds of our own
UWI St. Augustine Campus. This is testimony not only to the strength
of our relationship, but also to the commitment of our university to
develop and support teaching, learning and research, particularly in the
areas of the arts and culture (the humanities) - areas such as - cultural
arts, the performing arts, film, heritage and entertainment.
Student & Faculty Mobility Schemes
Finally, it is important that I mention thatThe UWI was selected
to manage the approximately €2 million euros of funding from the
European Union to facilitate the movement of Masters and PhD
students and staff between a consortium of six universities from the
Caribbean and Pacific regions as part of the Caribbean-Pacific Island
Mobility Scheme (CARPIMS).This is the largest South-Southmobility
project ever funded by the EU. We have managed three consecutive
projects (CARPIMS I, II, & III).This project continues to create a cadre
of highly trained and committed citizens in a wide range of disciplines.
The Canada–CARICOM Leadership Scholarships Program and
the Emerging Leaders in the Americas Programme (ELAP), is another
very good example of student and faculty mobility schemes. These
programmes provide students and researchers from the Caribbean
Community (CARICOM) with short-term exchange opportunities
for study or research at the college, undergraduate and graduate levels
in Canada.
In conclusion, it is the accepted opinion that The UWI St.
Augustine Campus has done significantly well as it relates to the
internationalisation of higher education which has resulted in
tremendous benefits for the students and faculty of our university
and, by extension, the people of our region. Nonetheless, there is still
much room for further collaboration and partnership to continue to
build our capacity to serve our region. I firmly believe however that,
for
internationalisation to be successful, it must be based on a leadership
ethos that is focused on active engagement and support for such an
institutional thrust. Leaders must connect with relevant individuals
and institutions and open doors, and this must be followed by
prioritization and action. Casual relationships hardly bring success.
Internationalisation of Higher Education: The UWI Experience
B y C l e m e n t S a n k a t
Professor Clement Sankat Pro Vice-Chancellor and Campus Principal of The UWI, St Augustine
Principal Sankat (2nd from L) with speakers and panelists from L to R – Mr. John Lesperance - Commonwealth of Learning;
Deborah Bennett - Commonwealth Scholarship Commission; and Professor James McWha – Vice Chancellor of the University
of Rwanda at the 19th Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers (CCEM) in the Bahamas – June 2015.
