Study visit of partners from Latin America
From 6 to 9 June this year. Jan Kochanowski University hosted representatives of universities from Latin America: Tecnológico de Antioquia - Institución Universitaria in Colombia and Universidad Católica de Uruguay in Uruguay, collaborating with JKU in the international PONCHO project.
During the visit, the guests learnt about the structures of the university's various faculties and administrative departments and were introduced to activities of the individual institutes, the university's mobility rules and the university's internationalisation efforts.
On Tuesday 6, June, the guests and the JKU project team visited the Faculty of Pedagogy and Arts, where its staff talked about the functioning of the various institutes, achievements in the field of internationalisation, international cooperation, etc. Paulina Forma, PhD, a member of the PONCHO project team, gave a presentation on forms of cooperation between humanities specialists and the economic sector - 'Humanities specialists in business.' The guests met with students who had benefited from student exchanges under the Erasmus+ Programme.
The project team then went on to visit the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, where the Rector, Stanisław Głuszek, warmly welcomed the guests from abroad and, together with faculty members, talked about their greatest achievements, the researchers presented their ways of entering into international collaborations and building recognition in the world of science, and the students shared their experiences of the Erasmus+ programme. Guests were given a tour of the departmental infrastructure, including the opportunity to see the rooms where practical classes are held for future physicians, as well as the practice rooms for future nurses, obstetricians and paramedics.
On Wednesday, 7 June, the project team visited the Academic Careers Office and the Academic Business Incubator at the Centre for Entrepreneurship and Business. Visitors learned about the methods used to support JKU students in building their career paths, self-development, and active participation in the labour market, and saw how innovative ideas are turned into companies with international potential.
Dr Ana Kamińska, a member of the JKU project team, provided practical training on the project management cycle, good practices at JKU, quality control in project implementation, and procedures for assessing and evaluating project results.
Finally, the guests were welcomed to the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, where they met international project managers, foreign researchers who had chosen to work at JKU, and visited the Astronomical Observatory and research laboratories. Faculty members talked about how they look for opportunities to collaborate with researchers from abroad and how they raise funds for their research.
On Thursday, 8 June, the guests met with the Deputy Rector for Student Affairs and Education, Monika Szpringer, with whom they discussed what obstacles today's universities face in raising their level of internationalisation, especially obstacles that arise regardless of latitude.
Three practical training sessions were held:
1. Activities undertaken by the Office for International Cooperation and International Research Programmes for the internationalisation of JKU, functioning of the Office, cooperation of JKU with international units, research projects, good practices, training, etc. (Agnieszka Bygar, Department of Science and International Cooperation);
2. JKU students taking part in Erasmus+ Exchange Programme, procedure for student exchange within the Programme (Office for Student and Doctoral Exchange);
3. Raising the level of internationalisation based on innovative activities undertaken by the university. Cooperation with local and foreign enterprises (Anna Depczyńska, Innovation and Technology Transfer Department).
On the last day of the visit, the guests visited the Faculty of Humanities, where the Deputy Dean for General Affairs and Cooperation with Foreign Countries, Marzena Marczewska, talked about the functioning of the Faculty and methods of cooperation with foreign units. Erasmus+ exchange students were also invited to the discussion and shared their experiences.
Afterwards, the guests were given a tour of the University Library building, where they were able to see not only the University's extensive book collection and learn about how it is managed, but also about technological innovations that make the library easier to use for people with disabilities. At the end of the meeting, the project team travelled to Podzamcze Chęcińskie, where they visited the local Biobank and the Leonardo da Vinci Science Centre.
