1. STUDENT MOBILITY WITHIN
MERCOSUL
CAIE 2012
Profa. Raquel Santini Leandro Rade
Director of International and Interinstitutional Relations
Universidade Federal de Uberlândia – Brasil

2. Student Mobility
↨
Internationalization of the
Higher Education Institutions
↓
Policies of the Governments
Policies of the Institutions

3. QUESTIONS
• Why should you participate?
• How to proceed to participate?
• Are the Universities prepared to receive and
send students?
• Are the faculties prepared to give classes to
foreign students?

4. - To be internationalized, a University must have
not only a sufficient number of cooperation
agreements, but should make sure that they work
satisfactorily; also, it should be prepared or be
preparing to give courses in English, specially
graduate courses.
- The internationalization must happen in all fields
of knowledge approached by the University:
education, research and outreach.
-It must have regulations for the validation of credits
acquired abroad, double-degree agreements, an so
on.
-etc.

5. Student Mobility
Strategic element to achieve the goal of regional
integration;
Main instrument for the transfer of knowledge
and experiences among MERCOSUL
countries.

6. EDUCATIONAL MERCOSUL
• Created in 13th December of 1991, the member countries of the regional
alliance have been developing the Educational Mercosul by means of the
Protocol of Intentions signed by the Ministry of Education of the Mercosul
Countries, with the objective of being a strategic instance for the effective
movement of integration.
• Integration process of the Higher Education Systems;
• Propose to be more than a Commercial Strategy;
• Convergence of the national higher education fields to a field of regional higher
education, respecting the autonomy of the Higher Education Institutions;
• Higher Education: strategic area, composes part of the integration project, of
the appreciation of the local knowledge and of the institutionalization of the
joint internationalization in the field of Higher Education and Scientific
Production.

7. GOALS OF THE EDUCATIONAL MERCOSUL
Contribute to the regional integration through educational
policies that promote a regional citizenship, a peace
culture and the respect to democracy, human rights and
environment;
Promote the good education to all citizenn as a factor of
social inclusion, human development and productive
development;
Promote the joint cooperation and the exchange, in order
to improve educational systems;
Stimulate and strengthen mobility programs for students,
educators, researchers, managers and professionals;
Improve policies that articulate education with the
MERCOSUL process of integration .

8. How to achieve the goals?
• Reciprocal knowledge of the national educational policies;
• Stimulate research that allows the knowledge of the regional
educational reality;
• Organization and strengthening of the networks
(institutional and academics) which facilitate the exchange
of information and educational experiences in order to
secure the national capacities and contribute to a reduction
of asymmetries;
• Promotion and strengthen of the educational nuclei and
regional excellence centers;
• Exchange of knowledge and technology transfer on the
basis of strengths and existing complementarities.

9. Why Internationalize?
- Formation of professionals more qualified and
better prepared to an increasingly globalized and
competitive market ;
- The academic mobility (of students and
professors) is considered one of the most
important tendencies in the process of education
internationalization;
- Basic strategy for the promotion and integration
of higher education in the regions which promote
regional integration processes.

10. INTERNATIONALIZATION STRATEGIES FOR HIGHER
EDUCATIONS INSTITUTIONS
- Student Mobility;
- Mobility of Professors and Researchers;
- Creation of networks of regional and international
character ;
- International Educational Offers;
- Joint Qualifications (Double Degree, co-advising);
- Bilateral Agreements;
- Joint research with international groups;
- Offer of programs for language teaching;
- Curriculum Internationalization.

11. PRINCIPLES
▪ RELIABILITY
▪ FLEXIBILITY
▪ TRANSPARENCY
▪ SOLIDARITY
▪ REPLICABILITY/MULTIPLICATION
▪ QUALITY
▪ INTEGRATION
▪ RESPECT FOR DIVERSITY
▪ CONTINUITY
▪ EVALIATION
▪ SOCIAL INCLUSION
▪ INTERDISCIPLINARITY

12. ACTORS
Students → Mobility
Home Institution
Host Institution
Management Unit
Focal Point
Institutional Coordinator
Academic Coordinator

13. UNIVERSITIES’ ROLE
Academic and Institutional Coordinator: responsible for
the Program Management.
Guarantee transparency in the information diffusion, student
selection, management and communication with the
Universities and the Units of Program Management and
Focal Point from each country.
Monitor the students during the entire mobility period.
Issue certificates of studies.

14. INSTITUTIONAL COORDINATOR
Responsible for the institutional management, and
for the development and monitoring of the
organizational aspects of the Program.

15. ACADEMIC COORDINATOR
Responsible for the coordination of all the
academic aspects of the exchange program.

16. MAIN MERCOSUL MOBILITY
PROGRAMS
• MARCA Mobility Program;
• PMM – Mercosul Mobility
Program;
• Association of Universities from
Montevideo Group (AUGM).

18. MARCA Mobility Program
• First program of undergraduate students mobility
promoted by governments in the Educational Sector of
MERCOSUL.
• Participants: member countries and block associates,
encouraging regional integration.
• The mobility is realized in regular school periods of an
academic semester.
• The Program is related to the accredited careers by the
Experimental Mechanism of undergraduate Careers
Accreditation of MEROCUSL (MEXA) /ArcuSul.

19. ACCREDITED CAREERS
• Agronomy (2006);
• Engineering (2008);
• Medicine (2008);
• Architecture;
• Nursing;
• Odontology;
• Veterinary.

20. GENERAL GOALS
● Contribute to the improvement of Higher Education quality;
● Stimulate the inter-institutional and international cooperation
in Higher Education;
● Promote the mobility and academic exchange of students,
professors, researchers, managers and coordinators.

21. EXPECTED OUTCOMES

Improvement of education, research and educational
management in the Accredited Careers.

Increase of the academic and institutional cooperation
between the Accredited Careers.

Reduction of the barriers and resistance that complicate the
inter-institutional exchange with greater mutual
understanding results.

Greater possibilities for regional integration as a result of the
cultural diversities comprehension.

Permanent improvement of the Program through the
evaluation of the results and of the produced impacts, and
through recommendations for its segment.

22. CHARACTERISTICS AND
PROCEDURES OF MARCA
PROGRAM

23. CONVOCATION
PROCEDURES AND REQUIREMENTS
Program Convocation: first semester of each year;
Beginning of mobility: second semester;
Home Institution: full recognition of studies
completed in the host Institution, as long as academic
success is achieved.

24. Specific Conditions for Mobility-
STUDENTS
Requirements for Application
- Be enrolled as an undergraduate student in one of the
accredited careers by ARCU- SUR;
-Have completed 40% of the curriculum.

25. Specific Conditions for
Mobility - STUDENTS
Obligations
- Realize the activities established in the Learning Agreement;
- Contract health and life insurance;
- Fulfill the sanitary exigencies (vaccination, etc.) established by
the country of destination;
- Obey local laws;
- Realize procedures for obtaining a student visa for the mobility
period.

26. Specific Conditions for Mobility -
STUDENTS
Rights
-Exemption of payment of tuition fees;
- Maintain other fellowships or national loans;
- Be recognized as exchange student with the same rights and
responsibilities as regular students at the Host Institution;
- Receive all the needed information regarding the Program by
the Home Institution ;
- Receive a Certification of Studies and incorporate in the
academic hours the studies approved in the Host Institution
according to what is stipulated in the Learning Agreement.

27. GUARANTEED BENEFITS OF THE
PROGRAM
- Transportation;
- Accommodation;
- Food;
- Exemption from academic costs;
- Travel insurance and medical insurance.

28. CHALLENGES
- Motivate all the academic community to
participate in the programs, through public
announcements and international projects.
- Improve the informative transparency of
universities;
- Create a Mobility Student Informative Guide;
- Elaborate institutional resolutions for the
recognition and recovery of the studies;
- Solve the problem of foreign language.

29. ACADEMIC DIFFICULTIES
- Adaptation to the teaching method;
- Language comprehension;
- Mobility duration: when the students are adapting
and could have a better academic performance it’s
already time to return. (Mobility is just one semester)
NON ACADEMIC DIFFICULTIES
- Problems with visa and fight tickets;
- Incompatible periods: annual courses x
semiannual courses.

30. MERCOSUL Mobility Program–
PMM
Project ‘‘ Apoyo al Programa de Movilidad MERCOSUR en
Educación Superior’’
• Pilot Phase.
• European Union and MERCOSUL
(MERCOSUL Educational Sector).
• Public and Private Universities from the
Mercosul Countries (Argentina, Brazil,
Paraguay e Uruguay).

31. MAIN GOAL
Support the conformation of a common
educational environment, with quality
education for all, stimulating the mobility, the
exchange and the formation of an identity and
a conscious of regional citizenship along with
a feeling of regionality.

32. GENERAL GOALS
• Promote the quality of Higher Education in the
countries from the region;
• Stimulate the achievement of academic
excellence in the Higher Education of the
regional countries;
• Support the establishment of academic
cooperation between universities of the region
in the aims of education, research and
extension.

33. REQUIREMENTS FOR APPLICATION:
- Have the nationality of one of the four MERCOSUL Member States;
- Be enrolled as a regular student in the University participant of PMM/Pilot
Phase;
- Student of undergraduate level with a minimum of 40% of successfully
accomplished courses approved and who, returning from the exchange,
will still have to spend at least one year of courses in the Home Institution;
- Not have previously received a benefit from an equivalent program in the
MERCOSUL countries;
- Demonstrate a satisfactory academic performance. Present academic and
scholar background and certification of other requirements considered
relevant ;
- Demonstrate interest, motivation and commitment with and experience of
mobility;
- Demonstrate sensibility to the connection between mobility and regional
integration;
- In the selection, will be fomented the respect to the criteria of social
inclusion, prioritizing students who have a less favored socioeconomic
condition. At least 30% of the students will be from this condition.

34. Mobility Program MERCOSUL - PMM
Mobility Financing:
- International transportation;
- Food and accommodations during the entire
exchange period; Total Grant:
- Local transportation;
Tickets costs
- Health Insurance;
+
- Banking expenses.
€ 1.400
Duration of the exchange: 6 months.

35. International Experience
↓
Enrichment of integral formation
+
Creation of regional feeling

36. PMM offers
• Incorporation to new knowledge and
experiences;
• New cultures;
• Development of Values:
– Solidarity;
– Respect for differences;
– Social Commitment;
– Citizen awareness for integralization.

37. • Full recognition of the activities successfully
developed in the Host Institution.
• Duration: 1 academic semester
• Non accredited courses in the System of
ARCU-SUL.

38. ASSOCIATION OF UNIVERSITIES FROM
MONTEVIDEO GROUP - AUGM
- Created in1998;
- Network of public universities from the south region of Latin
America with the objective of academic integration and
cooperation among institutions;
- Mobility of students and professors;
- Student Mobility: one semester in a country different
country from the home country.
- 28 Universities: Argentina (10), Brazil (10),
Bolivia (2), Chile (2), Paraguay (3) e Uruguay (1).

39. GOALS
- Allow the exchange of principles and values
from each Network University, with its
individual identity, to all the spots of the
network;
- Strengthening and consolidation of human
resources, of scientific and technological
research, and of continuing education and the
interaction if its members with the society.

40. • Financing in charge of the participating
universities;
• Since 2006 has economic support from OEI;
• Since 2008 has partial support from Santander
Central Hispanic Bank.