The External Relations Department of the Universidad Industrial de Santander (UIS) has taken significant steps in its internationalization strategy, consolidating key agreements, implementing pioneering programs and strengthening academic mobility. These achievements in the first semester of 2025 are framed in a vision of global cooperation and equity, projecting the institution as a reference in the international arena.
Strengthening partnerships and collaborations
One of the most recent achievements is the signing of a framework collaboration agreement with AFS Intercultural Programs Colombia. This alliance seeks to promote intercultural learning programs, both face-to-face and virtual. As an immediate result of this agreement, the UIS has welcomed a German volunteer who will contribute to the teaching of the German language and culture within the university, enriching the academic experience of the community.
Innovative programs for adaptation and reception
In an effort to facilitate the integration of foreign students, the UIS has created the CAP Cultural Adaptation Program. The main objective of this program is to accompany incoming mobility students in their process of adaptation to life in Bucaramanga and to the university dynamics.
In an unprecedented advance, and thanks to the collaboration between Rector Hernán Porras Díaz, University Welfare and the Office of External Relations, it has been possible to grant for the first time the benefit of accommodation in the student residence of the UIS, campus II, to foreign students of incoming mobility. This initiative represents a fundamental support for their stay and adaptation.
The university has also extended its academic diplomacy, receiving the visit of ambassadors Anna Chrisp from Australia and Nicci Stillwell from New Zealand. During these meetings, academic agreements and professional opportunities that promise to directly benefit the UIS community were discussed.
Boosting Academic Mobility with a Focus on Equity
The internationalization of the UIS has been strengthened by the creation of a call for UIS scholarships for incoming mobility. This initiative has promoted equity by offering direct financial support to six foreign students, strengthening South-South cooperation and aligning with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 4, 10 and 17, which emphasize quality education, reduction of inequalities and partnerships to achieve the goals.
In addition, a restructuring of the ICETEX Experts program at UIS has been carried out. This transformation ensures the equitable allocation of resources for each faculty and encourages the strategic arrival of international experts whose impact is aligned with global challenges, dual degrees and high-level training.
To optimize research opportunities, the university has consolidated a repository of projects for research internships, creating an institutional bank that facilitates the arrival of foreign students in internship mode, thus promoting strategic academic matching and more effective incoming mobility.
Increased Visibility through Audiovisual Production
The Office of External Relations has boosted audiovisual production, creating a new video section for the CAP Cultural Adaptation Program. This effort has resulted in a 70% increase in visibility compared to previous years, which seeks to expand the channels of dissemination and improve communication with the UIS community and the Office of External Relations.
Liliana del Pilar Castro, Director of External Relations UIS, highlighted the importance of these advances: “Under a strategic vision and with a firm conviction for internationalization, the Office of External Relations has achieved levels of global articulation, academic cooperation and institutional projection. In this way, the UIS projects itself to the world with concrete and sustainable actions such as the consolidation of strategic international alliances, the creation of pioneering programs such as the CAP Cultural Adaptation Program and the implementation of scholarships for incoming mobility with a focus on equity”.
These achievements reflect the commitment of the UIS to academic excellence and the formation of professionals with a global perspective.
