Presentation

Internationalization in the 21st century, especially after the long period of the pandemic, has been seen by universities around the world as a fundamental factor for the academic community to develop skills that foster the maturing of communicative and linguistic aspects, multicultural teamwork and active listening in the face of global challenges that require us to have an intercultural perception. Globalization has challenged universities to tackle issues such as climate change, migratory waves, social inequalities and the production of information through Artificial Intelligence. These challenges call for solutions to be built globally. In this sense, internationalization has become not only a vocation of contemporary universities, but a requirement of today's world. 

 

The creation of the International Relations Superintendence (SRI) at UFBA meets the growing demand for prospecting, coordination, supervision and execution of actions aimed at internationalizing UFBA. The creation of the SRI aims to draw up an internationalization policy that subsidizes and supports the development of projects in international networks that promote social welfare, quality of life, interculturality and respect for diversity. These efforts consist of promoting an environment conducive to innovation, modernization, competitiveness and participation on the global stage. By establishing partnerships, the aim is to integrate universities, researchers and students into the global scientific community.

 

In this way, UFBA has been integrated into major international cooperation networks and has achieved significant internationalization indicators in recent years. There have been major advances in participation in cooperation networks, bilateral agreements and the exchange of students, researchers and technicians. UFBA has signed bilateral and multilateral partnerships, such as cooperation with the BRICS countries, the Brazil-Russia-Belarus cooperation project and other academic and research cooperation networks. Thanks to this expansion policy, the University is now home to the Confucius Institute, a partnership with Shanghai University in China, offering Mandarin courses and an exchange program for students and teachers. UFBA is also one of five Brazilian institutions that are members of the Fulbright International Network program in the United States.

 

A SRI is responsible for developing policies and actions that encourage student mobility, the integration of foreign students, welcoming refugees, offering curricular components in foreign languages, bringing in visiting professors and sharing internationalization experiences throughout the academic community.