3 years of alliance of the best private universities in Latin America

Tec de Monterrey, the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile, and the University of Los Andes in Colombia have reviewed progress made on their joint projects within their La Tríada alliance.

Rectors and directors from the 3 universities met virtually at the Virtual Summit of La Tríada Rectors this May 4.

At this event, 64 joint initiatives were reviewed in the areas of education, creative industries, nanotechnology, and environmental impact, to name but a few.

“Today, we’re united by a common vision and purpose. It seems to me that we’re setting an example of something more than traditional academic collaboration,” said David Garza, Rector and Executive President of Tec de Monterrey.

“We’re learning and developing skills together and assuming a new spirit of commitment and empathy with our communities,” he added.

La Tríada is more than just a collective of universities

Garza also highlighted the importance of La Tríada for the development of projects for the social development of Latin American countries.

“We frequently insist that La Tríada is not just another collective of universities. We’ve shown this in recent months.

“La Tríada has allowed us, in a very timely manner, to develop synergies in a new era where educational partnerships will no longer be optional,” says Garza.

In addition, the leader pointed out the opportunity provided by La Tríada to the 3 universities for taking relevant and timely positions on social issues.

Some of the issues highlighted by Garza on which La Tríada has worked together are sustainable development in Latin America and educational innovation.

“The common denominator has been the impact that our universities are having in each of our countries,” he added.

The progress being made by La Tríada projects

Professors, researchers and directors of the three universities shared the progress made in some of La Tríada’s projects:

Educational innovation

- Coursera

The 3 universities pooled their online course catalogs to provide equal access to members of their communities through the Coursera platform.

To date, the Coursera Consortium project, with more than 100 courses, has had 51,951 unique signups and 290,274 students enrolled on courses.

The first joint specialized program “Doing Business in Latin America” was created within this project, with more than 9,900 enrolled. A second course in Anatomy is being developed.

- Survey of teachers in the pandemic

Surveys were conducted with teachers from the 3 universities to identify their best practices and lessons learned during distance education due to the pandemic.

This project is currently beginning the data analysis phase.

- TPrize

Tec de Monterrey and the University of Los Andes held the 2020 TPrize, a contest in which 304 solutions from 37 countries were presented.

Participants presented educational innovation projects to improve access to education, resulting in five winners.

The call for the 2021 contest will be launched in June and the final will be held in December of this year.

Architecture, art, design and urban studies

- Congresses, conferences and workshops

Joint activities were carried out between the 3 universities on architecture, design, and sustainable urban development, as well as an online debate and a Sustainable Urban Development Network.

- Master’s degrees in urban planning

The 3 universities have collaborated on various master’s degrees in urban planning:

• Master’s in Urban and Regional Planning - University of Los Andes
• Master’s in Architecture and Urban Design - Tec de Monterrey
• Master’s in Urban Development - Pontifical Catholic University of Chile
• Master’s in Human Settlements and the environment - Pontifical Catholic University of Chile

- Inclusive urban renewal

An international summer course was launched for students from the 3 universities that addresses theories and instruments of urban planning and urban renewal.

This program is especially focused on the current challenges of inclusion in Latin American cities and will be taught virtually.

- Urban narratives laboratory

The aim of this space is for students to experiment, transforming traditional academic research into products and media such as podcasts, videos, memes, and images.

Medical education and health sciences

- NOVUS: “Don’t forget about yourself, don’t forget about me”

A project resulting from the NOVUS educational innovation program that developed an app which acts as a virtual portfolio of experiences for medical students.

The aim of the app is to develop and monitor the identity construction of medical students.

Topics addressed in the app include self-knowledge and reflection, change and conscientious leadership, family relationships, and contextualization and professional responsibility.

This project was supported by the United States National Board of Medical Examiners (NMBE), who provided funding, recognition, and scaling.

Research

- Research areas

Studies are being carried out jointly between the 3 universities in areas such as sustainability, natural resources, education, and interculturality.

- Field station network

This is a network of stations with field installations in Chile, Colombia, and Mexico, with infrastructure to carry out global research.

- HUB TEC-China-Tríada

A project in which certain selected startups will have access to an acceleration platform and will be eligible for support to create a new startup in China.

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