Training a Generation of Future Innovators
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BRAZIL SCIENTIFIC MOBILITY PROGRAM IN THE U.S. Training a Generation of Future Innovators INSTITUTE OF INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION (IIE) An independent 501(c)(3) not-for-profit founded in 1919, IIE is among the world’s largest and most experienced international exchange and training organizations. TABLE OF CONTENTS Its research publications and membership services provide information to tens of thousands of international educators globally. About the Brazil Scientific Mobility Program (BSMP) 2 Welcome 3 Institute of International Education What Made BSMP Different? 4 809 United Nations Plaza BSMP: The Facts 6 New York, NY 10017, USA Intensive English Program 10 www.iie.org Student Life 12 To download additional copies of this report, please visit us online at Program Highlights 14 www.iie.org/publications. BSMP in the News 16 Program Structure: IIE’s Role in Making Mobility Happen 18 Copyright © 2017 Institute of International Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Life After BSMP 20 Designed by Analia del Giorgio, LDG Design, Inc. | New York Closing Remarks 73 Edited by Edward Monks and Yolande Zahler ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS BSMP, known in Brazil as “Ciência sem Fronteiras” (CsF), was an extraordinarily APPENDICES innovative and ambitious initiative of the Brazilian government. It required close collaboration between high ranking officials in Brasilia and international scholarship Appendix 1: Host States 21 experts around the world to gather the necessary resources and tools to implement this Appendix 2: Intensive English Programs 22 high volume international exchange program in a very compressed period of time. Appendix 3: Undergraduate Academic Institutions 25 Appendix 4: Undergraduate Fields of Study 36 IIE would like to recognize and thank Luiz Loureiro at the Fulbright Commission in Brazil, Appendix 5: Graduate Academic Institutions 37 as well as Jorge Guimaraes, Denise Neddermeyer and Glaucius Oliva at CAPES and CNPq, Appendix 6: Graduate Fields of Study 40 for the key roles they played in launching and leading their dedicated teams. And thanks Appendix 7: Internship Host Organizations 41 also to all members of the IIE BSMP team, and indeed the many IIE staff in New York, as well as our university partners and internship providers across the U.S., for their Appendix 8: Brazilian Sending Institutions 61 unwavering commitment to the program’s talented students. ABOUT THE BRAZIL SCIENTIFIC MOBILITY PROGRAM WELCOME From 2011 to 2016, the Brazil Scientific Mobility The Institute of International Education (IIE), in close Program (BSMP) - known in Brazil as Ciência sem partnership with the Fulbright Commission, CAPES and Fronteiras - made it possible for many thousands of CNPq, was asked to manage the largest portion of this undergraduate and graduate students from Brazil to unprecedented flow of Brazilian students to campuses study at colleges and universities in the United States across the United States. IIE bridged the relationships and more than 40 other countries, impacting a whole with U.S. educational institutions and other partners to generation of young scientists and their potential to achieve success for the students and the Brazilian govern- Allan E. Goodman Luiz Loureiro contribute to Brazilian higher education and the ment. IIE created and implemented systems for students country’s future highly qualified workforce. to apply and be matched with English and academic IIE was delighted to manage the Brazil Scientific Mobility In 2011, the Brazilian government approached the programs, internships and research opportunities, in Program in the United States, working closely with nearly Fulbright Commission in Brazil with the idea for the Brazil Through BSMP, the Brazilian government offered addition to sponsoring visas, monitoring student 25,000 students and the U.S. universities and companies Scientific Mobility Program (BSMP). scholarships to talented students to expand their progress, processing tuition payments, issuing student that hosted them over five years to fulfill the Brazilian educational experience in disciplines critical to the living stipends, and keeping students and universities Government’s vision of a more highly skilled and interna- Fulbright’s mission is to strengthen understanding and country’s growth including science, technology, informed about program policies and regulations. tionally engaged workforce. communication between the United States and over 155 engineering and mathematics (STEM). The Ministry countries. BSMP was a perfect opportunity to do exactly of Education’s Federal Agency for the Support and The U.S. Embassy and Consulates in Brazil and the This innovative program opened doors for Brazilian stu- that. Because of our familiarity with the higher education Evaluation of Graduate Education (CAPES) and the Brazilian Embassy and Consulates in the U.S. also dents of all backgrounds. Many may never have had the systems of both Brazil and the United States, the U.S. Ministry of Science and Technology’s National Council played a significant role in the program’s success, including opportunity to travel abroad, let alone study, learn English was able to accept BSMP students sooner and in greater for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) liaising with the Brazilian government, host institutions, and gain professional training in the United States. BSMP numbers than any other nation. spearheaded the effort to create a generation of future students and IIE. The U.S. Embassy widely promoted the also created positive ripple effects. innovators with the applied knowledge to solve the program at Brazilian universities and offered English lan- The program succeeded in many ways. It encouraged country’s greatest challenges. The program model guage instruction, pre-departure briefings and facilitated Brazilian universities with little previous experience facili- students of great potential to pursue careers in science was designed to enable students to return to Brazil to visa appointments. While the BSMP students were on tating study abroad are now equipped to operate interna- and technology, and hopefully become national and complete their degrees after one year abroad for their programs, the Brazilian Embassy and Consulates tionally and prepare their students for new academic and international leaders in areas of global concern. By pro- academic study followed by a summer internship. monitored the students’ success. cultural encounters. And word of the value of an American viding internships, U.S. employers enabled the Brazilian education has spread among Brazil’s students and families. government to create greater opportunities for young and When CAPES and CNPq began work on this exciting and This report documents the accomplishments of the Brazil talented students, and helped strengthen commercial ties large-scale program, the Fulbright Commission in Brazil Scientific Mobility Program. It serves as a reference for Already, BSMP alumni are using the knowledge and skills between our two countries. was a natural partner. For more than 60 years the entities in Brazil and for other organizations and they gained to begin to make change in Brazil. We expect Commission has been facilitating bilateral scholarly governments interested in implementing large-scale, to see these talented individuals contribute to innovation, Study abroad can open many doors during a scholar’s exchanges on behalf of the governments of Brazil and high-impact international education initiatives. creativity, and economic growth in the years ahead. stay in the U.S. and in their future. But we know that we the United States. The team at the Commission brought can’t change an education system in just 4 years. It takes strong experience and a deep understanding of the higher We are proud to share the highlights of BSMP with you, in generations to create lasting change. We look forward not education systems in both nations. the hope that others can learn from these successes and just to watching BSMP students apply the lessons they’ve will be inspired by this clear example of how international learned, but also to other collaboration initiatives that the education can truly change lives. program has and will continue to encourage. Allan E. Goodman Luiz Loureiro President and CEO, Institute of International Education Executive Director, Fulbright Commission in Brazil 2 3 WHAT MADE BSMP DIFFERENT? It began with a big idea: equip a generation of Brazilians with the skills to tackle the country’s Figure 1. TOTAL NUMBER OF SCHOLARSHIPS AWARDED BY COUNTRY biggest challenges. To do this, Brazil set a goal of sending 100,000 STEM students to study for a year at the world’s top universities. When they returned, it would be not just with technical Country Total Country Total knowledge—but with a new outlook on the world. United States 27,821* Spain 5,025 HOW IT WORKED A FOCUS ON RESULTS United Kingdom 10,740 Italy 3,930 Canada 7,311 Portugal 3,843 Through BSMP, Brazil sent students to study in the world’s BSMP was different from other student exchange programs. leading destinations for quality higher education. Over five It was: France 7,279 Ireland 3,387 years, colleges and universities in the United States enrolled Meaningful. Australia 7,074 The Netherlands 2,289 30 percent of all the BSMP undergraduate and professional Due to strict degree requirements, few STEM students Germany 6,595 Hungary 2,134 master’s students, which brought a total of 24,168 Brazilian worldwide have the opportunity to study abroad. BSMP students to U.S. campuses