Working Together to Achieve LACCEIs First Goal First

Working Together to Achieve LACCEI’s First Goal

First Goal of LACCEI n Cooperation and partnerships among member institutions in the areas of engineering education, research, and technology advancement with emphasis on: ¨ Faculty and student exchange

Purpose of University. Placement. Services. com n n n Facilitate the process to apply for admission to selected U. S. universities by providing detailed information online, in Spanish, and free to students Near future: provide same service in English and Portuguese Five years: leader in globalization of education U. S. Institutions Students in Latin America

Current Situation n n n U. S. behind in science and engineering Decline of international students Students finding opportunities in other countries Effects on U. S. economy and international relations Complicated application process Expensive private consultancy services No innovation

What is Being Done? n U. S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE: Student Visas are “Top Priority” (see article) n U. S. University Presidents Summit on International Education (see official site here) n $50 M investment in Florida to boost recruitment and retain teachers, specially in areas of math and science (see article) n LACCEI (Latin American and Caribbean Consortium of Engineering Institutions) n Private sector THE QUESTION IS: are these measures helping international students to understand complete the admission process to universities in the U. S. ?

New Way of Doing Things n n n Focus on Engineering and Computer Science A “one stop shop” Standard format for. TO all STUDENTS! institutions FREE University and program-specific information Information in Students’ Native Language Expert advice available

Who Are We? n n n Everything started with my own experience Grand Prize Winners of 2004 Venture Challenge Competition at FIU Caught Media Attention ¨ CNN en Español – En Efectivo ¨ Fortune Small Business ¨ El Nuevo Herald 1 Prize Winners - Graduate Level ¨ Miami Today ¨ Kauffman Foundation for Entrepreneurship st

Strategy for Achieving LACCEI’s First Goal LACCEI Tool to achieve first goal n n Work Together! Everybody Wins! Incentive for new institutions to join Exclusivity for six months U. S. Universities Students Access to FREE comprehensive service More time available to study Expert advice available from people who understand their needs Better cost/benefit ratio than traditional advertising More and better applications Better competitive position vs other U. S. universities Universities in Latin America Tool to facilitate student and faculty exchange with the U. S. Near future: admissions information offered in English foreign students

Roles n University. Placement. Services. com Maintain accurate and up-to-date information ¨ Send monthly reports to universities ¨ n n ¨ n Make presentations at universities in Latin America Universities in Latin America (and Spain) ¨ n List of students who chose any of your programs List of students who applied for admission Promote free services to students Students ¨ Just enjoy the free service

5 Minute Tour n University. Placement. Services. com n Administrative Application (Click here)

The Team (1 of 2) Jose Alvarez, M. S. Founder, President & CEO Kip Irvine, M. S. VP of Information Technology Industrial Engineer w/ M. S. in Engineering Management. 12 years of experience working for companies in Latin America and the U. S. Faculty, School of Computing and Information Sciences, Florida International University. Author of several publications including Advanced Visual Basic. NET, C++ and Object Oriented Programming, Assembly Language for Intel-Based Computers, among others.

The Team (2 of 2) Bertha Arteta, Ph. D. (candidate) Nancy Mantilla VP of Operations Analyst Currently working for Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines. MS in Engineering Management and Ph. D. candidate in Enterprise Engineering at Florida International University. Bachelors Degree in Accounting and Business Administration (Barranquilla - Colombia). Nine years of management experience working for one of the leading producers of engineered wood panels in South America and the Andean Region (PIZANO S. A. ).

Questions