UWI going global

THE University of the West Indies (UWI) is going global.

This was raised by UWI Vice-Chancellor Sir Hillary Beckles and UWI Pro-Vice Chancellor Dr Richard Bernal during a news conference at the university’s Mona Campus in Jamaica on Tuesday and streamed online.

The briefing was held after UWI made its debut in the UK Times Higher Education (THE) Rankings, which were released on July 18.

UWI was rated amongst the 40 best universities in Latin America and the Caribbean. The university was ranked fourth for its international agenda and 26th for its research impact. UWI placed 37th out of the 179 universities in the rankings.

A statement issued by UWI said the university’s performance was based on its Triple A Strategy, which focuses on access, alignment and agility.

Bernal explained that while UWI was “born international,” the time has come for it to go global.

He said this is necessary because UWI must compete in the global market for students, staff and other resources with other universities around the world. Bernal added that the presence of 50 offshore medical schools in the region, along with other universities providing online courses, shows the competition is already here.

For this reason, Bernal said, UWI is establishing a physical presence in other parts of the world and partnering with other foreign universities.

While UWI is seeking to increase its complement of foreign students from three to ten per cent, Bernal assured, “This is not at the expense of taking in Caribbean students.”

He explained, “We have the room, particularly in Barbados, to increase our foreign students.”

With university rankings being one of the things potential students look at while searching online for the university of their choice, Bernal said UWI performance in the THE rankings will improve its attractiveness.

He said UWI recently established an alliance with State University of New York, giving it access to the “largest and most diverse student body in the US.” This, Bernal continued, could give UWI a voice in shaping US policy towards the Caribbean. UWI also has a presence in Nigeria, South Africa and Kenya and is in talks with the National Autonomous University in Mexico. A partnership has also been established with the China Institute of Information Technology, Bernal said, which can help regional students who may be interested in software engineering.

Beckles said the success of UWI over the last 70 years was due in large measure to the public’s support., which has been provided over the years with consistency and a high level of engagement, he added. Beckles pledged that UWI will continue to “provide the narrative and the analysis of the development of Caribbean societies.”

In order to keep UWI operating at the highest level of quality and relevant to the region’s needs, Beckles said the university must be resilient, and this was why it had established an office of global affairs, headed by Bernal.