Welcome to the second B-International Newsletter!
The Project is now just over halfway through its implementation period and with so much progress having been made since our first newsletter in August 2021, we take this opportunity to reflect on what has been achieved, and what is yet to come. In addition, we look at how visible B-International is across various platforms, and the impact that the project is having. Finally, we will continue to introduce you to our valued colleagues and partners working together on the B-International journey in the 'partner insight' section.
The road to internationalisation is a long but exciting one, so sit back, relax and we hope you enjoy the second edition of the B-International newsletter!
Project Progress
What has the project achieved since August 2021? Well, as you can see from the extensive list below, we have been busy:
Sept 2021:
All initial drafts of the internationalisation strategies have been received from our Pakistani Partners. It is now the aim to integrate these into their University's strategy and be ratified by their University.
Carlos Machado has been appointed as the B-International External Evaluator to provide a robust external evaluation of the Project; assessing progress against the work plan, and evaluating all of the project outputs and deliverables. This evaluation will be done at two stages of the project implementation - firstly at the project midpoint and secondly in preparation for the project final report. Carlos will be presenting the mid term findings at Project Management Board in April 2022, with a final report due in the final year, month 6, reporting on the findings and overall assessment, including validation of the B-International Toolkit; Welcome Carlos!
Work Package 4 had its first group meeting to discuss schedule and ideas of the partners' first events. Schedule of events has been confirmed for November 2021-October 2022 period, where 3 events per HEI are planned, a total of 12 events for the year.
Between September and November, our Pakistani partners have finally received their final equipment and completed the installation which has resulted in the soft launch of the Centres for Internationalisation.
Oct 2021:
The Partners prepared a promotional video For ErasmusDays 2021 showcasing what it means to have their internationalisation centres launched and the impact this will have on their institution. You can listen to it by clicking the video link at the end of this section.
The themes of the Work Package 2 CPD training programme led by the University of Bologna, were confirmed as:
Training 1: The Implementation of the Internationalisation Strategy.
Training 2: High Quality Partnerships
Training 3: Academic Recognition and Recognition of Staff
Training 4: External Funding
PIFD visited LUMS in the the first official B-International face to face meeting where topics of discussion included the future of internationalisation and further plans as part of the Project.
Nov/Dec 2021:
B-International finally reached its mid-point, with the exciting news that the interim report was accepted and feedback letter received. A big thank you to all of the partners for the support, commitment and hard work gone into this Project, with it all still being delivered virtually. It has been a great and exciting journey so far!
Preparations have been under way for the first training session held as part of WP2 CPD training on the topic of 'The Implementation of the Internationalisation Strategy'. You can watch the promotional video for WP2 within the Social Media and Promotional Engagement section.
LUMS and NUST held their first events as part of WP4. LUMS hosted their event live on Facebook, titled ‘An Introduction to Erasmus+’ on the 30th November. NUST hosted their hybrid webinar titled ‘How NUST International Office team guides NUST Students to explore International Scholarship Opportunities’ on the 23rd December.
Jan 2022:
PIFD held its first international event on the 26th January, discussing the importance of International education and Promotion of Intercultural Understanding, with key speakers invited to share their views and experiences.
Feb 2022:
Finally, the moment everyone was waiting for, a key milestone in the project which sees our four Pakistani partners formally open their Centres for Internationalisation! The event was held virtually with guest speakers from Cardiff Metropolitan University, the British Council Pakistan and our four prestigious partner universities in Pakistan. Some of the Partners then continued the launch celebrations in person at their own institutions.
First meeting of the Work Package 3 team was held, led by University of Salamanca, whereby ideas of the topics were discussed with its representatives, as well as the best platform for dissemination and wider reach.
Ms. Sabine Vermillard of the Embassy of France in Pakistan visited both PIFD and LUMS in Lahore to explore avenues of cooperation to promote academic exchanges with French institutions.
COMSATS held its first international event on the 22nd February inviting guest speakers from the UK, France and Pakistan to give a brief overview of the importance of intercultural exposure and experience and its impact on participatory scientific development.
Mar- June 2022:
Our partners will continue to host further events as part of WP4 and utilise the Centres for Internationalisation as much as possible now that they are fully functional. The third CPD training workshop is planned for June as well as the B-International Award Ceremony and first B-International event which will hopefully bring all beneficiaries together in person for the first time.
Here are some examples of how the project has been collaborating with some of them being held face-to-face...
Above are a number of screenshots of some of the key meetings the project has held, such as the inaugural meetings of Work Package 2 (31 August 2021) and Work Package 4 ( 20 September 2021); first face to face meeting between PIFD and LUMS in Lahore (11 October 2021), the introduction of Carlos Machado, the project external evaluator, at QMG (20 October 2021); the first CPD training sessions held during the month of December 2021 as part of Work Package 2, led by our Partners University of Bologna in Italy; the official launch of the Centres for Internationalisation at all four Pakistani Partners (02 February 2022); Ms. Sabine Vermillard of the Embassy of France in Pakistan visiting LUMS and PIFD in Lahore (February 2022).
Additionally, below you will be able to see the video our partners have worked on for ErasmusDays2021
Formal Launch of Centres for Internationalisation
The journey of procurement has been long and after many months of tendering processes, awaiting the arrival of the equipment, the installation and preparation of the Centres has finally come full circle, with the Formal Launch being held virtually on the 2nd February. Guest speakers from Cardiff Metropolitan University, the British Council Pakistan and our four prestigious partner universities in Pakistan shared their views of how these centres will have an extensive impact on their University and become a hub for internationalisation and a gateway to global networks and education without borders. Partners then continued the launch celebrations in person at their own institutions.
The Centres will provide a dedicated resource for students, staff and members of the international virtual community and will be a hub for international activities connecting peers both nationally and internationally and giving access to international experience from within the boundaries of the campus itself. The Centres are there to develop and flourish beyond the lifetime of the B-International project.
Below you can watch the formal launch of the Centres.
Social Media and Promotional Engagement
The social media and promotional engagement section showcases the dissemination activities that have been implemented by all partners involved within the consortium. The project's social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter have seen increased interaction and engagement from partners due to the numerous activities that have occurred over the last few months and have given the project the platform to disseminate its outputs to a wider audience.
The partners have also created promotional videos for each of the work packages which have been and will be disseminated as and when the work package is active. This will give the wider audience an introduction to the different work packages.
We would like to thank all of our partners for their continued support and collaboration in disseminating the B-International Project in a wide range of social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, videos, blogs and where possible face to face!
What are the B-International Partners saying.....
LUMS hosted its first event- Mr. Paolo Londero, First Secretary of the EU Delegation to Pakistan, introduced the Erasmus+ Programme and its opportunities for Pakistani students and faculty.
NUST held their first B-International event explaining how selected focal persons from faculty members can implement internationalisation at NUST and saw four guest speakers talking about internationalisation
Overall Project and Work Package 2 Promotional Video
PIFD hosted their first event on 'An insight into the importance of International Education and Promotion of Intercultural Understanding'
COMSATS hosted their first event on 'Building Internationalisation in Pakistan - A Networking Session on Internationalisation'
Blogs:
Lahore University of Management Sciences- "Work Package 5 - Centres of Internationalisation a LUMS perspective."
Cardiff Metropolitan University- "B-International Project Midpoint".
Ecole Centrale de Nantes- "WP4: Cultivating an International Campus".
University of Bologna - "Work Package 2: Developing a co-delivered training program on internationalisation for the CPD of all staff".
You can click on each of the images below for full details.
Partner Insight
Welcome to our Partner Insight Section where in every E-Newsletter we will be looking at colleagues from one EU partner and their twin Pakistan partner and see what they have to say about the B-International Project!
For this newsletter we would like to introduce you to representatives from Ecole Centrale Nantes, France (ECN) and Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS).
Your Name:
Frédéric Dorel
Your University:
Centrale Nantes, France
What is your role at your University?
Vice Dean of the International Office
How long have you been working at the University?
Twenty nine years
What excited you most about the prospect of participating in the B-International project?
New project, new country, new competences to develop, the opportunity to contribute to the dissemination of the EU educational soft power, and to learn.
What are you most looking forward to and what do you hope that the B-International project will achieve?
A new fruitful relationship with Pakistan, new partners both in Pakistan and in the EU. Exchanging methods and innovation. Strengthening links among EU HEIs.
Your Name:
Zainab Masood
Your University:
Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS)
What is your role at your University?
Manager – Office of International Affairs (OIA)
My work as the Manager for Global Engagement at OIA at LUMS involves providing support and feedback to the University management on staff and student mobility, while implementing its strategic plan on internationalization, preparing and evaluating agreements with international partner universities, administering mobility, and providing information to students and staff on international mobility opportunities. I lead a team of individuals whose aim is to increase the international footprint of the university through meaningful global engagement.
How long have you been working at the university?
I have worked at LUMS for two years.
What excited you most about the prospect of participating in the B-International project?
The B-International project aligns perfectly with our long-term strategic goal of internationalizing LUMS. I am most excited about being provided a framework, knowledge and practical tools to implement widescale international strategies on campus.
What are you most looking forward to and what do you hope that the B-International project will achieve?
I am looking forward to the formal launch of the Centre for Internationalization. Having worked on this aspect of the project from scratch, starting from identifying possible locations, to renovations, manager hiring and developing a plan for it, and in future, creating events to make use of it, it thrills me that it is finally nearing completion. Apart from the traditional components of internationalization that I was already looking after, I am looking forward to working towards a more contemporary concept of developing LUMS as an international campus. I am hopeful that through this project we will not only be able to reach a wider global audience, but we will be successful in fostering a campus that will introduce our own staff and students to global perspectives, truly making their education and teaching international. I am also hoping that this will result in enhancing students’ and staff experience by supporting their global skills development.
The project is in full swing and with many objectives set we have a clear path ahead. Here is some of the upcoming activities and events in store for B-International:
Mar 2022:
The second CPD training led by University of Bologna is scheduled to take place on the 22nd, 24th, 29th and 31st March 2022. The topic will be on High Quality Partnerships and each Pakistani partner will present an area within this topic which will form part of their training package.
LUMS second event as part of WP4 is scheduled to take part in March 2022.
Apr - Jun 2022:
Dissemination Working Group meeting - 27th April 2022
Quality Monitoring Group meeting -April, date TBC
Project Management Board - May, date TBC
Our partners will continue to host further events as part of WP4 and utilise the Centres for Internationalisation as much as possible now that they are fully functional. The third CPD training workshop is planned for June as well as the B-International Award Ceremony and first B-International event which will hopefully bring all beneficiaries together in person for the first time since the project started.
We hope you enjoyed reading the second edition of the B-International Newsletter and we look forward updating you in the third edition as to the progress of the project. But if you can’t wait to learn more, you can visit our project website by selecting the 'visit us' button at the top of the newsletter or having a look at our social media platforms.
B-International Project Team
Credits:
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