UC Chile created the first international mobility program for students with disabilities

The 2020 - 2025 Development Plan includes expanding and promoting training opportunities for students at UC Chile. 
In this context, our university created a new mobility access program to provide, for the first time, preferential openings for students with disabilities.

The Mobility Team gathered schools and students in roundtable discussions to listen to their opinions and invite them to participate in the ongoing effort to diversify mobility opportunities. 
 
The analysis was also part of the Adjunct Office of the Vice President for International Affairs (VRAI Spanish acronym) new goals: to promote the inclusion of students in a global society. 

"These discussions enabled us to discover that an important number of our student community sees barriers to participating in mobility programs. They consider it almost impossible, particularly for students with disabilities. Therefore, this represents an important challenge regarding access and inclusion", stated Cristian Díaz, General Coordinator for International Mobility at VRAI.

Preferential vacancies for students with disabilities

VRAI, with the Direction of Inclusion, through the Program for the Inclusion of Students with Special Needs (PIANE Spanish acronym), worked together to know and understand the students' barriers to participate in mobility programs. 
Among them became evident the lack of accommodations and access to information for students with disabilities. 
They consult partner universities to address this challenge and determine:

• What were their levels of accessibility in terms of infrastructure?
• Were there programs that provide support services and non-significant curricular adjustments to give students equitable access to the information? 

In addition, they held a meeting to gather relevant information from the experience of students with disabilities who participate in the PIANE Program.
As a result of the query, they decided to save exclusive vacancies for students with disabilities at five Spanish universities. 
The institutions were selected by the lead in making the learning experience accessible to all students and were highly valued exchange partners.  
These institutions were: 

• Universidad Autónoma de Madrid
• Universidad de Deusto
• Universidad de Murcia
• Universidad de Granada
• Universidad Carlos III de Madrid

"As Direction of Inclusion, we are thrilled to be part of this VRAI initiative that contributes to the learning process of all our students, regardless of their context. We hope that many will be motivated, apply and take advantage of this opportunity for personal growth", highlights Andrea Vásquez. She is the Program Coordinator for the Inclusion of Students with Special Needs, PIANE - UC Inclusion Directorate.

Requirements and application

The pilot program will offer five vacancies with curricular adjustments and support for students with disabilities.
Online applications will open from October 12th to November 10th, 2021.

In addition to completing the application, the students must send:

• Official disability credential or proof of participation in the PIANE program.
• A motivational letter or video.
• Evidence of Socioeconomic Status.
• Signed document of Rules of Participation of the International Mobility Program.

Once the application period is closed, VRAI and PIANE will review every student's application and inform the results directly to the selected and their schools.  

For more information or inquiries, please get in touch with Pia Mendiburu, International Mobility Officer: pfmendib@uc.cl.