Members

Each of the consortium members has developed expertise in the coordination and administration of international student mobility programs. Their staff is thus qualified to inform and support students about visa requirements, health insurance and work placement regulations both for incoming and outgoing students. The partner institutions also offer academic programs related to the project.

École de technologie supérieure

The École de technologie supérieure (ÉTS) offers an undergraduate program in Operations and Logistics Engineering, which is the only program of its kind in North America. Students can also take an undergraduate course in intercultural communication for engineers. Faculty members teach courses and carry out leading-edge research in the areas of enterprise resource planning, logistics optimization, and computer simulation of production and logistical systems. Moreover, ÉTS offers multi-disciplinary master’s and PhD degrees, as well as a master’s program in environmental engineering, the latter of which covers such topics as Global Positioning Systems (GPS) and emissions reduction.

The ÉTS Office of International Relations and Student Recruitment (BRIRE), which employs ten staff members, has been implementing student mobility programs since 2000. A total of 300 ÉTS undergraduate and graduate students have participated in the international student mobility program in 1 7 countries, including Mexico and the United States. These students have taken part in either study terms or work placements in related industries. ÉTS has also hosted over 800 international exchange students from partner institutions in over ten countries.

Moreover, ÉTS admits approximately 200 international graduate students from Europe, Africa and Latin America each year. The BRIRE manages a Quebec's Ministry of Education mobility scholarship program for all outgoing students, worth a quarter of a million dollars annually.

University of Regina

The University of Regina offers an undergraduate program in Environmental Systems Engineering, which focuses on regional issues including transportation, highway safety and reliability, and sustainability. An undergraduate program in Industrial Systems Engineering is also offered, with sections on planning and management for logistics, project management and risk assessment. Graduate research in transportation and logistics emphasizes sustainability and traffic flow management. There is a strong connection with Saskatchewan Highways, the provincial authority for transportation, which covers a wide array of research topics. This relationship is also vital to undergraduate students as a number of them are offered internships by Saskatchewan Highways through the co-operative education program.

The mission of the University of Regina’s Office of International Cooperation and Development (OICD) is to support the integration of an international perspective into the University of Regina’s threefold mission of teaching, research and service. Currently, the University collaborates with partners in approximately 25 countries and has signed 96 agreements with various institutions in these countries. International students, representing 55 countries, make up approximately 7% of the total student population and 21% of the graduate community. The OICD staff includes the director, an administrative assistant and a secretary. The director serves as the International Liaison Officer and serves on the Senior Administrative Team, reporting directly to the Vice-President (Research and International)

West Virginia University

West Virginia University’s Civil and Environmental Engineering Department (CEE) is a top U.S. graduate program according to the U.S. News & World Report. Within the College of Energy and Mineral Resources, CEE has 15 tenure-track faculty members, nine research faculty and/or research associates, and seven support staff. Its annual research expenditures exceed $2.6 million. WVU offers B.S., M.S., and PhD degrees in civil engineering. This includes two bachelor’s level programs: B.S. in Civil Engineering, and Dual Civil and Mining Engineering Degrees. Master’s programs are available in four engineering areas: Environmental and Hydro-Electrical, Geotechnical, Transportation, and Structural. The PhD may include the same major as an M.S. degree area. Enrollment includes 172 undergraduate students, 40 M.S. students, and 16 PhD students. Most graduate students receive an assistantship.

Recently, WVU’s Transportation Engineering Research Center was awarded $1.5 million for research and education by the U.S. Dept. of Transportation and the WV Division of Highways in a grant to MAUTC. The center conducts research on transportation systems principles, design and planning, and expert systems. It is aligned with the Harley O. Staggers National Transportation Center, which works on pavement modeling and design, transportation planning, design, operations, infrastructure management, and safety. Other research centers offer opportunities for study and research.

Study abroad exchanges and international programs involving faculty are administered by the Office of International Programs. A long-standing student exchange partner, and a previous FIPSE project partner (2000-04), is the Universidad de Guanajuato. Each year, OIP services 560 students who study abroad and provides orientation for more than 70 international exchange students and 60 international students on special programs. The work is performed by two coordinators, an advisor, and central administrative staff. WVU has 77 international linkages and 29 student exchange agreements. OIP works with the Office of International Students and Scholars, which processes documents for visas; International Admissions, which handles 240 international student applicants each year, and the WVU Intensive English Programs.

Virginia Tech

Virginia Tech has extensive expertise in traffic modeling, transportation planning, air transportation, safety and human factors engineering, traffic signal control, pavement infrastructure, pavement mechanics, risk analysis, reliability, logistics, optimal control, stochastic optimization, vehicle dynamics, hybrid vehicles, and vehicle emission modeling, among others. Undergraduate students are involved in research. Its assets include: a “smart road” test facility with all-weather testing capabilities; the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, one of the largest U.S. transportation institutes; an environmental group that studies engine data, emissions, health effects (urban planning), and develops its own traffic simulation software.

Virginia Tech has numerous faculty members working in various aspects of transportation and logistics. Specifically, 10 faculty members belong to the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department, four belong to the Industrial Systems Engineering Department, two belong to the Mechanical Engineering Department, and one faculty member belongs to the Electrical Engineering Department.

Virginia Tech has been offering education abroad programs for over 30 years, with nearly 900 students studying abroad in 2005-2006. Besides 30 faculty-led programs abroad annually, the university offers 70 bilateral exchange agreements on six continents and owns and operates a residence and classroom facility in Switzerland. Virginia Tech has experience with NAMP projects (e.g., architecture and aquaculture) and has strong ties with the Universidad de Guanajuato. The Office of International Research, Education, and Development administers student exchange and study abroad programs, while another unit has primary responsibility for maintaining bilateral student exchanges, multilateral ISEP and FIPSE-funded student exchanges. Staff work with Residence Housing, Registrar, Bursar, and provide strong support services and advising for exchange students. Like WVU, Virginia Tech’s Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures offers Spanish and French courses that can prepare U.S. students for exchanges to Mexico and Canada, and both offer intensive English language courses.

Universidad de Guanajuato

The Faculty of Civil Engineering at the Universidad de Guanajuato currently offers two five-year undergraduate programs (Civil Engineering and Environmental Engineering), and one graduate program (Construction Economics). Recently, the Faculty of Engineering’s programs were certified as Quality Level 1 Programs by the Inter-Institutional Committee for Higher Education Evaluation (CIEES). The faculty has established several collaboration agreements with the Guanajuato State General Office for Road Traffic Infrastructure for the implementation and operation of a Highway Paving Management System in the State of Guanajuato. In addition, the Faculty has a strong relationship with the Mexican Transportation Institute (IMT), the Center for Research in Mathematics (CIMAT), the Spanish Highway Association (AEC), the Spanish Technical Highway Association (ATC), the Spanish Center for Public Works Research (CEDEX), and the World Bank.

The Universidad de Guanajuato, through its international office (DRAII), signed its first international agreement in 1969. Since then it has signed more than 200 agreements for mobility, research and publication. It now works with more than 50 partners around the world. DRAII sends more than 150 students abroad per year and receives around 200 students under bilateral and multilateral agreements (without including incoming free movers).

DRAII gives administrative and logistical support to schools and departments that participate in international projects.

Universidad Autonoma de San Luis Potosi

Currently, the Universidad Autónoma de San Luis Potosí (UASLP) is the main institution of higher education in the State of San Luis Potosí and one of the best public institutions in Mexico. The UASLP is a leader thanks to a number of factors including: broad educational opportunities, the level of attention accorded to the students, the relevance of its researchers on the national and international stages, quality training programs for professionals, and study plans designed to meet the evolving demands of society. The UASLP has a clear vision of the importance of its international participation. PROMESAN projects have provided interesting opportunities for intercultural academic collaboration, and the UASLP has participated as partner and leader in these projects for quite some time.

An international student mobility program was launched at Universidad Autónoma de San Luis Potosí in 2003.  The office staff is composed of four members, including two regional mobility coordinators, one of whom is responsible for the U.S. and Canada.  An increasing number of students are applying to participate in the student exchange program, with 150 students studying abroad in 2006.  The university hosted approximately 115 students in 2006. Partner institutions are located in Mexico, Spain, France, Germany, the U.S., Canada and other Latin American countries.  The office has experience in managing previously funded NAMP projects in the areas of architecture, nursing, chemistry, psychology and business.