ACBSP IMPACT

In an environment that has been complex for all institutions in the world and required high-resilience capacity, the members of Region 9 continue to focus on quality and accreditation as a strategy to achieve better results in students.

The following new institutions have been incorporated, which following the on boarding process were presented, to all Region 9 members, at our regional meeting:

• Universidad ECOTEC, Ecuador
• The Global Humanistic University (GHU), Curaçao
• Fundación Universitaria Compensar, Colombia
• Universidad de Lima, Escuela de Posgrado, Peru
• Universidad Nacional de San Antonio de Abad del Cusco, Peru
• Universidad Internacional del Ecuador, Ecuador
• Universidad Autónoma de Guadalajara, México
• Universidad Mayor, Chile

In addition to the 18 universities that are in full preparation for accreditation, which are in the stage of adopting the principles and standards in their management, the following two universities were accredited:

• UNPHU, Dominican Republic
• Ricardo Palma University, Peru

Thanks to the high spirit of collaboration in Region 9, there are various projects being conducted to respond collaboratively to the demands of the accreditation process, which in this last period have achieved important achievements, such as:

• TOURNAMENT: A benchmark system of learning outcomes, in which, by using business simulators, the level reached in the training of students is evaluated each year. The 3rd version was carried out with the participation of 1,708 students from 36 educational institutions. (Standard 4)
• The project “use and results of NPS system to measure satisfaction of stakeholders” was concluded, led by Escuela Bancaria y Comercial from Mexico, with the participation of 11 universities, which in the future will help to establish a benchmark on stakeholder satisfaction. (Standard 3)
• The research on “Labor Expectations of Centennials of Business Schools in Latin America” was concluded, led by ISIL and USMP from Peru, with information from a sample of 5,218 students from 22 higher education institutions in Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Paraguay, and Peru. (Standard 5)
• New research teams were formed to conduct research on “the implicit acceptance of informality in business students in Latin America” led by the USMP from Peru, the “Digital Transformation in Latin American Higher Education Institutions”, led by the UABC from Mexico and “Measurement of competencies at postgraduate level” led by the EBC from Mexico. (Standard 5)
• The Academic Entrepreneurship Committee began their activities with 23 institutions from 7 countries, where best practices will be shared to strengthen the strategies that are being applied to promote and support entrepreneurs. (Standard 6)
• The Programs Academic Committees of Marketing and International Business held their annual conferences on the “Future of the marketing professional in Latin American Region” and on “Global perspective of how markets are developing in Latin America and in the Caribbean”. Also, the Accounting and Finance Committee began its activities with the participation of 19 institutions, led by Anahuac University from Mexico, as well as the Internationalization Committee, with the participation of 18 universities, led by Uniempresarial from Colombia. In all these committees, the international mobility of students and faculty are promoted, best practices are exchanged and other activities of mutual cooperation for the benefit of better training for students are put into practice. (Standards 1,3,6)

Likewise, there have been applications in the various ACBSP initiatives, with this year’s conference theme “Resilience in Education: The intersection of Challenge and Opportunity”, and applicants will surely achieve good results, as has happened up to now.

As usual, the 5th Congress for Deans and Directors of Latin America was held as part of the regional fall conference schedule. Autonomous University of Nuevo León in Mexico was the host university with 525 representatives from more than 100 universities from 14 countries participated, during which conferences, debates, analysis round tables, and a regional meeting was held. There was also a training workshop on the new ACBSP standards, in which 333 directors and faculty were involved in the accreditation processes of universities in Latin America.

Within the framework of the scholarship program, with the support of the Entrepreneurship Committee, which is led by the Universidad del Rosario, an experiential Bootcamp was developed for higher education institutions with an entrepreneurial commitment, which addressed as a challenge: What strategies should the academy incorporate to motivate young people to undertake initiatives in the new reality? This challenge was sought to be resolved through interdisciplinary teams in coordination with the methodological strategy of the entrepreneurship and innovation laboratories of the Universidad del Rosario, with the participation of 20 representatives from universities in Ecuador, Colombia, Mexico, Dominican Republic and Peru.

This summary of activities highlights the importance of putting into practice the policy of “going beyond accreditation,” which ACBSP promotes. This trait is a differentiating element compared to any other international accreditation agency. And in Latin America, it has allowed the creation of value in the inter-institutional relationship to continue advancing towards excellence in education.

Do not hesitate to contact us if you are interested in learning more about any of the projects mentioned. See you soon in Washington, D.C.!