Plan for academic and financial sustainability and growth [P4.S3]
AIM: Sustainability is critical to the development of this project and involves at least two aspects: academic and economic sustainability. On the academic side, we are proposing keep or very high levels of preference from students in the country (exceptional admission indices in 2013), to develop a competitive recruiting process to attract the best possible scholarly talent, Chilean or international, and a clear and attractive academic career to retain this talent and provide the conditions for high productivity. This may require more flexible appointments—e.g., faculty positions with percentages of joint appointments in the Consortium and universities elsewhere—or create different types of appointments with international institutions.
It is apparent that the long term economy of our Schools of Engineering should move toward the development of a reasonable size endowment, the return of which should cover a relevant percentage of the operational costs of both Schools.
Producing such an endowment in Chile, from individual and company donations, it is not an easy task since there is not a give-back culture in the country. For this reason, we are proposing to leverage in part such an endowment from a new long term economy based on the Schools’ professional education capabilities; this is a dimension of high academic interest in Engineering as it fosters the required interaction with the third sector that may later become a gateway towards new research and innovation opportunities. Naturally, a fundraising strategy based on first creating a “donor culture” and later seeking venture donors will also be part of this macro activity.
MAIN ACTIVITIES:
• Recruitment and retention of talent
• Long-term economy
