IPN´s internationalization grows with support from British universities

• The IPN´s General Director, Arturo Reyes Sandoval and the British Council Director Mexico, Brian Young, signed a Memorandum of Understanding • The Secretary of Public Education, Delfina Gómez Álvarez has reiterated that Higher Education Institutions have had an impact on social transformation • The IPN´s internationalization has been based on the experience of educational institutions in the United Kingdom: Reyes Sandoval

The National Polytechnic Institute (IPN, for its acronym in spanish) and the British Council of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in Mexico, signed a Memorandum of Understanding, through which the internationalization of this house of studies will be strengthened, by expanding the ties of cooperation with British higher education institutions, for the exchange of academic personnel, administrative and student, joint scientific research and the promotion of english language teaching.

The Secretary of Public Education, Delfina Gomez Alvarez, has reiterated that universities and higher education institutions, with their scientific and technological contributions, have had an impact on social transformation, especially now that there is a process of change, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In front of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ambassador, Jon Benjamin, and the Mexico´s British Council Director, Brian Young, the IPN´s General Director, Arturo Reyes Sandoval emphasized: One of the main objectives that I assumed when I was invited by the President of the Republic, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, to be head of the Polytechnic, was to promote the internationalization of the Institute, taking as a base and idea, the strength of the internationalization that the United Kingdom has in each of its educational institutions.

At the ceremony, the head of the IPN said with this Memorandum of Understanding there is a favorable framework to generate a virtuous synergy for the development of science and technological innovation and also for the learning of the english language, in addition to allowing also teachers from the United Kingdom to come to the Polytechnic.

He stressed that the memorandum will help to realize the objectives of the British Council, including contributing to the internationalization of higher education through scientific research and improving english language teaching. He recalled the Operational Alliance Agreement between the Polytechnic Foundation and the British Council, which allows 250 teachers of upper secondary level of the Polytechnic, to concretize their teacher training in the teaching of the english language.

He also mentioned that recently 21 IPN students graduated from the School of Research and Academic English Program of the universities of Durham, Queen Mary of London and Leeds, in addition to the launch of the International School of Scientific Research for the training of researchers of the future, between the IPN and Queen Mary University of London. “We agreed to empower three generations of women (mexican and english) in the four areas of modern knowledge: Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM)”.

From 2018 to 2019, he said, eight postgraduate level students, under the IPN Student Mobility Programme, had the opportunity to study at the universities of Warwick, Leeds, Derby, Sheffield, Lincoln, Bristol and Edinburgh.

"In 2001-2002 I entered to do my PhD as part of the IPN to the United States and in three years we published an article on the use of adenovirus as a vaccine and the University of Oxford was interested and took this development. For 15 years I dedicated myself to the development of various vaccines at the Jenner Institute and that adenovirus came to be used as an HIV, HPV vaccine for diseases of tropical infections and, one of them, for COVID-19 (Oxford-AstraZeneca). I am very proud that a thesis from a polytechnic came to England. So this collaboration (IPN and UK) is going to strengthen more people like me who have gone out to different parts of the world and, in particular, to the UK”, he said.

In turn, Ambassador Jon Benjamin (who signed the agreement as a witness of honor) thanked Dr. Reyes Sandoval for seeking international alliances for the benefit of education, so that mexican youth can access global opportunities that expand their vision. The Mexico´s British Council Director, Brian Young, commented that this memorandum will have a positive impact on the lives of thousands of students, teachers and researchers and administrative staff of the IPN.