Drexel University President John A. Fry and Drexel faculty and administrators will join Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett’s delegation to Brazil and Chile. The trip is scheduled for April 6-16 and will include stops in Brazilian cities of Sao Paulo, Florianopolis and Rio de Janeiro, along with Santiago, Chile.
Fry will arrive in Rio on April 10 and begin signing a series of MOU agreements with universities in Brazil and Chile to facilitate faculty research collaborations and student exchange programs, and to encourage enhanced cooperation with Brazil’s Scientific Mobility Program, formally known as Science without Borders. On behalf of Drexel University, Fry will sign MOUs with the following universities:
The Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro on April 10. With approximately 12,000 undergraduate students, 2,500 postgraduate students and 4,000 extension students, the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro is consistently recognized as one of the top universities in Brazil.
The Pontifícia Universidad Católica de Chile on April 12. The Pontifical Catholic University of Chile is one of Chile's oldest universities and one of the most recognized educational institutions in Latin America. Dr. Daniel V. Schidlow, dean of Drexel’s College of Medicine has long standing collaborations with the PUC President Ignacio Sánchez.
The Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina on April 13. The Federal University of Santa Catarina is a public university in Florianópolis, the capital city of Santa Catarina in southern Brazil. Ranked as the fourth best overall university in Latin America by the Webometrics Ranking of World Universities, it is one of the leading Latin American research universities, being the third largest university in Brazil and the fifth in Latin America, and is internationally known for the quality of its courses in mechanical engineering, control engineering, sanitary engineering, electrical engineering and dentistry.
The University of São Paulo on April 16. It’s the largest Brazilian university and the country's most prestigious educational institution. According to reports by Brazil’s Ministry of Science and Technology, more than 25 percent of the articles published by Brazilian researchers in high quality conferences and journals are produced at the University of São Paulo.
Before leaving for Brazil, Fry signed an MOU with the University of The Gambia. These are the latest in a series of agreements with universities abroad that affirm Drexel’s commitment to international academic and research collaborations. Recent partnerships at international locations include those with Shanghai Jiao Tong University, the Shanghai Advanced Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Sabanci, Koc and Bogazici universities in Turkey.