At the world conference on WIL at the University of Cincinnati USA this month, ACEN joined with over 50 universities and national associations to sign the Global WIL Charter. This Charter has been developed by the WACE.The inaugural signatory organizations — among which, 14 countries and five continents are represented — formalized a commitment to grow the number and quality of international work-integrated education opportunities for students around the world. By engaging and uniting with their employer partners to provide access for all tertiary students to international work-based experiences, these organizations will more effectively prepare students for productive and rewarding employment anywhere in the world.
Charter organizations agree to answer three calls to action:
- Create a significant number of new opportunities for students of Charter supporters to obtain meaningful, international, work-integrated experiences, with a focus on scaling up;
- Develop and deliver educational offerings specifically designed to enhance student intercultural fluency and resilience with focus on equity, diversity and inclusion;
- Facilitate conversations between higher education and business to determine what constitutes “global work readiness”, and embedding these attributes in a global quality assurance framework.
Other national associations which joined ACEN in signing the Charter included New Zealand (NZACE), UK (ASET), Canada (CEWIL), Sweden (VILAR), Thailand (TACE), USA (CEIA) and leading WIL universities included Waterloo, Cincinnati, Simon Fraser, Suranaree, Waikato and Drexel.
Pic l to r. Professor Maurits Vanrooijen, CEO of WACE, Judie Kay (Immediate Past ACEN President and WACE Executive Committee member and Dr Nancy Johnson President WACE signing the Charter.