A two-member delegation from Rutgers Global, a university-wide unit of Rutgers University committed to leading, developing, and promoting international initiatives and education, called on the Provost of the College of Basic and Applied Sciences (CBAS) to explore potential collaborative opportunities in student mobility, joint research, and other academic partnerships, as part of their efforts to expand international partnerships.
The Executive Director of Rutgers Global, Dr. Dan Waite, shared insights on their 'Partnerships and Pathways' initiative of Rutgers Global which is aimed at identifying strong opportunities and establishing pathways for student exchanges. Together with the schools and departments within their university, they identify partner institutions with similar research interests and work together with the ultimate goal of encouraging scholarly collaborations that provide international experiences for their students. For this engagement with the College, their initial collaborative efforts are focused on agricultural studies, particularly, agricultural economics, plant sciences and sustainability.
Dr. Waite solicited the Provost’s support in facilitating engagement with the relevant units to establish a successful partnership that would enable the exchange of knowledge and expertise between the two institutions.
Dr. Ji-Yeung Jang delivering her remarks next to Dr. Dan Waite
Dr. Ji-Yeung Jang, Assistant Vice President for Global Affairs, explained that while the initial focus is on agriculture, the engagement could expand to include other areas such as biomedical and health sciences, depending on the identified research interests. Accordingly, there is a need to align the curricula of both institutions to facilitate scholarly collaborations between their faculty members.
In her view, the partnership will offer valuable international exposure for students and faculty from both universities, ultimately expanding their respective research networks.
Prof. Boateng Onwona-Agyeman, the Provost of CBAS, expressed excitement about the proposal, noting that a number of departments and research centres within the College have research interests that align with those of Rutgers University. He encouraged further discussions with the Departments of Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness, Crop Science, Plant and Environmental Biology and Biomedical Engineering to develop mutually beneficial undergraduate and postgraduate programmes that would provide students with exposure to interdisciplinary research, opportunities for collaboration on innovative projects and hand-on experience.
To formalise the partnerships between the two universities, Prof. Onwona-Agyeman urged the team to follow up on the discussions with a Memorandum of Understating defining clearly the roles and responsibilities of each institution.
A group photograph after the meeting
Also present at the meeting were the College International Programmes Coordinator, Prof. Elvis Tiburu; the College Secretary, Mrs. Mavis Otoo-Ayeh; the College Academic Officer, Mr. Daniel Hormeku; and the College Public Affairs Officer, Ms. Victoria Anim, as well as, Ms. Theresah Eshun, a representative from the International Programmes Office.