This benefit is delivered by the Ministry of Education, through the Higher Education Division and its Department of Institutional Strengthening.

For the first time, the University of La Serena applied in March of this year, through a team of professionals convened by the Academic Vice-Rector's Office, for this important benefit of the Ministry of Education.

The call for 2018 indicated that 15 programs from the universities of the Council of Rectors would be financed. The lines for the application were framed in working with free students in the first years, in admission and permanence, educational process or the graduation and degree line, which was focused on the last years of training.

The purpose of the Academic Leveling Scholarship (BNA) is for universities to have programs that contribute to implementing specific academic strategies, so that students entering higher education have a successful career. This support must be differentiated according to the progress they have within the training process.

The BNA program that the state campus was awarded is called “Program to support the permanence, performance, leveling and comprehensive development of first- and second-year students at the University of La Serena” (APRENDE ULS). The objective of this program is “to establish strategies for leveling, accompaniment and monitoring of 1st and 2nd year students who benefit from free admission to the U. of La Serena, contributing to improving academic success and retention.”

The team that made the proposal was led by the Executive Coordinator of the PACE Accompaniment Program and academic from the Department of Psychology, Mg. Viviana Romero Elgueda, who worked with the psychosocial manager of the Secondary Education area, Mg. Bárbara Mejías Cubillos, and with the academic manager of the Higher Education Support area, Mg. María Fernanda Fuentealba Fabio, from the same PACE ULS Program. In addition to these professionals, the proposal included the participation of the Head of Academic Registry of the Teaching Directorate, Eng. Gonzalo Honores Vega.

For the Mg. Viviana Romero, the importance of this team when formulating the proposal was key, given their previous work, and pointed out that “we knew that the University had not previously applied for this scholarship, therefore it was an important opportunity to complement and enhance everything that the PACE Accompaniment Program is doing at the institution, with an accompaniment model through academic tutoring from peers and mentors, in addition to psychosocial support. With this new APPRENDE ULS Program we will be able to expand the work of the PACE Program, reach more students and articulate the initiatives of the units or programs that are also supporting students in the first year, both in the academic, health, psychosocial, with the exception that this institutional program is focused on the first two years of training and covers the four faculties”

He also indicated that "as a team we are very happy to be able to contribute concretely to the institution, to support so many students who need support in the first years and contribute to equity and inclusion in our University."

When investigating the contributions that this program will have at the institutional level, it is observed that within the general actions the early academic leveling and creation of a Tutor Training School for working with free first and second year students is visualized. In addition, a support network for psychosocial and educational guidance will be generated for students by campus and the development of a monitoring and early warning system, which will allow students to be detected and referred in a timely manner when they require it.

The APRENDE ULS Program is, by resolution of the Ministry of Education, awarded by the University of La Serena, awaiting the signing and processing of the agreement to begin actions during the Second Semester 2018.

Source: Press PACE ULS Program