Carleton University has recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Fundación Universitaria Iberoamericana (FUNIBER) in an effort to further enhance collaboration and cooperation between the two institutions. This initiative was led by efforts of members of the School of Linguistics and Language Studies.
The MOU provides SLALS faculty members professional development opportunities, with the possibility of teaching Spanish language and culture courses abroad, and spending a sabbatical year at a FUNIBER university as well as hosting FUNIBER professors here. This interest extends to our Linguistics programs where professors like Dr. Beth MacLeod who researches the phonology of the Spanish language is very keen to share findings and gather data in Spain.
From the perspective of student mobility, we see benefits to our students in terms of the possibility of study exchanges. As we know, learning a language takes a lot of exposure to the language and culture, and visiting Spain in this capacity will allow many students to vastly improve their language proficiency. The MOU hopefully will also lead to our students taking FUNIBER’s M.A. in Teaching Spanish as a Foreign Language.
Interest in the MOU extends beyond SLALS with programs such as the Institute of African Studies exploring opportunities to work with FUNIBER’s university in Angola. As well, this relationship expands the choice of students in the Bachelor of International Business to potentially study at a FUNIBER institutions.
The signing of this MOU marks what is hopefully the beginning of a long-term collaboration between Carleton University and FUNIBER.