Interaction Between the Campus and its Surroundings

The companies which collaborate with UC3M on Campus Carlos III are located mostly in the municipalities of Madrid, Getafe and Leganes; though also in other towns in the Autonomous Region of Madrid. This is a good example of the CCIII’s ability to transfer new knowledge into its environment.

Campus Carlos III has implemented the values of solidarity and cooperation not only outwardly, but also internally. In line with this, during the 2011/12 academic year, active policies such as the introduction of an Integration Program for students with disabilities were developed; this particular policy has increased the faculty involvement in the specific needs of these students from 184 teachers in the first semester to 190 in the second. A file and a catalog of study material adapted by the library were both created, and sign language and interpretation services were developed and improved. Furthermore, protocol responding to the academic needs of students with disabilities was developed. At the same time there was progress in raising awareness and training on disability and accessibility through specific events, and the organization of a seminar, as well as training and communication activities and collaboration with other institutions and coordination areas in relation to university life and disability; for example, the participation of UC3M in RUNAE Network-SAPDU and the Madrid Universities Network.

In 2010/11 and 2013/14 the number of students with disabilities attended by the Integration Program more than doubled from 35 to 86. It is important to highlight the steady increase in international exchange and Master’s students and the tendency of an increasing number of them to require more specialist resources in order to access learning; especially students with impaired hearing, with serious physical disabilities and physical development conditions. Also, the number of students with special education needs attended by PAU more than tripled in this period, from eleven to 38.

Consequently, the numbers of faculty dealing with students with special needs increased proportionally; on average, 187 members of the teaching staff per semester in 2011/12 rising to 250 in 2013/14. Available resources were increased and diversified as well, and specific services made available: personal care and sanitary assistance, adaptation of study materials, subtitling and sign language interpretation, communication support, computer access, study aids and so on. Other Program resources were also improved: the website was enlarged to include new sections, an English version and sign language video interpretation; files and data collection systems were updated according to data protection regulations and finally, the support aids lending service was expanded.

During the 2012/13 and 2013/14 academic years, the organization of activities aimed at training and awareness in relation to accessibility and disability was maintained through a diversity of events: workshops for volunteers focusing on the needs of disabled people, seminars on employment and disability and social stigma towards people with mental illness, activities with recognition by credits, film forums and so on. Participation in these activities totaled more than 700 people over the two academic years.

In 2013 implementation of the Comprehensive Accessibility Signage project began on the Getafe, Leganés and Colmenarejo Campuses; this was made possible by a specific grant of €24,980 from Fundación ONCE and began with the incorporation of maps and plans meeting universal accessibility requirements and improvement of signage and basic resources for people with disabilities, elevators and adapted restrooms, for example.

In 2012/13 and 2013/14 the number of forums and projects focusing on disability and the University increased, as did participation in same. This involved a diverse number of organizations: Fundación Universia, Fundación Vodafone, Confederación Nacional de Personas Sordas, (National Confederation of People with Impaired Hearing) CERMI, RUNAE and Fundación ONCE. Also, papers were presented at the Congreso Internacional Inclusión Digital (International Conference on Digital Inclusion) and Aprendizaje (Learning) organized by UNED, Madrid, as well as Congreso Internacional Universidad y Discapacidad (International Congress on Universities and Disability) organized by Fundación ONCE, Madrid. Papers were also presented at a Seminar on Vulnerable Groups and Means of Access and Permanency in Higher Education in Brasilia, which was organized by Red de Derechos Humanos y Educación Superior ( Network of Human Rights and Higher Education).

The Observatory of the Área de Ayudas y Becas del Servicio Espacio Estudiantes (Support and Grants Area of the Students’ Space Service) has published 94 announcements and received 283,701 visits to its web page during the current academic year, placing it amongst the thirty most visited pages on the UC3M website.

In 2012/13, the same observatory published 52 announcements and the web page received 164,153 visits, placing it among the forty most visited pages on the UC3M website. In 2013/14, 72 announcements were published and a total of 110,562 visits were received, this time placing it in joint 34th position on the UC3M website.

In 2011/12 the design and implementation project for the UC3M Comprehensive Orientation Plan was launched and 43 tutors and their 648 students participated in the Programa Compañeros (Colleagues Program); this represented a significant increase on the previous year: more than 59% of additional tutors and an increase of 825% in tutored students.

In 2012/13 the UC3M Comprehensive Orientation Plan was completed, highlighting ten areas for priority action during the students’ university life cycle, and three specific projects to be developed during the short term.

• Advances in students’ personalized orientation dynamics throughout their university life cycle, that is, before, during and after their studies.
• Orientation of the Bachelor’s degree programs in order to facilitate the multiple choices which students have to make when planning their training itineraries, future careers and professional development.
• Design and promotion of an orientation website with the objective of grouping together the orientation resources made available by the University, in such a way to facilitate access to those resources needed by students at each stage of their university life cycle.

At the end of the academic year, the Board of Directors created four Vice Dean/ Sub-director positions with the objective of monitoring everything related to the orientation of the University. Forty four student tutors took part in the Programa Compañeros (Buddy Program), who in turn, tutored 613 students, resulting in a slight reduction in the numbers involved in the program. In 2013/2014 a work group was formed by the Vice Deans responsible for Orientation, the Vice- Chancellor of Students and the Orientation Service (which includes psychological attention and psycho- pedagogy). The main objective was to study the causes of students dropping out and the measures that the university might take in order to reduce and prevent this. In the same area, the University entrusted to the Board of Trustees a study on UC3M students abandoning their studies; this study has recently been published and will serve as a tool for work in this area.

There was an increase of 25% in participation on the Programa Compañeros, mainly motivated by the extension of the program to all University degree courses: 59 student tutors and 765 students took part.

In 2011/12 a financial aid fund was created for students experiencing economic hardship with two calls: there were 23 applications in October 2011 and 20 in March 2012 with five scholarships being awarded in October and six in March.

In 2012/13, the budget for this extraordinary financial aid for students with economic hardship was 22,500 euros. In total, 48 applications were received and 16 payments of, on average, €1,406.25 were made. In 2013/14 the available budget for the financial aid programs increased to €70,510 representing a rise of 213.38%; this was made possible by the transfer of 41,000 euros left over from previous years’ budgets, and also by means of private donations. A total of 88 applications were received of which 49 scholarships of, on average, €1,439 were made. The application procedure remains open throughout most of the year, until November, to enable students with unforeseen financial difficulties to have access to financial aid; this will hopefully reduce the risk of them dropping out.

Regarding financial aid to new students with top academic records, in 2011/12 there were 251 applications with 142 scholarships awarded; a further 92 financial aid subsidies were given to cover initial expenses and mobility costs and 50 for computers, together covering 100% of the financial aid budget. These figures represented an overall increase of 6% on the previous year. Of the students benefitting, the highest grade achieved in the same academic year was 11.93 and the lowest 10.10. In 2012/13, 348 applications were received and again 100% of the financial aid budget of 167,800 euros was covered: 83 financial aid subsidies for initial expenses and mobility costs and for 46 computers.

The financial aid budget for this call for 2013/14 was 123,000 euros with 68 financial aid subsidies paid for initial expenses and mobility costs for students coming from other regions of Spain. In this year, computers were not included as part of the aid program. In total 200 applications were received and all agreed upon payments were met.

The cooperation of the University in development programs is an essential part of Campus Carlos III’s social responsibility. Students have been encouraged to participate in various voluntary networks such as La Red Española de Voluntarios de Naciones Unidas (The Spanish Network of United Nations Volunteers) carrying out the objectives of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) – with five volunteers in 2011 – and El Programa de Voluntariado Universitario (University Volunteers Program) on the Tindouf refugee camps in the Sahara – with 2 volunteers in 2011 and 2 in 2012 – and as part of the Programa Universitario de Voluntariado en Universidades Latinoamericanas (Volunteer Program of Latin American Universities) - one volunteer.

Regarding mobility, 31 scholarships were granted in order to carry out projects in Bachelor’s degree programs and postgraduate program projects, internships, and voluntary work within the framework of the V Convocatoria de Ayudas para Proyectos de Cooperación y Apoyo a la Movilidad (Agreement on Aid for Project Cooperation and Mobility Support). The amount of 90,000 euros was donated with co-financing from the Autonomous Region of Madrid. This same agreement allowed ten projects led by UC3M personnel to be funded; these projects were carried out in Nicaragua, Ecuador, Kenya, Sudan, Guinea Bissau and El Salvador. The University also received 380.395 euros from the Marco del Programa de Cooperación Interuniversitaria e Investigación Científica de la AECID (The Framework of the AECID Program for Inter-university Cooperation and Scientific Research) with the objective of developing projects for institutional and scientific enhancement at universities in Mozambique, Panama, Argentina, Nicaragua and Haiti.

Networking with other universities has helped to promote joint projects such as those within CRUE which are being carried out for the reconstruction of the Haitian university system (one of which, geared towards strengthening the libraries and access to scientific information in the State University of Haiti, is led by UC3M). The university also participates in the CRUE program of Institutional Scholarships and has funded and managed two scholarships for Haitian students in the 2011-12 and 2012-13 academic years. The collaboration between public universities in Madrid has been strengthened with the organization by UC3M of the first Workshop de Actores de la Cooperación Universitaria al Desarrollo de la Comunidad de Madrid (University Cooperation Drama Workshop for the development of the Autonomous Region of Madrid) with active participation in state coordinated forums such as Grupo de Trabajo de Cooperación Universitaria al Desarrollo de CICUE (Working Group for University Cooperation in the Development of CICUE – CICUE being the Commission for Internationalization and Cooperation in Spanish Universities.

Additionally, in July 2012, the new Laboratorio de Tecnologias Apropriadas (Appropriate Technologies Laboratory) was opened on the Leganes campus. This new facility, oriented towards teaching, research and technical assistance, is dedicated to the development of appropriate technologies for developing countries in areas such as the supply of drinking water and access to energy.

The Office for University Cooperation on Development (OCUD) is also working on the preparation of a strategy for cooperation, and the creation of regulations for the Solidarity Fund which allows the commitment of the entire University community to the development of southern countries, in line with the principles of the Code of Conduct of Spanish Universities in the field of cooperation development.

In the 2011/12 academic year, OCUD - in collaboration with other services, institutions, departments and university associations - organized the VI Semana de la Solidaridad (VI Solidarity Week); Twenty five Third Sector organizations also participated. Conceived as a space for reflection and the construction of a critical vision, and committed to the reality that surrounds us, 54 activities at the various campuses of the UC3M were scheduled for the event. Interest in these activities is demonstrated by the high number of attendees: 2,847 students.

During 2013 and 2014, development cooperation at Universidad Carlos III was consolidated by various initiatives which reinforced its management structure and its capacity to take action.

Firstly, in its session on 2th July 2014, the Governing Council approved the Estrategia de Cooperación Universitaria al Desarrollo de la Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (Strategy of University Cooperation for the Development of the Universidad Carlos III, Madrid) and the Reglamento del Fondo de Cooperación al Desarrollo (Regulation of Cooperation for the Development Fund), thereby creating a conceptual framework and more stable resources for cooperation activities, which the members of the University community will be able access and use.

Similarly, in 2013 the go ahead was given for Grupos de Cooperación (Cooperation Groups) a stable collective of teaching faculty, researchers and administrative staff and services, the objective of this group research, teaching and the realization of projects for university cooperation in development. At present, there are eight groups working in various sectors: indigenous peoples, international trade, renewable energies, university management, libraries and ICT for development for example. These groups have also have participated in the VI Convocatoria de Ayudas para Acciones de Cooperación al Desarrollo (VI Agreement on Aid for Action on Cooperation Development). Through this project, funding of 50,000 euros has been raised and grants have been awarded for six projects in Mozambique, Colombia, Nicaragua, Panama, Bolivia and Guatemala.

Important initiatives to improve means of attracting funding for projects related to cooperation on development have been carried out by the University community. In line with this, two projects were presented to the 2012 session of the EU’s EDULINK II program; this program is dedicated to the development of renewable energies. Firstly, it is important to highlight the RENET project (Renewable Energies Education Network) as part of these initiatives; this project is led by UC3M’s Grupo de Ingeniería para el Desarrollo Humano (IDH) (Engineering for Human Development) which is currently being developed in Haiti and Cuba with a Budget of 500,000 euros. Secondly, we must highlight the project, PARTICIPIA (PARTICIPATE) in South Africa, Botswana and Namibia; this is the first 4U Alliance joint project of its type.

In the area of development training and awareness, during 2013/14 OCUD organized and presented the first session of “Construyendo Solidaridad” (Constructing Solidarity), with a learning-service focus; this was well received by the students. Also, OCUD collaborated in the organization of the IV and V Semana Verde (Green Week) and the VII and VIII Semana de la Solidaridad (Solidarity Week) along with other services, departments, institutions and student associations.

Important networking events such as de La Conferencia de Rectores de las Universidades de Madrid (CRUMA) (Chancellors of Universities in Madrid Conference) must be highlighted. These events have been developed within the framework of the CUD Work Group and CICUE and CRUE. CRUMA’s Cooperation Commission collaborates on the design and management of joint voluntary education projects on development and awareness such as VIII Jornadas de las universidades públicas madrileñas sobre el Sahara occidental (VIII State University Seminar on Western Sahara) and the improvement of the regulations and internal structure of CUD.. There is a current proposal for the creation of a joint volunteers’ program of excellence for Master’s students from the six public universities in Madrid; this proposal has received the support of the Autonomous Region of Madrid.

Finally, it is important to mention the collaboration initiated with La Fundación Mujeres por África (Women for Africa Foundation), reached through the signing of an agreement framework, with the objective of developing working groups within the teaching, research and volunteer areas.