Since the partnership was formally established in 2010 under the Linnaeus-Palme Scholarship Grant, both the universities have mutually cooperated in implementing the provisions of the partnership. Those recipients of the grants under the Faculty Exchange have expressed satisfaction on the experiences they have both acquired and the novel teaching approaches which are stimulating ensuring an effective teaching learning process. The interaction during the sharing of ideas of the two universities made the partnership even more productive and development oriented. On the side of the AIUB university, 10 senior faculty members participated in the program and 8 on the side of the university of Gavle, Sweden. On the other hand, the student exchange which is another important component of the partnership has benefitted 8 students from the AIUB side and 6 from University of Gavle. For a period of 3 months or 1 semester, these students have to immerse and study at least four courses on business. Being exposed to different new learning environment and strategies, the students have expressed satisfaction of their meaningful and valuable experiences. The exchange program has also embarked on a research project which focuses on the operations management of the Swedish garment business in Bangladesh. At present, Dr. Maria Frigedou- Malama, the program in-charge and her senior colleague, Prof. Dr. Akmal S. Hyder are undergoing the last phase of the faculty exchange program in AIUB. The alumni of the exchange program (faculty and student) took the opportunity to welcome the 2 faculty in a luncheon meeting as their gesture of thanks and appreciation. During this brief meeting, the Dr. Maria conveyed her satisfaction of the AIUB’s participation with utmost interest. Prof. Dr. Charles C. Villanueva, Pro Vice Chancellor of AIUB, responded to express with profound thanks the opportunity which the partner has afforded to the faculty and students of AIUB to avail of this laudable project. Discussion is on-going on how the Linnaeus-Palme Grant can be expanded and extended to further benefit the two institutions. The Vice Chancellor of AIUB, Dr. Carmen Z. Lamagna, the chief guest, expressed her appreciation for the success of this partnership. She is looking forward to the continuous implementation of the project and any support from AIUB will be extended with no reservation to ensure that the partnership will last for a longer period of time.
Partnerships
