Program Office: Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education

CFDA Number: 84.116M
Program Type: Discretionary/Competitive Grants
Also Known As: U.S.-Brazil Higher Education Consortia Program, U.S.-Brazil Student Exchange Program, FIPSE

The program, jointly administered by the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE) and the Brazilian Ministry of Education, provides grants for up to four years to consortia of at least two academic institutions each from Brazil and the United States. The program fosters the exchange of students and faculty within the context of bilateral curricular development.

The program supports projects that develop organizational frameworks for international student mobility between the United States and Brazil.

The U.S.-Brazil Higher Education Consortia Program (U.S.-Brazil Program) is a grant competition run cooperatively by the governments of the United States and Brazil. The purpose of this competition is to promote student-centered cooperation between the United States and Brazil to increase cross-national education and training opportunities in a wide range of academic and professional disciplines. The U.S.-Brazil Program will fund collaborative efforts in the form of consortia. A consortium must have at least two academic institutions from each country. The funding period will be for four years.

The U.S.-Brazil Program fosters university partnerships through the exchange of undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, and staff within the context of bilateral curricular development. Students benefit from having an international curriculum and cultural dimension added to their studies through a combination of bilateral curricular innovation and study abroad.

The U.S.-Brazil Program is administrated jointly by the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE), U.S. Department of Education, and the Fundacao Coordenacao de Aperfeicoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior (CAPES), Brazilian Ministry of Education.

Grants for the U.S.-Brazil Program will provide four years of funding. Each country will support only participating institutions within its borders. Most grants will be for four years of funding, including a first-year preparatory phase. Total grant amounts for each U.S. consortium will likely be about $220,000 for the four-year period. This amount will be matched on the Brazilian side.

The program aims to improve the quality of students in undergraduate and graduate education in both countries and to explore ways to prepare students for work through -

• the mutual recognition and portability of academic credits among U.S. and Brazilian institutions;
• the development of shared, common, or core curricula among U.S. and Brazilian institutions;
• the acquisition of the languages and exposure to the cultures of the United States and Brazil;
• the development of student apprenticeships or other work related experiences; and
• an increased cooperation and exchange among academic personnel at U.S. and Brazilian institutions.

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