Working Together to
Achieve LACCEI’s
First Goal
First Goal of LACCEI

Cooperation and partnerships among
member institutions in the areas of
engineering education, research, and
technology advancement with emphasis
on:
 Faculty
and student exchange
Purpose of
UniversityPlacementServices.com
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Facilitate the process to apply for admission to selected U.S.
universities by providing detailed information online, in Spanish, and
free to students
Near future: provide same service in English and Portuguese
Five years: leader in globalization of education
U.S. Institutions
Students in
Latin America
Current Situation
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U.S. behind in science and engineering
Decline of international students
Students finding opportunities in other countries
Effects on U.S. economy and international
relations
Complicated application process
Expensive private consultancy services
No innovation
What is Being Done?

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE: Student Visas are “Top Priority”
(see article)

U.S. University Presidents Summit on International Education (see
official site here)

$50M investment in Florida to boost recruitment and retain teachers,
specially in areas of math and science (see article)

LACCEI (Latin American and Caribbean Consortium of Engineering
Institutions)

Private sector
THE QUESTION IS: are these measures helping
international students to understand and complete the
admission process to universities in the U.S.?
New Way of Doing Things
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Focus on Engineering and Computer Science
A “one stop shop”
Standard format
forTO
all STUDENTS!
institutions
FREE
University and program-specific information
Information in Students’ Native Language
Expert advice available
Who Are We?

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Everything started with my own experience
Grand Prize Winners of 2004 Venture Challenge
Competition at FIU
Caught Media Attention
en Español – En Efectivo
 Fortune Small Business
 El Nuevo Herald
1 Prize Winners - Graduate Level
 Miami Today
 Kauffman Foundation for Entrepreneurship
 CNN
st
Strategy for Achieving LACCEI’s First Goal
LACCEI
Tool to achieve first goal


Work Together!
Everybody Wins!
Incentive for new
institutions to join
Exclusivity for six months
U.S. Universities
Better cost/benefit ratio than
traditional advertising
Students
Access to FREE
comprehensive service
More time available to
study
Expert advice available
from people who
understand their needs
More and better applications
Better competitive position vs
other U.S. universities
Universities in Latin
America
Tool to facilitate student and
faculty exchange with the U.S.
Near future: admissions
information offered in English
for foreign students
Roles

UniversityPlacementServices.com
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Maintain accurate and up-to-date information
Send monthly reports to universities
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Make presentations at universities in Latin America
Universities in Latin America (and Spain)

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List of students who chose any of your programs
List of students who applied for admission
Promote free services to students
Students

Just enjoy the free service
5 Minute Tour

UniversityPlacementServices.com
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Administrative Application (Click here)
The Team (1 of 2)
Jose Alvarez, M.S.
Founder, President & CEO
Kip Irvine, M.S.
VP of Information Technology
Industrial Engineer w/ M.S. in Engineering Management.
12 years of experience working for companies in Latin
America and the U.S.
Faculty, School of Computing and Information Sciences,
Florida International University. Author of several
publications including Advanced Visual Basic.NET, C++
and Object Oriented Programming, Assembly Language
for Intel-Based Computers, among others.
The Team (2 of 2)
Bertha Arteta, Ph.D. (candidate)
Nancy Mantilla
VP of Operations
Operations Analyst
Currently working for Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines. MS
in Engineering Management and Ph.D. candidate in
Enterprise Engineering at Florida International University.
Bachelors Degree in Accounting and Business
Administration (Barranquilla - Colombia). Nine years of
management experience working for one of the leading
producers of engineered wood panels in South America
and the Andean Region (PIZANO S.A.).
Questions