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The subsidy scheme “VIS in het HO” aims to provide as many students as possible at Dutch higher education institutions with the opportunity to gain experience with an international orientation on their field of study and science through virtual international collaborative projects (VIS projects). In these projects, students in the Netherlands collaborate with students at institutions abroad to execute a project together. The subsidy scheme will fund a total of 700 projects between 2021 and 2024 to support the design and development of the project.
At the end of 2021, the Ministry has commissioned Dialogic to conduct evaluative research on the VIS projects (see here for the description of this research). This research involves tracking the VIS projects through analyses of subsidy applications and online surveys among project leaders (teachers and/or educational professionals) and participating students. An interim report is produced annually in October to provide an update on the research progress.
For the 2022 report, the first two cohorts (September 2021 and February 2022) have been examined. So far, a total of 104 VIS projects have been funded. Out of these, 22 projects had completed the design and development phase. The report describes the 104 projects based on their subsidy applications, and the 22 projects based on the online survey among project leaders.
In Round 1, collaborations are taking place with institutions from 31 different countries. This number increased to 43 different countries in Round 2. The figure below illustrates the distribution of the projects. For both rounds, the majority of collaboration partners are located in North America and Europe.
Based on this initial report, we have identified five focal points for the ministry as the subsidy provider and for the consortium that provides support and training for VIS projects (see visinhetho.nl).
- There are currently no subsidy applications for VIS projects from the province of Zeeland, and only one from the province of Drenthe.
- Most international collaboration partners are located in North America or Europe.
- No projects are without perceived obstacles. The main obstacles include differences in the duration of semesters across institutions and differences in ICT infrastructure.
- There is still limited focus on the digital accessibility of VIS projects (i.e. ensuring the project is inclusive for students with visual impairments or other support needs).
- Project leaders indicate limited experience in integrating virtual exchange into the curriculum and teaching.
Download the interim report for 2022 here. For more information, contact Max Kemman.