The University Buddy Program is offered by the Academic Mobility team, under the Office for International Cooperation, with the support from the Center for Psychosocial Attention (CAP), which is accountable to the Office of the Vice President for Extension and Community Affairs (Proex). It is intended to bring PUCRS and international students together upon arrival at the university. This is a very useful strategy for the adaptation of international students into the local culture and society and academic integration.
University Buddies will provide support to international students in every stage of the process, including the application as well as orientation sessions about the city and the university. The buddies are encouraged to show international students around Porto Alegre, discuss cultural issues and provide students support during their stay in the city, by instructing them on how to get by in town.
By joining the program, PUCRS students will come into contact with different cultures and practice an additional language. Besides, it advances interculturality and the internationalization of the Campus.
The program is intended to provide a warm welcome and assistance to mobility students during their entire stay at PUCRS, with the purpose of making their lives more comfortable and help them overcome the barriers they encounter. In a general sense, the Buddy Program is a voluntary program intended to foster the sociocultural adaptation and academic integration of students.
Both undergraduate and graduate students of PUCRS are eligible for the program. PUCRS and international students will exchange ideas, experiences and, most importantly, learn about each other’s culture and language.
Prospective buddies must be willing to do voluntary work. Language proficiency is not a requirement but it is valued in the selection.
