Harvard Online and Ibero-American Technology Foundation: New Opportunities for Ibero-American Learners

Published February 5, 2024

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“Harvard is helping global institutions deliver their vision to students. We are here to support partners like IberoTech at universities worldwide.”

In December, an event was held to formalize a content licensing agreement between Harvard University's Office of the Vice Provost for Advances in Learning (VPAL) and the Ibero-American Technology Foundation (IberoTech), a nonprofit that champions technological innovation across borders and facilitates collaboration between top U.S. universities and Ibero-American institutions, with a focus on bridging the technology skills gap and fostering economic growth.

At the event, Vice Provost for Advances in Learning, Bharat Anand, emphasized VPAL’s interest in enabling growth and innovation in educational institutions for learners around the world. “Harvard is helping global institutions deliver their vision to students; we are here to support partners like IberoTech at universities worldwide,” said Anand.

The agreement will introduce Harvard's technology courses, starting with a focus on data science, to university students throughout the Ibero-American region. Fernando Sepulveda, Chairman of IberoTech, remarked during the event that “Data science is an essential skill that everyone should have.” Under the new agreement, IberoTech will translate and provide Spanish-language administration for these Harvard Online courses. 

“Data science is an essential skill that everyone should have.”

As partner organizations of IberoTech, Santander Universidades will provide scholarships in 2024 for university students in Mexico, focusing on enhancing opportunities for employment; Universidad de Guadalajara will roll out technology training programs in collaboration with IberoTech and Santander Universidades; and Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla (BUAP) will launch a training program in Data Science for women in technology.

“Collaboration is not between organizations, it’s really between people.”

The agreement between the Ibero-American Technology Foundation and Harvard’s Office of the Vice Provost for Advances in Learning is an excellent example of the far-reaching potential of online learning, which can build bridges across institutions, even those that are geographically distant. In our efforts to reach learners worldwide, we encourage educational institutions like IberoTech to connect with Harvard Online to expand on their course offerings. This tenet of collaboration and partnership is part of how we aim to transform the future of online learning. During the event, Sepulveda stated, “What we have found in VPAL leadership was an openness, which created the foundation to build what we are beginning here today.”

Carlos Ivan Moreno, Provost of Digital Education of Universidad de Guadalajara, said, “Collaboration is not between organizations, it’s really between people.” 

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By providing access to cutting-edge learning materials and content from Harvard, IberoTech’s partner universities and organizations will be able to expand their offerings and curricula for their students and communities, ultimately providing more opportunities to more people in Ibero-American regions. 

Learn more about IberoTech or explore our Professional Certificate in Data Science.