Priority Access System for Educational Equity at the University of Chile

Abstract

As expected due to its mission and the challenges of our society, the University of Chile is undertaking actions to ensure equal opportunity of access, retention and graduation for all students who aspire to be part of the University and who come from different social realities. For this reason, an equity and inclusion policy is being developed that is intended to contribute to the generation of a quality educational environment across the University, to encourage integration, and to foster capacities to live together and be effective in contexts of high diversity. This purpose calls for the design of specific strategies to ensure equal opportunities for all students, while promoting strong collaboration between the fields of academic and student affairs to favor an environment that enhances the development of individuals. This article describes the foundations, characteristics and implementation process of the “Priority Access System for Educational Equity”. This special admission program is aimed at public school graduates from underprivileged backgrounds and is an innovation at the nation level.

Keywords

• access to higher education
• admissions
• equity in higher education
• diversity