The multiple and varied challenges presented by the 21st century drive academia to qualitatively and quantitatively improve the formation of advanced human capital, a key element for specific societies and the world as a whole to advance towards a better quality of life and development. full.
The scope of Artificial Intelligence, the surprising emergence of Covid-19 or the transcendent climate change, for example, clearly show us that having highly trained professionals constitutes an element of immense value for the analysis and responses to challenges as great as those mentioned. , among many others.
That is why, for several years now, higher education institutions have been creating a wide and diverse offer of postgraduate programs (Doctorates, Academic Masters and Professional Masters), as a way to satisfy a growing demand for cutting-edge training and excellence. across the entire spectrum of problems that impact the planet on a daily basis.
These realities have been transformed into emergencies, which entails not only the generation of postgraduate programs on a specific topic, but also requires considering a wide scope of knowledge in their design, to move from the disciplinary to the inter- and multidisciplinary. .
According to the Higher Education Information Service (SIES) – in its 2023 Higher Education Enrollment Report published last June – of the total postgraduate programs taught in Chile, 86.4% are Master’s degrees and 13 .6% are PhDs. In this framework, between 2019 and 2023, enrollment in Doctoral Degrees increased by 17.5% and that of Master’s Degrees by 6.8%.
These figures show the relevance that the formation of advanced human capital has been gaining in our country and how important it is for universities to act proactively in the face of these requirements.
It is known that undertaking the challenge of a postgraduate degree improves professional credentials, with the consequent improvement in the work aspect and quality of life of those who graduate from these programs. But beyond that, the collective significance of this decision is that, once the degree is obtained, these professionals can contribute with proposals for solutions in the areas that societies are demanding today.
In this context, a very important issue on which we are paying attention is the low level of job insertion of researchers beyond the academy, to advance steadily in actions and strategies that increase the integration of this type of specialists in the productive sector.
Our country is one of the nations of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) with the lowest number of female researchers, reaching more than one for every thousand workers, in circumstances that the organization’s average is 9. For Finland, with a population of 5.5 million, the figure is 16.
This situation makes it key that we progress towards structural changes that encourage greater state and university funding for research, development and innovation (R&D&I) and models that enhance private sector investment, with the aim of having front-line professionals. , with analytical skills, for innovative solutions and to tend towards sustainable ecosystems.
Likewise, the various actions developed to have more and better internationalization are a contribution to the formation of advanced human capital and, in our particular case, contribute to consolidating the Chilean offer of Doctorates and Masters as a leader in Latin America, attracting regional talents, through robust postgraduate courses, updated in their respective lines of research, and with competitive economic incentives and benefits.
For these reasons, the formation of the various postgraduate programs in our country, in addition to the well-known academic excellence, must consider the relevance and relevance of their lines of research, in order to respond to the challenges of the 21st century. Doctorates and Master’s degrees designed along these lines constitute a key contribution to stimulate and strengthen the national development of Chile and Latin America.
