Design a COIL

Category of recipe: Internationalisation through pedagogical activities and development of international skills.

Objective: Inclusion and reaching students who cannot travel on a long mobility: by enabling new and more flexible mobility formats, COILs aim at reaching all types of students from all backgrounds, study fields and cycles. COILs allow teachers to develop international skills and networks.

Short description: COIL is a virtual exchange in reference to online teaching centred on interuniversity collaboration, both between teachers and between students, and enriched by the approaches and experiences of each, including an intercultural dimension. Different teaching models are possible. Courses can be entirely online or, more commonly, they can be organised face-to-face at each of the partner institutions, with an online dimension to the teaching. The duration of the COILs varies from a block module to a full-semester course.

Academic recognition: ECTS.

Level of difficulty: Medium

Calendar and time needed:
Ideally, start building your COIL 1 year before the training delivery.

• At HES-SO, a call is launched every year in order to support the development of COILs. A grant is given to support the organisation of a COIL.

Cost summary: €

Language and level required: Language level required to follow the course, depending on the pedagogical contents.

Roles and Responsibilities:
Co-Partner University (at least 2): develop the pedagogical aspects of the COIL.
Professor(s) who teach in the COIL.
Students who participate in the COIL.
International Relations Office: to help for the administrative tasks and to allow grants if available.
IT support: to help students with technical aspects before and during the COIL.
Advisor in internationalisation (if this resource is available in your university): can give you more information on how to start designing a COIL.

Ingredients:
The COIL is identified in the university's basic education programme (Bachelor's/Master's) or in the framework study plan.
ECTS credits are allocated based on an assessment of performance.
The COIL is a synchronous or partially asynchronous online course/module/project.
The COIL is organised in partnership with at least one foreign higher education institution.

Steps:
Step 1: Identify the need of a COIL / Develop the concept of your COIL
Step 2: Look for a partner university and a tandem of teachers who are willing to work together
Step 3: Ensure that the COIL is part of the learning content of the study plan.
Step 4: Define the learning objectives with the partner university.
Step 5: Develop the teaching material in collaboration with the partner university
Step 6: Set the teaching dates.
Step 7: Set the evaluation method(s).
Step 8: Apply for a possible grant at your university (Erasmus or else).
Step 9: Teach the COIL
Step 10: Evaluate the COIL

Budget description: Grant available at the HES-SO, for example CHF 4400.-/COIL. Contact your International Relations Office for more information.

Non-mandatory items

• Successful examples of this recipe (already implemented and proven to be easily replicable)
• COIL at the university of applied sciences in social work, Fribourg: https://www.hets-fr.ch/fr/evenements/people-on-the-move-2024/
• COIL between Gustave Eiffel University and Dallas University: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HVnHVkR71Zg