Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) in chemical engineering: Preparing students for multicultural and international work environments

In today’s interconnected society, chemical engineering students must be prepared to work in international and multicultural environments. However, in our experience, current chemical engineering curricula often fail to develop these competencies. This study aims to demonstrate the benefits of Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) in chemical engineering education. For the first time, the COIL approach has been implemented in a simulation course. In addition to preparing students for international and multicultural work environments, this experience enhances their problem-solving and critical-thinking skills. Unlike other COIL applications, this project allows for multiple valid solutions, though not all are necessarily optimal. After two successful COIL projects involving chemical engineering students from the Universidad de Valladolid (Spain), the Universidad Nacional de Colombia, and the Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León (Mexico), students reported feeling more confident in their knowledge and abilities, better prepared for multicultural and international work environments, and more capable of performing well in their first job. In both project editions, survey responses to related questions averaged above 4 out of 5. Key takeaways from this work are that, to accomplish the objectives of a COIL, it is essential to define the project timeline in advance, ensure a similar level of knowledge among students, confirm software access, establish a unified communication platform, and conduct individual kickoff meetings for each team. Additionally, effective international collaboration is more likely when no more than 50 % of a team’s members come from the same institution.