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Mapping educational exchanges between Chile and the United States during the Cold War: a statistical approach

Cartographie des échanges éducatifs entre le Chili et les États-Unis pendant la Guerre froide : une approche statistique
Manuel Suzarte

Résumés

Cet article analyse les échanges éducatifs entre le Chili et les États-Unis durant les premières décennies de la Guerre froide, une période marquée par l’expansion des opportunités éducatives entre les deux pays. En partant des difficultés rencontrées par l’Ambassade étatsunienne à Santiago pour coordonner et documenter les diverses activités éducatives existantes, ce travail constitue une première tentative de cartographier les acteurs et programmes impliqués au cours de cette période. S’appuyant sur des sources primaires d’institutions clés telles que le Département d’État et l’Institut d’éducation internationale, l’article examine les interactions entre les acteurs chiliens et étatsuniens, propose une périodisation de ces échanges et, à travers l’analyse de données statistiques, offre une vue d’ensemble de la circulation des étudiants chiliens vers les États-Unis.

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Introduction

1As part of its obligations, each year the US Embassy in Santiago prepared an annual report on the activities of its Educational Exchange Program (EEP). These reports, initially simple in format, evolved during the 1960s into complex documents combining operational updates with political analysis, particularly in relation to Chile's reforms under the Alliance for Progress (ALPRO). Nevertheless, as this article will show, the Embassy's efforts to coordinate educational exchanges reveal the fragmented and decentralized nature of cultural diplomacy during the Cold War. Following the recent historiographical shift that reconceptualizes the Cold War as a global conflict of competing visions of modernity [Westad, 2006], we approach educational exchanges as cultural practices through which ideological models were materialized, negotiated and contested in contexts such as Chile.

2Despite the growing length of the reports, their capacity to reflect the full scope of existing academic exchanges remained limited. From the late 1940s onwards, systemic shortages of funding and personnel hindered the ability to account comprehensively for educational flows; Chile was no exception. Additionally, the proliferation of initiatives by various US agencies, private foundations and Chilean institutions generated overlapping efforts that further complicated coordination. Rather than understanding these exchanges as unidirectional instruments of US foreign policy, this article highlights the active role of Chilean actors—universities, students and administrators—in negotiating, adapting, and sometimes redirecting US-sponsored educational initiatives. This approach aligns with recent scholarship that emphasizes Latin America's agency in reconfiguring Cold War dynamics beyond the traditional center-periphery model [Harmer, 2014; Iber, 2015; Marchesi, 2017].

3This article reconstructs the fragmented landscape of educational exchange activities between Chile and the United States from 1954 to 1974, a period of significant transformation in the bilateral relationship. The case study begins in the 1950s, a decade largely marked by bilateral tensions centered more on economic disputes—particularly over copper—than on ideological concerns [Mares & Rojas, 2013, p. 7–8]. These relations were reshaped after the 1959 Cuban Revolution, which introduced a new ideological lens into US–Latin American relations and heightened Washington's concerns over political instability and anti-Americanism. In Chile, the 1960s presented what Sater describes as a “dilemma” for the United States: while its support for reforms such as agrarian redistribution alienated conservative elites, the left denounced US involvement as imperialist interference [Sater, 1990, p. 138].

4One key dimension of this evolving context was the shifting US concern regarding Latin American youth, particularly university students. Although fears of Marxist influence in Latin American universities had existed since the early 1950s, US cultural diplomacy initially prioritized professors, graduate students, and administrators, leaving undergraduates in a secondary role. This changed dramatically after Vice President Richard Nixon’s tumultuous 1958 tour of Latin America, especially the incidents in Caracas, which exposed widespread youth hostility toward the United States [Zahniser & Weis, 1989]. From that point forward, university students became central to US public diplomacy—not only as future professionals but as politically significant actors. This concern materialized globally under President Kennedy through programs like the Peace Corps and Emphasis on Youth, but also had direct repercussions in Chile, where the US Embassy developed targeted initiatives for student leaders beginning in the late 1950s and expanding throughout the 1960s [Suzarte, 2023].

5In this complex and shifting context, educational exchanges emerged as a field characterized by a paradoxical stability. Despite the political tensions, ideological realignments, and evolving diplomatic strategies that defined US-Chile relations, the promotion of academic and cultural mobility remained a consistent priority. This continuity suggests that educational exchanges operated within a broader framework of internationalist practices, one that transcended immediate political conjunctures and reflected longer-term investments in cross-border engagement and cultural diplomacy.

6While US-Chilean relations were marked by tensions over copper production, ideological shifts following the Cuban Revolution, and diverging political projects, the educational exchanges demonstrated a remarkable degree of continuity. This trend invites us to interpret educational exchanges as part of broader internationalist practices that transcended immediate political conjunctures. In this sense, educational exchanges can be seen as expressions of "cultural internationalism", understood not simply as the promotion of mutual understanding, but as the construction of sustained cross-border linkages, collaborative networks, and shared intellectual spaces across national boundaries [Iriye, 1997]. One of the major transformations of the postwar period was the dramatic increase in international student mobility, which exploded after World War II not only due to technological advances in transportation but, more critically, through the implementation of a wide range of scholarship programs. In this context, the Cold War constituted a true golden age for scholarships and mobility: they acquired political significance, became instruments of development and cultural diplomacy, and benefited from substantial state investments [Tournès & Scott-Smith, 2017].

7During this period, the Chilean university system was composed of two public universities: the University of Chile (UCH) and the State Technical University (UTE); three private Catholic universities: the Catholic University of Santiago (UC), the Catholic University of Valparaíso (UCV) and the Catholic University of the North (UN); and three private universities located outside the capital of the country: the Federico Santa María Technical University (UTFSM), the University of Concepción (UdeC) and the Austral University (UACh) [Brunner, 1984, p.3]. Despite this difference in legal status, a large portion of their financing came from the State, representing more than 50% of the total budget of the private institutions [Garretón & Bengoa, 1987, p.40]. These institutions logically became major actors in the educational exchanges between both countries. A first objective for our article is to establish a panorama of the different actors involved in these exchanges and in what capacity they were involved in these activities. Secondly we will establish a chronology of these exchanges flows, the objectives they promoted and, finally, we will offer an estimation of the overall number of people who actually participated in these initiatives.

8Instead of simply engaging broadly with recent scholarship, this article contributes to current debates on the Cold War in Latin America by foregrounding educational exchanges as dynamic spaces of transnational circulation, negotiation and mutual appropriation [Brands, 2010; Field et al., 2020]. It expands existing analyses of cultural diplomacy [Calandra & Franco, 2012; Rodríguez Jiménez et al., 2024] by highlighting how scholarship programs and student mobility generated cross-border interactions that often exceeded the intentions of state actors. Furthermore, by focusing on university students and their active participation in these exchanges, this study parallels recent historiography on Cold War youth internationalism [Laqua, 2021; Laqua & Papadogiannis, 2023], which emphasizes young people as key agents in shaping transnational networks and political identities.

9At the same time, this article engages with research on educational internationalism and academic mobility [Tournès & Scott-Smith, 2017; Matasci & Ruppen Coutaz, 2024], situating educational exchanges within broader processes of cultural diplomacy and cross-national cooperation. It also draws on recent work that reconsiders the longue durée of inter-American academic relations, challenging summary periodizations of the Cold War. In particular, Dumont and Suzarte [2024] have shown how educational exchanges with Latin America—through institutions like the Institute of International Education—evolved from the interwar period into the Cold War, demonstrating both ruptures and continuities in internationalist practices and highlighting the place of Latin America within these frameworks.

10Regarding the Chilean case specifically, this article builds on existing studies of the cultural dimension of the Cold War [Jannello, 2012; Alburquerque, 2017; Nállim, 2019], which have primarily focused on intellectual initiatives, and expands the analysis to consider university students as underexplored but crucial actors. It also contributes to the historiography of US–Chile university relations, traditionally centered on emblematic cases such as the Chicago Boys [Valdés, 2008; Gárate, 2012], the University of Chile–University of California program [Quesada, 2015], or projects led by philanthropic foundations [Morales, 2018].

11Through a broader and more complex mapping of educational exchanges, this article highlights the multiplicity of actors, initiatives, and practices that reconfigured hemispheric relations beyond rigid state-centered frameworks. Drawing on primary sources such as the archives of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (Department of State), the records of the US Embassy in Santiago, and the annual reports of philanthropic foundations and the Institute of International Education (IIE), we integrate quantitative data that challenges assumptions about a direct correlation between political relations and educational mobility. The article is organized into three sections: the first examines the expansion of educational exchange opportunities and the actors involved, with a focus on philanthropic collaboration with Chilean universities; the second analyzes the Embassy’s role in coordinating these exchanges within the broader framework of cultural diplomacy; and the third offers a preliminary quantification of Chilean–US educational exchanges, highlighting the main trends and dynamics.

Competition: the main trends of a growth period for educational exchanges

12The educational exchange activities between Chile and the US during the 1950s and the 1960s were characterized by the wide-ranging array of actors involved. Despite this variety it is possible to identify a consistent trend of growth characterized by a diversification of exchange opportunities and programs. Even with the declarations of intent, of reciprocity and bidirectionality, the reality shows that during much of the 1950s the offer of exchange opportunities for Chilean and US nationals was uneven. This imbalance was reflected in the increase in the opportunities available for Chilean nationals to pursue an exchange activity exclusively in the US, which contrasted with the overall increase in exchange possibilities for US nationals with the whole world and less exclusively with Chile.

  • 1 The Fulbright program with Chile had successive amendments signed in 1958, 1961 and 1962.Internatio (...)
  • 2 Institute of International Education, Institute of International Education 41st Annual Report: 1961(...)

13In terms of the actors involved, a first major avenue consisted of exchanges proposed by the US government, through its EEP, a program that began operation in 1939, first conducted under the Convention for the Promotion of Inter-American Cultural Relations signed in Buenos Aires in 1936. In the following years, as US cultural diplomacy started to develop and complexify, the Chilean program benefited from the Smith-Mundt Act and later the Fulbright Act, signed on March 31st 19551. Chile was the first country in the region to sign a Fulbright agreement with the US, a major milestone that translated into a stable source of financing for academic exchanges and caused the numbers of grantees to multiply immediately. As an example of this, if we compare the number of US grantees between 1948 until 1956 (the start of the Fulbright program with Chile), only 10 US grantees were involved, whereas in the first two years after the Fulbright agreement was signed (1956-1957), 15 US grantees traveled to Chile. The same applied for Chilean grantees going to the US: the numbers from 1950 to 1954 remained steady at 13 to 16 students, and immediately augmented to 51 students in the first year of activity of the new program (versus 29 the previous year), and up to 70 students in 1961-1962. In the early 1960s, several new private grants were folded into the EEP, thus enlarging the possibilities for Chilean students and university faculty to pursue educational activities in the US2. A second avenue consisted of the institutional relations established between Chilean and US universities, under projects funded by US agencies. As seen in Table 1, these contract were established mainly with the International Cooperation Agency (ICA) during the 1950s and its successor the Agency for International Development (AID) in the 1960s.

Table 1 - ICA and AID contracts with Chilean universities since 1956

Chilean University US University Funding Project Description
UC University of Chicago ICA Catholic University of Chile Economics Contract. The project started in 1956 when US economists chosen by the University of Chicago were dispatched to Chile to mount an instructional program from which the most promising students could be selected for postgraduate studies [Barber, 1995].
UCH Cornell University ICA Project in Labor Affairs. Started in 1959. Cornell University assisted the UCH in planning and setting up an institute of labor relations and training its staffa.
UCH Leland Stanford Junior College ICA Project in Mining and Minerals. Started in 1959 and provided assistance to the UCH in a mining and minerals program. This was one phase of a program to develop Chile’s own geological investigations and train Chilean personnelb.
UTFSM University of Pittsburgh ICA Program for the development of a Graduate School of Engineering. Started in 1959 with the objective of improving the undergraduate curriculum in several branches of Engineering, the development of an academic research program, the development of a faculty capable of granting advanced degrees, the development of a school for the training of engineering professors who could be employed by other universities in addition. The project included the possibility for Chilean students to conduct studies in the USc.
UCH University of Wisconsin AID Project for research in Agrarian Economics. Started in 1963. Through the Land Tenure Center several researchers in different fields were brought together to work on specific projects in Chile cooperating with the Chilean organization personnel and students. The project involved one to two year graduate study in Chile by about 25 University of Wisconsin Social Sciences or Law students. The same number of graduate students from the UCH studied for one to three years in the U.Sd.
a. International Cooperation Administration, Fact Sheet: Mutual Security in Action (Department of State Publication, 1960), 4.
b. International Cooperation Administration, “ICA-Financed University Contracts,” 1961, 8, USAID Development Experience Clearinghouse; International Cooperation Administration, Department of State Publication, 6.
c. G.R. Fitterer, “The Development of a Graduate School of Engineering in Chile through AID,” 1964, Archivo Histórico Universidad Santa María; Pan American Union, Inter-American University Cooperation: A Survey of Programs of Cooperation between Institutions of Higher Education in the United States and Latin America. (Washington, D.C: Pan American Union, General Secretariat, Organization of American States, 1968), 86–87.
d. Pan American Union, Inter-American University Cooperation: A Survey of Programs of Cooperation between Institutions of Higher Education in the United States and Latin America., 136–37.
  • 3 Rockefeller Foundation, The Rockefeller Foundation, Annual Report, 1955 (New York: Rockefeller Foun (...)
  • 4 W.K. Kellogg Foundation, W.K. Kellogg Foundation Annual Report 1953-1954 (Michigan, EE.UU, 1955), 1 (...)
  • 5 W.K. Kellogg Foundation, W.K. Kellogg Foundation Annual Report 1955-1956 (Michigan, EE.UU, 1957), 2 (...)
  • 6 Rockefeller Foundation, The Rockefeller Foundation, Annual Report, 1955, 19–20, 24, 101.

14A second category of actors playing a major role were the US philanthropic foundations. During our period of study there were three major foundations present in Chile, namely the Rockefeller Foundation (RF), the W.K. Kellogg Foundation (WKKF) and the Ford Foundation (FF), the latter being the largest of them in terms of the scope of its programs and the overall capital available [Quesada, 2015, p.55]. All of them financed a great variety of projects with most of the Chilean universities, as well as with other actors, including the Chilean government. The deployment of the three foundations in Chile followed an irregular timeline. The first to establish a working relationship with Chilean universities was the WKKF, which arranged a small program for Chilean physicians in the early 1940s, and the RF, which supplied funding for the UCH Faculty of Medicine in 19423. The WKKF continued to play a central role, and became the first foundation to establish projects in Chile during the 1950s: in 1953 it started programs in dentistry and hospital administration with the UCH and the UdeC, which received equipment and teaching aids in medicine4, and in 1955 with the UC5. In 1955, the RF started projects in Chile, with the UC and the UCH in Medical Education and Agriculture6. These relationships constituted the bulk of the work of the US philanthropic foundation during the rest of the decade. As we can see from Table 2, a major milestone was reached in 1960 with the arrival of the FF after a major international expansion process in the 1950s, which saw it expand through East Europe, Asia and the Middle East and then, in 1959, to Latin America [Quesada, 2015, pp. 55-57]. In terms of portfolio, this foundation became the only one to develop a working relationship with the majority of Chilean universities.

Table 2 - US Philanthropic Foundation agreements with Chilean universities during the 1960s

Chilean Universities US Universities Funding Project Description
UC University of California (UCal) Berkeley FF Project in Engineering. The assistance program began in 1963 with the objectives of introducing major revisions to curricula in Engineering and the Sciences and reorganizing the academic structure of these departments, together with planning and designing new laboratories. The program included educational exchange opportunities for US faculty and studentsa.
UC Massachusetts Institute of Technology FF, Carnegie Corporation, AID, Dow Chemical Company, Creole Foundation, Shell Chemical Company Inter-American Program in Civil Engineering. The program began in 1962 with the objective of contributing to the solution of civil engineering problems in Latin America. The project involved graduate-level exchanges allowing eight to ten Latin American students to study at MIT for a duration of one to three yearsb.

UC

UCH

Tufts University

FF

FR

Latin American Teaching Fellowship. The program began in 1965, with the aim of helping Latin American universities improve their academic standards by providing highly qualified US advanced level graduates for field teaching positions, thus offering US graduate students an opportunity to teach and carry out research in Latin America.
UCH Rice University FF The Chilean Community Facilities Program. Began in 1965 and provided for a class-in-residence for selected Rice students, involvement in design and community planning in Chile, and also research conducted on the Rice campusc.
Harvard University FF Housing and Community Facilities Project. Began in 1964 and was designed to provide fellowships and study tours for Chileans in the field of planning and development of housing and community facilitiesd.
UCal Berkeley FF Program for the Development of a System of University Centers. The project started in 1961 with the objective of assisting the UCH in the development of a system of junior colleges. UCal Berkeley offered the services of general consultants by identifying the need for special consultants in Chile, and facilitated the travel of Chilean teachers to the US and other countries for graduate worke.
UCal Davis

FF

AID

Project for the development of several programs. The disciplines included were agriculture, physics, biology, social sciences and humanities. The project included faculty exchanges in various fieldsf.
UCal Los Angeles FF Cooperative Program. Began in 1965 with the objective of developing efficient methodologies to provide support to each other in different areasg.
UdeC University of Minnesota FF Program of academic reform. Began in 1964 with the objective of establishing institutes in the Social Sciences and Humanities for instruction of undergraduates in all branches of the university. The program included fellowships abroad for young Chilean faculty members, exchange between the two universities, and library improvementh.
UTFSM William Hood Dunwoody Industrial Institute FF Technical Education program. Began in 1964 in order to promote the expansion of Technical Education and assist the UTFSM in alleviating the shortage of middle-level techniciansi.
a. Council on Educational Cooperation with Latin America, “Survey of US-Chilean Educational Relations at the University Level,” September 1967, 10, RG 306, Container 5, Folder EDU 6, National Archives and Records Administration College Park.
b. Pan American Union, Inter-American University Cooperation: A Survey of Programs of Cooperation between Institutions of Higher Education in the United States and Latin America., 58–60.
c. Rice University. Rice University General Announcements, Vol. 1966/67, 1966, 102, https://scholarship.rice.edu/​handle/​1911/​36004.
d. Institute of International Education, Institute of International Education 44st Annual Report: 1964 (New York, 1965), 16.
e. Pan American Union, Inter-American University Cooperation: A Survey of Programs of Cooperation between Institutions of Higher Education in the United States and Latin America., 10.
f. Council on Educational Cooperation with Latin America, “Survey of US-Chilean Educational Relations at the University Level,” 10.
g. Pan American Union, Inter-American University Cooperation: A Survey of Programs of Cooperation between Institutions of Higher Education in the United States and Latin America., 13.
h. Ford Foundation, Ford Foundation Annual Report 1964 (New York: Ford Foundation, 1965), 47–48.
i. Ford Foundation, 48; Ford Foundation, Ford Foundation Annual Report 1967 (New York: Ford Foundation, 1968), 54.

Coordination: the centralizing and the coordinating role of the US Embassy in Santiago

  • 7 Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, “Some US Government Agencies Engaged in International A (...)

15Despite human and financial limitations, the US Embassy focused its exchange activities on a diverse range of programs. These were not limited to academic and cultural initiatives, but also included political considerations. Academia and politics, despite efforts to separate them, played a major role in its work, which therefore required a finely-tuned approach. Much of the framework and the scope that guided the EEP came from the legislation that governed its functioning and funding: the overall tendency from the early 1940s onwards was to expand educational activities through the passing of different laws that were generally supposed to complement existing legislation so as to enlarge the scope of exchange activities. After the passing of the Fulbright-Hays Act in 1961, previous legislative frameworks were consolidated into a unified system comprising four main grant categories: (1) academic exchanges, (2) international visitors, (3) institutional, organizational, cultural, and sports presentations, and (4) the Fulbright Program. While the first three were brought under a common administrative structure, the Fulbright Program retained its own legal status and operational procedures. The following table presents only the first three categories7.

Table 3 - Programs of the State Department Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs circa 1968

Grant programsa
Grant categories Sub-categories Details
Academic Exchange Students Grants for US citizens to undertake graduate studies in foreign universities and for foreign nationals to engage in similar studies in US universities (usually 1 year).
Lecturers and Research Scholars Grants for scholars and other qualified personnel from the US to engage in advanced research in foreign countries and lecture in foreign universities or special institutes.
Grants for foreign scholars to do research and lecture in universities (usually for about 1 year) in the US.
Teachers Grants for US citizens to teach in foreign elementary, secondary schools and junior colleges and for foreign teachers to teach in the US schools.
International Visitorsb Observation and Consultation Grants for nationals and community leaders in government, politics, labor, agriculture, journalism, education, social welfare science, medicine, fine arts, etc., to visit the US to view the US scene and meet experts in their respective fields (about 2 months). Privately sponsored visits by prominent individuals and groups are also facilitated.
Specialized Programs Grants for foreign nationals in various specialties to obtain special training and practical experience in the US and for US nationals of exceptional competence in any of several fields to spend a few weeks to a year in one or more foreign countries.
Educational Travel US and foreign nationals – members of a student group, young professionals, and youth workers – are invited to travel, individually and in groups, for a specific purpose (including attendance at student leader seminar)
Cultural and Sports Presentations A “one-way” program. Groups and individuals complete multi-country tours. An important part of each tour, in all countries, is establishing rapport with local people and artists. In tours for sports groups, emphasis is placed on training through workshops, demonstrations, and work with local college and school coaches and young people.
a. Department of State, “Data of Some Agencies Involved to Varying Degrees in International Educational and Cultural Affairs,” December 6, 1968, 5–8, Box 19, The Lyndon Baines Johnson Library.
b. Department of State, “Educational and Cultural Exchange: FY1969 Country Allocations,” September 13, 1968, 5, MC 468, Box 24, Folder 38, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs Historical Collection (CU) Records, ca. 1938-1984.
  • 8 This service, abbreviated as USIS, was the official representative of USIA abroad and included the (...)

16When the time came to implement the EEP, the program was dependent on two different government bodies: the State Department, responsible for overall foreign policy, and the United States Information Agency (USIA), which was in charge of planning these activities abroad. The first level of planning included a statement of Global Objectives for worldwide activities followed by a second level of Area Objectives. Chile was included within the purview of the Bureau of Inter-American Affairs. Finally, the third level was the development of specific Country Objectives which served as the operating plan for the year. Using it as a blueprint, the Embassy’s Information Service8, which was responsible for information and educational activities, proceeded to create a sectoral program mobilizing all the assets at the EEP’s disposal to accomplish the country objectives. In order to achieve this local groups were identified (e.g. journalists, politicians, or university students), ranked in order of priority in order to assign the various available grants. In this it is important to understand the grants as being resources to meet the sectorial and Country Objectives.

17As an example of how these different elements intertwined (legislative authorities, Country Objectives, priority groups and the different categories of the EEP), we will analyze the Embassy’s planning for the FY1969. The document was sent to the State Department on August 5th 1967, to be implemented by mid-1968, leaving a time-gap between the planning and the actual implementation of the program. The first step in the document is the presentation of its own objectives in keeping with the Country Objectives. The translation of them for the EEP were the following:

Table 4 - US Embassy Educational Objectives for FY1969

Objective Number Description
I To develop understanding of Chile’s role, responsibilities and achievements within the ALPRO; support individuals and institutions seeking to promote national reform, stabilization and development.
II To strengthen relations and increase understanding between Chile and the US through explanation of US policies in Chilean terms and through exposure of Chileans to aspects of US life and culture which facilitate understanding of our policies.
  • 9 Robert Dean, “Educational and Cultural Exchange: Educational Exchange Program Proposal for FY1969,” (...)
  • 10 Dean, 2.

18Once the two objectives were presented, the report continued to the second step, the introduction of the priority groups and disciplines that were deemed necessary to achieve these objectives. For the first priority group, the Embassy chose potential young leaders (usually under 35 years old) and for the second group, journalists9. Other priorities stated by the diplomatic post were the specific requests, like the inclusion of a US drama specialist to work with the Theater Institute of the UCH, a US Historian, a US specialist in choral music, and a basketball coach. A final request was made in the realm of education as a complement to other activities being developed under the ALPRO program10.

19As a third step, the report presented their proposal in the form of a ranking of priorities, using the following criteria: a priority number, to which Country Objective the request was relevant, the type of grant was being requested, and the number of grantees required. For example, considering only the International Visitors Program, 34 requests out of the total number identified “Objective I” as their top priority, with projects involving in-depth involvement of the “youth” category in the realms of politics, culture, and the university world. Of course, this document stands as an ideal case, since budget variations made it difficult to obtain all the funding requested. In this particular case, the Embassy reported that the real allocation of grants for the International Visitor Program in FY1969 was cut back from 18 to 8.

The Embassy’s coordinating efforts

  • 11 XVII Escuela Internacional de Verano Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María, “Ciclo II - Chile y (...)
  • 12 Enrique Dellacasa Porcile, Breve Historia de La Comisión Nacional de Investigación Científica y Tec (...)
  • 13 James Echols, “Educational and Cultural Exchange: Annual Report on the Educational Exchange Program (...)

20One of the main topics of discussion during the mid-sixties in the realm of international educational exchange was their rationale and the lack of planning of the different activities that were being developed. This discussion also took place in Chile11 and it was one of the reasons why as of 1967 the Chilean government decided to create two agencies in order to develop national planning of scientific and educational activities12. The US Embassy was no exception to this problem. In 1966, it was reported that due to the competition taking place in Chile between the different actors, a fully coordinated effort was “exceedingly difficult” in terms of time and personnel. This situation created a risk of overlapping between the different programs and it was seen as “a matter of some concern”13. But despite the difficulties encountered, the EEP and its different cogs did manage to coordinate some of their efforts, not only proving the feasibility of this task, but also establishing a degree of common ground.

  • 14 Commission for Educational Interchange between the United States of America and Chile, “Annual Prog (...)
  • 15 Eugene S. Staples, “Annual Assessment Report,” November 12, 1956, 6, RG306, Container 1, Folder Chi (...)

21An example of the different parts of the exchange programs working in a coordinated fashion can be found in 1956 when different projects for the study of Economics in Chile were being developed. For the Fulbright program, it was a priority to establish the study of this discipline among its first projects. In parallel, the ICA backed a program between the UC and the Chicago School of Economics with great success, which was seen by its promoters as a virtuous example of what could be done. In addition to this, the UCH, the UCV and the UdeC were also developing the teaching of this discipline. Considering these concurrent efforts, the risk of overlapping was evident. Due to this the Fulbright Commission decided to adapt its project, not only to avoid duplicating ICA’s program, but also to complement it by supplying an extra US professor to the UC, in order to reinforce the general efforts being made in Chile in the realm of economics14. Another complementary effort came from the USIS section, which offered ICA the local translation and publication of five hundred textbooks on economics and related social sciences for subsidized sale to Chilean university students15.

  • 16 Minutes of meeting nº51 Fulbright Commission, p.1
  • 17 Minutes of meeting nº106 Fulbright Commission, p.1

22A second case can be found again inside the Fulbright program specifically in the composition of its Binational Commission. During much of the 1960s and early 1970’s, representatives of the two major philanthropic foundations sat on the Fulbright Commission, as external representatives of the US, specifically a representative for the RF (from 1963 until 196716) and the FF (from 1969 until after the 1973 coup17). Owing to the role that the Commission played in several areas, from the development of Annual Programs to the handling of scholarship renewals, and its very nature as a meeting point between Chilean universities, government authorities, and US representatives, it is clear that some degree of coordination and cooperation among these actors actually took place.

Chilean student leaders: a matter of strategic interest for the US embassy

23Considering the variety of actors and programs being developed in Chile and the fact that the US Embassy was constrained by a lack of personnel and overall resources to undertake large-scale operations, they choose to target priority groups in order to achieve the greatest possible impact on Chilean society. During the 1960s, these key actors were mainly university students, especially those in leadership positions (student body presidents or other promising candidates), a choice which prompted the Embassy to develop specialized programs for them.

24Between 1959 and 1969, the US Embassy managed four different programs financed by the State Department allowing groups both of Chilean and US students to travel to each other’s country, ranging from 1 to 10 months. The programs can be seen in the following table:

Table 5 - Special student programs managed by the US Embassy

Program Chilean University US University Period in operation Reciprocal
Latin American Student Leader Seminar UCH UT 1959-1967 Yes
Junior Year Abroad UC Fordham University 1959-1964 No
"U.S. students visiting Chile"
Student Exchange for Law Students UdeC New York University 1963-1968 Yes
Student Exchange for Law Students UCH UCLA 1966-1969 Yes

25Though different, these programs shared some basic elements in terms of their itineraries and activities: first, with a “tourism section” where the participants got a first-hand impression of the US (usually with trips in the East and West coast areas), getting to know cities like New York, Washington D.C., and San Francisco; second, a “campus life section”, where participants attended seminars, met with different local authorities, from students to elected officials. This way they were also able to experience US local hospitality at first hand.

  • 18 Robert Dean, “Educational and Cultural Exchange: Evaluation of Chilean University Student Leaders T (...)

26The focus on the student/youth categories also took another form during the 1960s, through the awarding of individual grants to young leaders, this time with the organization of trips more closely tailored to the interests of the grantees. An example of this was the creation of the Student Leader Travel Project that ran between 1966 and 1968 where 12 student leaders and student body presidents divided into four groups traveled to the US. Despite being different trips, the groups shared a common travel itinerary, with stops in New York, Washington D.C., Arkansas, Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Austin. Nevertheless, the different activities (like university visits or meetings with local authorities) followed the interests of each grantee, an itinerary crafted in tandem with the Embassy, since it was important for the post to include activities that had some relation with the projects being developed with the Chilean students (for example, student cooperatives, literacy campaigns, or Peace Corps activities)18. In conclusion, by developing specific programs and grant awarding with a focus on young political leadership, the EEP, stood out among this large net of actors involved in educational exchange activities, who generally avoided politics as an overt selection criterion.

Perspective: analyzing the number of participants in US - Chile educational exchanges

27Having established the main Chilean and US actors involved in student exchanges and the different programs and opportunities available to students from both countries, we will now contextualize this information within the broader framework of academic flows. As we will see, despite the central role played by these actors, not all exchanges went through them. At the methodological level, any attempt to present the quantitative dimensions of these exchanges runs the risk of coming up against the same problem identified earlier by the Embassy, namely the available sources, which can be sparse and incomplete. In order to solve this problem and be able to present an overarching picture, we will analyze the statistical data provided by the IIE.

  • 19 Institute of International Education, Open Doors: 1955-1956 (New York: Institute of International E (...)
  • 20 Institute of International Education, Open Doors: 1971 (New York: Institute of International Educat (...)
  • 21 Institute of International Education, Open Doors: 1953–1954 (New York: Institute of International E (...)

28First published in 1948 by the IIE, the Open Doors (OD) annual report provides comprehensive and detailed statistics on the academic flows of students and scholars to and from the US. The evolution of this publication followed the trend of the growing complexity of data produced: after a modest beginning focusing only on foreign nationals studying in the US, it gradually broadened its scope with the inclusion of “specific data on US students and advanced academic personnel at foreign institutions of higher education”19. Despite this, the publication has limitations that must be taken into account, due to the very nature of the data collection process, which was prone to inaccuracies and blind spots. The main cause for this lay in the fact that universities, both in the US and abroad, did not always respond to the survey20. Despite its shortcomings, this publication remains the only serial statistical report on US educational exchanges. The following pages present and analyze these numbers, on the one hand, from a general perspective (world and regional trends), and on the other hand, from the Chilean perspective. The charts and graphs have been constructed with the OD’s annual reports from 1954/1955 to 1973/197421.

  • 22 Institute of International Education, “History of Open Doors,” IIE Open Doors / About, accessed Jun (...)
  • 23 This category includes four subdivisions: the Caribbean, Central America, South America and Mexico.
  • 24 Institute of International Education, Open Doors: 1973, 2.

29As we can see from Graph 1, one major initial trend was the constant growth in the total number of foreign students reported to be pursuing studies in the US from 1954 to 1974. This category was divided into different regional groupings based primarily on the Department of State’s list of world regions and states22: Africa, Europe, the Far East, Latin America23, the Near and Middle East, North America and Oceania. With students coming from every region of the world the US constituted a true hotspot for international students. Regarding the composition of this student mass, as seen in Graph 2, the overall percentage of each region did not change during our study period, with the Far East region remaining as the biggest supplier of foreign students, followed by Latin America in second place24.

Graph 1 - Total number of Foreign Students reported in the US between 1954 and 1974 (designed by the author)

Graph 1 - Total number of Foreign Students reported in the US between 1954 and 1974 (designed by the author)

Graph 2 - Foreign students in the U.S. disaggregated by region between 1954 and 1974 (designed by the author)

Graph 2 - Foreign students in the U.S. disaggregated by region between 1954 and 1974 (designed by the author)

30In the context of South American participation in these exchanges, despite Chile's political centrality within the framework of US relations with the region, its statistical position was more modest, as seen in Graph 3, in that the country occupied an intermediate rank, surpassing only British Guiana/Guyana, Ecuador, Bolivia, Uruguay, and Paraguay. Meanwhile, the countries with the most significant flows were Venezuela, Colombia, Brazil, and Peru.

Graph 3 - South American students in the US disaggregated by country from 1954 to 1974 (designed by the author)

Graph 3 - South American students in the US disaggregated by country from 1954 to 1974 (designed by the author)

31When the details of Chilean participation are examined, growth similar to world trends can be identified, but a correlation can also be established between the average growth of student flows and the different Chilean presidential terms between 1958 and 1973, suggesting a correlation between the closeness of the political ties between the Chilean and US governments and the increase in these figures. With regard to the characteristics of Chilean student presence in the US, the Open Doors data does indeed suggest this. First, as seen in Graph 4, between 1954 and 1962, a majority of students received “private” funding for their studies—a broad category encompassing various mixed schemes and public and private actors. However, it is worth noting that despite the range of funding options, the self-funded category ranked second, with the US government as the third-largest source of funding.

Graph 4 - Type of study financing for Chilean students in the US from 1954 to 1962 (designed by the author)

Graph 4 - Type of study financing for Chilean students in the US from 1954 to 1962 (designed by the author)

32Starting in 1963, the reports underwent significant methodological changes. Nevertheless, it is possible to identify notable trends of continuity as seen in Graph 5. First, self-funded students remained the predominant category, while funding from the US government remained relatively low in comparison. The self-funded category, which was predominant in the Chilean case, was also the dominant world trend.

Graph 5 - Type of study financing for Chilean students in the US from 1963 to 1974 (designed by the author)

Graph 5 - Type of study financing for Chilean students in the US from 1963 to 1974 (designed by the author)
  • 25 Institute of International Education, v.

33The 1973 report highlighted this global trend, expressing concern over what was seen as a shift in priorities for funding international education which “[was] in danger of becoming a rich man’s game”, due to a conjunction of different elements: the “near astronomical cost of US education”, “major cutbacks in Federal government and private grants at graduate level”, the drop of “preferential tuition rates for foreign students”, the replacement of foreign student as a priority category in favor of “minorities and women”, meaning that those scholarships usually reserved for foreign students were now going to other underprivileged groups, And finally, a shift in the field of student jobs, which had been traditionally occupied by international students seeking to finance their studies. However, by the 1970s, these jobs were beginning to be taken up by local students, resulting in a tendency toward the restrictive application of immigration regulations, thereby reducing the opportunities available to international students25.

  • 26 Institute of International Education, Open Doors: 1972, 11.

34Regarding the composition of the Chilean student population in the US, the reports indicate that Chile also followed global trends in terms of gender division and types of academic programs pursued. Concerning the first element, as seen in Graph 6, there is a clear disparity between male and female students, with the latter representing only a fraction of the overall numbers. In terms of percentages, to have a general idea of their evolution, between 1954/1955 and 1965/1966, female students represented an average of 21.4% of total students, a situation that changed starting in 1966/1967 with an average of 24.3 %. To put these numbers in perspective, the overall number of foreign students in the US during this time period remained relatively steady in terms of the men-women ratio, with about three men to one woman since the inception of the survey26.

Graph 6 - Chilean students in the US divided by Sex from 1954 to 1974

Graph 6 - Chilean students in the US divided by Sex from 1954 to 1974
  • 27 A third noteworthy category included in the survey is the “Unspecified Degree or No Degree”, one th (...)

35As for the “degree motivation” for pursuing an educational exchange in the US, we can appreciate from Graph 7 that the majority of Chilean students pursued, in first place, graduate studies, followed in second place by undergraduate studies and finally, in third place, “special students” (not working towards a specific degree). While the early years show a relative balance between undergraduate and graduate students, the latter became increasingly predominant over time. Although the sources do not offer a definitive explanation for this trend, it may reflect the strategic emphasis of many exchange programs—particularly Fulbright and philanthropic initiatives—on advanced training and professional specialization27.

Graph 7 - Chilean students in the US divided by Degree Type from 1954 to 1974 (designed by the author)

Graph 7 - Chilean students in the US divided by Degree Type from 1954 to 1974 (designed by the author)

36As for the specific level of the studies, the surveys included details from the 1962/1963 report onward. The data in Graph 8 shows that more Chileans studied for a Master’s degree than for a Doctorate.

Graph 8 - Type of degree being pursued in the US by Chilean students from 1962 to 1974 (designed by the author)

Graph 8 - Type of degree being pursued in the US by Chilean students from 1962 to 1974 (designed by the author)

37A final element worth noting is the information provided regarding the disciplines of study. As seen from Graph 9 it is possible to identify, on the one hand, those on an upward trajectory and on the other, those which displayed an uneven pattern over the time period. Among the first group we find the Humanities, which were already well placed in 1962/1963, and occupied the first place from 1968/1969 onwards. The second noteworthy discipline, even though not having the biggest overall numbers, is Business Administration, which grew continuously between 1959/1960 and 1971/1972.

Graph 9 - Chilean students in the US from 1954 to 1974 according to discipline of study (designed by the author)

Graph 9 - Chilean students in the US from 1954 to 1974 according to discipline of study (designed by the author)

38Despite its limitations, Open Doors is a precious source of information that helps us paint a picture which, if not entirely accurate, is at least clear, of the major trends and flows of educational exchanges during the period under consideration. Although total completeness will always be elusive and represents a goal to be strived for, we believe that the findings related in this article fulfil the objective we defined at the outset, namely to map the flows, to identify the institutional actors and their respective roles, their dynamics and configurations, and finally to make a first attempt to quantify them.

Conclusion

39The panorama of educational exchanges between the two countries was indeed a vast network offering different types of programs and opportunities. However, this variety was not accompanied by full coordination among its various institutional actors (although considerable efforts were made in this respect). Relations between actors—such as the Embassy, philanthropic foundations, and Chilean universities—were often marked by overlapping initiatives, partial cooperation, and occasional competition for influence. While certain moments of alignment occurred, particularly around university modernization projects, in general each actor operated according to its own agenda, with only limited mechanisms for systematic coordination.

40Regarding the deployment of US philanthropic foundations in Chile, it is interesting to note the dominance during the 1960s of the Ford Foundation, which became the most important foundation operating in the country. Most of these funds were focused on university modernization projects, from postgraduate training for students and/or faculty members to investments in infrastructure and curricular reform. The initiatives were often supported in parallel by US development agencies, resulting in a shared but not always coordinated effort. Although the largest exchange flows were established through these channels, there were also initiatives from Chilean universities to attract foreign students, either through the opening of exclusive quotas or through inter-university agreements.

41With respect to the work of the Embassy, we observed that although the general directives were generated by Washington D.C., much of their practical implementation was carried out locally according to the Embassy’s own criteria and projects. Embassy programs notably placed priority on youth as a category of grantees, combining academic objectives with political considerations. This helps explain the gradual strengthening of ties between the diplomatic post and key student leaders over the years.

42Finally, regarding the quantification of exchanges, the statistical data allows us to conclude that this period was characterized by a generalized, sustained, and multi-scale (global, regional, sub-regional, and national) growth of student mobility to and from the US. In the Chilean case, the flow of students broadly reflected the evolution of bilateral relations, with growth during the governments of Alessandri and Frei and a decline under Allende. Following the 1973 military coup, this decline accelerated, and educational exchanges entered a more discreet and selective phase, shaped by the authoritarian context and tighter ideological controls. However, caution must be exercised in interpreting this trend. The majority of Chilean students studying in the United States were self-funded, indicating that educational mobility was not driven solely by state programs or diplomatic alignments, but also by personal and family strategies.

43These findings invite broader reflections on the effectiveness of cultural diplomacy during the Cold War. While official rhetoric often emphasized strategic objectives—such as combating Marxist influence or fostering pro-US elites—the actual outcomes of educational exchanges proved more ambiguous and complex. Many participants were already on leadership trajectories, while others critical of US policies were nonetheless included in exchange programs. Rather than operating as direct instruments of influence, educational exchanges became spaces of negotiation, appropriation, and transformation.

44In this sense, this article underscores the importance of moving beyond narrow, outcome-based evaluations of cultural diplomacy, highlighting instead its contingent and negotiated character. The Chilean case demonstrates how these programs, rather than ensuring ideological alignment, opened space for diverse trajectories shaped by encounters, frictions, and unforeseen modes of international engagement. This calls for a more nuanced understanding of Cold War cultural diplomacy, one that accounts for its flexible and often unpredictable dynamics, as well as the agency of its recipients.

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Notes

1 The Fulbright program with Chile had successive amendments signed in 1958, 1961 and 1962.International Educational Exchange Service, “Chile,” October 10, 1956, 1, Box 316, Folder 23, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs Historical Collection (CU) Records, ca. 1938-1984. Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, “Chile,” n.d., 1, Box 234, Folder 39, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs Historical Collection (CU) Records, ca. 1938-1984.

2 Institute of International Education, Institute of International Education 41st Annual Report: 1961 (New York, 1962), 2.

3 Rockefeller Foundation, The Rockefeller Foundation, Annual Report, 1955 (New York: Rockefeller Foundation, 1956), 19–20.

4 W.K. Kellogg Foundation, W.K. Kellogg Foundation Annual Report 1953-1954 (Michigan, EE.UU, 1955), 102–5.

5 W.K. Kellogg Foundation, W.K. Kellogg Foundation Annual Report 1955-1956 (Michigan, EE.UU, 1957), 228–30.

6 Rockefeller Foundation, The Rockefeller Foundation, Annual Report, 1955, 19–20, 24, 101.

7 Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, “Some US Government Agencies Engaged in International Activities,” 1963, 2, MC 468, Box 211, Folder 2, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs Historical Collection (CU) Records, ca. 1938-1984.

8 This service, abbreviated as USIS, was the official representative of USIA abroad and included the Cultural and Information sections of the Embassy.

9 Robert Dean, “Educational and Cultural Exchange: Educational Exchange Program Proposal for FY1969,” August 5, 1967, 1, RG84, Container 5, Folder CUL - General - 1967-1970, National Archives and Records Administration College Park.

10 Dean, 2.

11 XVII Escuela Internacional de Verano Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María, “Ciclo II - Chile y la Asistencia Foránea,” January 4, 1965, Fondo Ministerio, Instituciones y Particulares, Caja 116, Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores de Chile.

12 Enrique Dellacasa Porcile, Breve Historia de La Comisión Nacional de Investigación Científica y Tecnológica. (Santiago de Chile: Comisión Nacional de Investigación Científica y Tecnológica, 1975), http://repositorio.conicyt.cl/handle/10533/53905.

13 James Echols, “Educational and Cultural Exchange: Annual Report on the Educational Exchange Program FY1965,” January 5, 1966, 7, Box 316, Folder 24, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs Historical Collection (CU) Records, ca. 1938-1984.

14 Commission for Educational Interchange between the United States of America and Chile, “Annual Program Proposal: Program Year 1956,” September 29, 1955, 12, MC 468 Box 116 Folder 3, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs Historical Collection (CU) Records, ca. 1938-1984.

15 Eugene S. Staples, “Annual Assessment Report,” November 12, 1956, 6, RG306, Container 1, Folder Chile Assessment Report, National Archives and Records Administration College Park.

16 Minutes of meeting nº51 Fulbright Commission, p.1

17 Minutes of meeting nº106 Fulbright Commission, p.1

18 Robert Dean, “Educational and Cultural Exchange: Evaluation of Chilean University Student Leaders Travel Project - July September 1966,” December 17, 1966, RG306, Container 6, Folder EDX 17, National Archives and Records Administration College Park; Miguel Borda, “US Visit of FY 1966 - Educational Travel Program,” September 19, 1966, RG84, Container 1, Folder EDX - State Department Reports on Chilean Grantees 1966, National Archives and Records Administration College Park; Mario Montenegro, “Report on US Visit FY 1968 Chilean Student Leaders,” June 25, 1968, RG84, Container 2, Folder EDX 15, National Archives and Records Administration College Park.

19 Institute of International Education, Open Doors: 1955-1956 (New York: Institute of International Education, 1956), 3.

20 Institute of International Education, Open Doors: 1971 (New York: Institute of International Education, 1972), 3.

21 Institute of International Education, Open Doors: 1953–1954 (New York: Institute of International Education, 1954); id., Open Doors for the years 1954–1955 to 1974 (New York: Institute of International Education, various years)

22 Institute of International Education, “History of Open Doors,” IIE Open Doors / About, accessed June 15, 2022, https://opendoorsdata.org/about/.

23 This category includes four subdivisions: the Caribbean, Central America, South America and Mexico.

24 Institute of International Education, Open Doors: 1973, 2.

25 Institute of International Education, v.

26 Institute of International Education, Open Doors: 1972, 11.

27 A third noteworthy category included in the survey is the “Unspecified Degree or No Degree”, one that grew considerably after the mid-1960s, with a major peak between 1970/1971 and 1973/1974. There is no obvious explanation for these numbers: the most probable cause, considering the limitations of the survey, would seem to be the partial completion of the survey, resulting in an insufficiently detailed result.

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Table des illustrations

Titre Graph 1 - Total number of Foreign Students reported in the US between 1954 and 1974 (designed by the author)
URL http://journals.openedition.org/cal/docannexe/image/20238/img-1.png
Fichier image/png, 108k
Titre Graph 2 - Foreign students in the U.S. disaggregated by region between 1954 and 1974 (designed by the author)
URL http://journals.openedition.org/cal/docannexe/image/20238/img-2.png
Fichier image/png, 104k
Titre Graph 3 - South American students in the US disaggregated by country from 1954 to 1974 (designed by the author)
URL http://journals.openedition.org/cal/docannexe/image/20238/img-3.png
Fichier image/png, 274k
Titre Graph 4 - Type of study financing for Chilean students in the US from 1954 to 1962 (designed by the author)
URL http://journals.openedition.org/cal/docannexe/image/20238/img-4.png
Fichier image/png, 84k
Titre Graph 5 - Type of study financing for Chilean students in the US from 1963 to 1974 (designed by the author)
URL http://journals.openedition.org/cal/docannexe/image/20238/img-5.png
Fichier image/png, 97k
Titre Graph 6 - Chilean students in the US divided by Sex from 1954 to 1974
URL http://journals.openedition.org/cal/docannexe/image/20238/img-6.png
Fichier image/png, 90k
Titre Graph 7 - Chilean students in the US divided by Degree Type from 1954 to 1974 (designed by the author)
URL http://journals.openedition.org/cal/docannexe/image/20238/img-7.png
Fichier image/png, 182k
Titre Graph 8 - Type of degree being pursued in the US by Chilean students from 1962 to 1974 (designed by the author)
URL http://journals.openedition.org/cal/docannexe/image/20238/img-8.png
Fichier image/png, 70k
Titre Graph 9 - Chilean students in the US from 1954 to 1974 according to discipline of study (designed by the author)
URL http://journals.openedition.org/cal/docannexe/image/20238/img-9.png
Fichier image/png, 211k
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Manuel Suzarte, « Mapping educational exchanges between Chile and the United States during the Cold War: a statistical approach »Cahiers des Amériques latines [En ligne], 106 | 2025, mis en ligne le 10 juillet 2025, consulté le 14 février 2026. URL : http://journals.openedition.org/cal/20238 ; DOI : https://doi.org/10.4000/14crb

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