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Host a Visitor or Delegation

The University of Pittsburgh warmly welcomes international delegations from around the world to more deeply engage with global peers.

“Delegation” refers to any group requesting to visit the University of Pittsburgh as an official representative of a foreign academic, private, or governmental institution. A delegation may consist of a group of students, staff members, faculty members, government representatives, association members OR high-ranking individual with the capacity to officially represent another institution or group.

Requests for delegation visits are numerous and can be received from both internal Pitt representatives hoping to host as well as from external partners, potential partners, or other interested parties interested in visiting the University of Pittsburgh. While these requests are frequent, it is important to understand commitment of significant time and resources required to host a delegation visit. In order to ensure that the visit is a valuable use of both parties' time, delegation visits should be strategic in nature with established goals and objectives.

PittGlobal's Role in Hosting International Delegations

PittGlobal’s partnerships team typically takes the lead on visits which advance higher level initiatives for the University. If guests are considered to be part of a university strategic partnership, invited by the Vice-Chancellor for Global Affairs or other Pitt leadership and/or if high-profile individuals, or are otherwise important partners in advancing univeristy-wide goals, PittGlobal will take the lead and engage relevant schools, departments, and University Center for International Studies (UCIS) centers for assistance.

In cases where delegations are not led by PittGlobal, individuals/schools/departments are able to utilize existing PittGlobal resources and expertise as they vet, plan, execute, and follow-up with visitors and hosted delegations.

Submit a request for a delegation visit here. 

Please note that all communications with the Office of the Chancellor, Provost, and Vice-Chancellor for Global Affairs must be done through PittGlobal’s Global Partnerships & Partner Engagement (GP&E) Team. Contact the team at GlobalPartnerships@pitt.edu.

The resources contained here are intended to assist Pitt faculty and staff discern whether or not to host a delegation and to provide helpful resources and guidance through the delegation hosting process.

The Global Partnerships team works alongside the Office of Trade Compliance (OTC) when accepting visitors to the university. Please be aware of the requirements for visitors and delegations and carefully review the information and steps outlined on this website and relevant subpages.

Visit the OTC's Pitt Academic Visitors web-page for a complete list of visitor policies.

 

Looking for a snapshot of Pitt's global engagement prior to hosting an international delegation? Contact the Global Partnerships team to request a MoveON Global Engagement Report today!

Would you like to log a past delegation visit or other Global Engagement project? Visit the Global Engagement Log 

 

Hosting delegation visitors requires a significant investment of time and resources and should not be taken on lightly.

You may want to consider hosting the international delegation if

  • Your unit has the financial and administrative resources to host meetings
  • The visit will somehow advance your school/departmental global goals
  • Their visit will further one or more of the four core global goals that the University has outlined concerning Pitt's global engagement listed below

Connecting our domestic and international pursuits

  • Does the visit benefit Pitt and the surrounding region?
  • Does the visit reflect either an existing strategic partnership or another contractual relationship with Pitt?
  • Do you believe there is a larger institutional impact that could be secured by this visit?
  • Does the visit provide professional development for faculty and staff?
  • Does the visit support joint Pitt-UPMC international initiatives?
  • Does the visit advance research and funding opportunities?

Cultivate globally capable and engaged students

  • Does the visit support international diversity on campus?
  • Does the visit engage Pitt students with the world?
  • Does the visit support student success?

Global impact by expanding research and knowledge

  • Does the visit advance research with real world impact?
  • Does the visit create or bolster a community of international researchers?

Expand engagement with the world

  • Does the visit expand engagement and giving to advance Pitt's global vision?
  • Does the visit help to create a strong global reputation for Pitt?

Discernment and Coordination of Delegation Visits

While some high-level delegations will require the full attention of University leadership, the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Global Affairs, and the University Center for International Studies (UCIS), while other visits can be best handled by individuals within a single school or department.

The Global Partnerships & Partner Engagement Team (GP&E) within the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Global Affairs offers support in discernment of visit requests and can further provide assistance to all confirmed delegation visits either by:

Leading the logistical delegation planning process
with the support of key individuals in relevant schools or departments

OR

Offering access to a comprehensive resource library to any individuals within schools/departments leading their own delegation visit

The GP&E Team within the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Global Affairs will lead planning and execution of:

  • senior-level visits
  • meetings for high-level international dignitaries and delegations
  • visits from strategic partners of the University of Pittsburgh
  • Other high profile visits with greater ties to either Pitt or the city of Pittsburgh

 

Individual departments, schools, and units will lead planning and execution of:

  • short-duration visits for exploring collaborative opportunities
  • promotional events related to joint activities
  • courtesy call visits
  • student recruitment efforts
  • alumni and PI visits
  • other more department-specific engagement

 

This site provides guidance to determine whether your unit should host a delegation visit, how to consider this visitor's larger engagement with the institution, when and how the partnerships team may assist in this process, and offers resources to maximize the impact of a delegation visit.

To submit a request for a delegation visit on Pitt's campus, please complete the Host a Delegation Visit request form. The global partnerships team will follow the established workflow for determining if a visit should be led by or in any way engage the UCIS Director's Office or Vice Chancellor for Global Affairs.