Global Relations manages institutional partnerships, enabling university departments and units to allocate resources towards fostering diverse engagements and collaborative initiatives that mutually benefit all parties involved. These partnerships are formalized through legal contracts or agreements facilitated by Global Relations involving multiple parties, including Purchasing and Contracts Management, Office of Business and Financial Services, Office of University Counsel, and senior leadership. Tangible outcomes of these collaborations are evident in initiatives such as research collaborations, faculty and student mobility and cooperative education programs. For instance, through an institutional partnership with xxx Summer Teaching Internship in Ecuador/Galapagos Islands, Illinois students and faculty have the opportunity to intern in the Galapagos Islands.

The length of time needed to initiate a new agreement depends on the scope and complexity of the agreement as well as the internal procedures and requirements of the partner institution. To ensure ample time for executing an agreement, we recommend that you submit new agreement requests at least six months prior to the start date of the program or partnership you seek to initiate or amend.

The timeline varies greatly depending on the nature of the agreement, the type of agreement, and the partner institutions’ requirements, policies and procedures. To ensure ample time for executing an agreement, we recommend that you submit new or renew/amend agreement requests at least six months prior to the start date of the program or partnership you seek to initiate.

Approvals may be require any or all of the following:

Global Relations
International Safety and Security (for student mobility agreements)
International Student and Scholar Services
Sponsored Programs Administration (for agreements involving collaborative research)
University Counsel
Purchasing (for agreements involving payments to an outside entity made by the university)
Other units (such as the Graduate College, Admissions, etc.) depending on the nature of the agreement

All finalized agreements have been shared with the requesting unit. The copies are housed through the Dean or the Dean Designee. Global Relations can also provide a digital copy if needed.

It is recommended that units initiate renewals at least six months prior to the expiration date of the agreement.

The length of time needed to renew or amend an existing agreement depends on the complexity of the renewal or amendment. We strongly recommend starting the renew/amend process six months before the expiration date because it generally takes less time to renew it than to start the whole process over again. Please note that once the agreement expires, it is no longer renewable. A new agreement must be initiated following the standard contracting process, once the current agreement expires.

No. If your agreement is expired, you must request to initiate a new agreement.

No. For any agreement between the university and a foreign institution to be executed, it has to be routed through Global Relations and be approved by the Purchasing and Contract Management Office / Sponsored Programs Administration and the Office of University Counsel. The comptroller of the university (or a duly appointed proxy) should be the last person to approve and sign the agreement.

You can visit the Reports page to submit a request. Please note, it may take up to seven business days to prepare a report.