Sheridan Offers New App to Assist International Students

Source: Sheridan College via Academica

Sheridan College has launched an app designed to offer comprehensive assistance to international students applying to and enrolling in its programs. The initial version of the app—launched in May 2015—provides those who downloaded it with help uploading study permits, airport arrival assistance, a registration checklist, and a space to store emergency contact information. It also offers guidance with day-to-day activities like grocery shopping, banking, telecom troubleshooting, and finding places of worship. The app is available in a variety of languages and has been downloaded over 1,100 times to date.

Indian State Funds Study Abroad for Minority Students

Source: The PIE News

India’s Telangana state government has approved the first round of scholarships funding 258 low-income students to study abroad at postgraduate level, it has announced.

Earlier this year the Minorities Welfare Department for the southern Indian state announced that it was allocating INR25 crore (US$3.8m) to the new Chief Minister’s Overseas Study Scheme.

It will enable 500 students from low-income families to study abroad each year, with a third of the available places earmarked for women.

In order to apply, students must be no older than 35 and they or their guardians must have a total annual income of no more than Rs. 2 lakhs (US$3,000).

For more details, read the full story on The PIE News.

Study Abroad a Force for Peace, Even If It Does Not Build Sense of Community

Source: International Studies Quarterly via Academica

In the Washington Post, political science professor Calvert Jones has written about a recent study she conducted on over 500 study abroad participants at 11 US postsecondary institutions. Surprisingly, she said, the survey did not support the commonly held belief that cross-border contact “promotes a sense of shared international community.” However, the thesis that cross-border contact reduces the perception of threat was still supported. Finally, returning students displayed stronger feelings of nationalism, were prouder of their home country, and more patriotic; however they did not display an increased belief in American superiority. “Cross-border contact may still be a strong force for peace,” Jones concludes, “even if community is not the underlying mechanism.”

Top International Students Perform Cutting-Edge Research in GTA

Source: Toronto Star via Academica

Nearly 750 international university students have come to the Greater Toronto Area to partner with Canadian professors to produce cutting-edge research. The students have come as part of Mitacs’s Globalink program, which pays the participating students a set wage to visit Canada for a 12-week summer research period. Over three years, Canada has provided $20 M to attract these students to Canada. The research being undertaken this year includes the creation of robots that can land on asteroids, new marketing channels directed toward Baby Boomers, and solar-powered charging stations for electric cars. Visiting students have come primarily from India, China, Brazil, France, Mexico, and Australia.

Canadian Universities Must Overcome 3 Impediments to Globalization, writes Carleton president

Source: University Affairs via Academica

Carleton University [CIEC Member] President Roseann O’Reilly Runte writes in an editorial for University Affairs that Canadian universities must do more to address the ongoing demand to become more global. To this end, she says that universities must work to build their international reputations while making sure that the proper resources are in place for international students to succeed after enrolment. But Runte adds that attracting more international students is only one side of the internationalization coin, the other being the need to send more Canadian students abroad. To achieve success in this regard, Canada will need to overcome three impediments that Runte identifies as financial, linguistic, and structural.