V. 13 I. 4.1 – Apr 2013 – Canada India Education Council

Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs attends Armenian Presidential Inauguration

April 9, 2013May 3, 2013Canada India Education Council (CIEC)

Deepak Obhrai, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, will be attending the inauguration of Serzh Sargsyan, President of the Republic of Armenia, on April 9, 2013 where he will convey congratulations on behalf of Prime Minister Harper and Canada.

The Parliamentary Secretary will also meet with the Armenian Foreign Minister to congratulate Armenia on the successful membership bid to La Francophonie and express hope for working closely with Armenia on Canada’s priority themes within this body. These themes include children and youth, equality between women and men, and sustainable economic growth among members.

Mr. Obhrai will also take the opportunity to reiterate Canada’s strong support for the efforts by Turkey and Armenia to normalize relations and address historical differences.

Engaging Canada: Emerging priorities for sustainable partnerships

April 9, 2013May 3, 2013Canada India Education Council (CIEC)

CONFERENCE ON

ENGAGING CANADA:
EMERGING PRIORITIES FOR SUSTAINABLE PARTNERSHIPS

To be organized by Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute
at the India International Centre in New Delhi
June 1, 2013

CALL FOR PAPERS

The Institute

The Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute is a bi-national organization that promotes understanding between India and Canada through academic activities and exchanges. Its broad-based initiatives support the creation of bi-national links between academia, government, the business community and civil society organizations by funding research, faculty and student exchange, conferences, workshops and seminars. With a membership of 93 leading Indian and Canadian universities and research institutions, the Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute has facilitated greater collaboration between Indian and Canadian institutions in the humanities, social sciences, arts, science & technology, legal education, and management studies. The Institute, as part of its mandate, has also supported research on sustainable development and other United Nations Millennium Development Goals.

The Conference

The Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute is organizing a Conference at the India International Centre, New Delhi on June 1, 2013, to present collaborative research that has been completed, or is currently being undertaken, by Indian and Canadian universities/research institutions in four focus areas.

Energy & Environment
Public Health
Food Security & Sustainable Development
Bi-lateral Trade and Investment

Objectives

Emerging opportunities and strategies to address challenges in these four areas that have been identified as priority sectors by both the Indian and Canadian governments will be the themes of this Conference. One of the objectives of this Conference is to gather experts and a new cadre of researchers to discuss their contributions to higher learning while weaving academic and institutional collaborations between Canada and India. It is expected that strategic recommendations will be derived from the Conference that will contribute to sustained academic and institutional partnerships.

Call for Papers

Papers are invited from faculty, post-doctoral researchers, and doctoral students from Shastri member institutions, as well as faculty/researchers from non-member institutions to present and share work that has been completed or is currently progressing in these four areas. The papers could be the outcome of research funded by the Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute or by other agencies, universities or research institutions. We particularly encourage submissions that develop inter-disciplinary themes.

Abstract of Papers must be submitted by April 30, 2013, to Dr. Prachi Kaul, Programme Officer, Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute by email at [email protected]. Authors must indicate the focus area for which they would like their paper to be considered.

Important Dates

April 30, 2013: Deadline for Submission of Abstracts
May 15, 2013: Acceptance Notification
June 1, 2013: Conference

Travel and Accommodation

Economy class air-fare within India, and local accommodation in New Delhi, will be provided to out-station scholars whose papers have been selected for presentation at the Conference. Travel and accommodation arrangements/ reimbursements will be done according to the travel and accommodation policy of the Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute.

Conference Coordinators:

Dr. Biju Paul Abraham, IIM Calcutta, and Dr. Ravishankar Rao, Mangalore University
Executive Council

Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute

5 BhaiVir Singh Marg,
New Delhi – 110 001, India.
Telephone: 91-11-2374-6417/3114, Fax: 91-11-2374-6416.
Website: www.sici.org.in
Email: [email protected]

ATN Signs Animated Epic Series The Legend of Ponnivala for Canadian Broadcast: In Tete-a-Tete with Dr. Brenda Beck, Producer of the Series

April 8, 2013May 3, 2013Canada India Education Council (CIEC)

Source: The Sophia Hilton Foundation of Canada

The Sophia Hilton Foundation of Canada and Soft Science Associates, Ltd., creators of the animated Legend of Ponnivala series, have signed on with the Asian Television Network for Canadian broadcast of the 26-episode series. The series is slated to launch in English on ATN in late April, with a Tamil-language broadcast planned for the summer.

The Legend of Ponnivala tells the story of the epic South Indian heroes Ponnar and Shankar. It also relates the origins of their family, back to the founding of the region two generations earlier. It is a surprisingly expansive tale for a local legend, and includes a wealth of historical and social insights into medieval Indian culture. It draws inspiration and characters from the great Indian epic, the Mahabharata, while keeping its focus on farming, the lifestyle central to its place of origin.

Speaking exclusively to AnimationXpress.com’s Zeenia Boatwala about this broadcasting deal, Dr. Brenda Beck, Creator and Producer of The Legend of Ponnivala shares, “I am very happy about this contract. When I met with ATN’s CEO, Dr. Shan Chandresekar, we realized we were on the same page with this series. He had seen the Legend of Ponnivala trailers and was enthusiastic about the prospect of adding it to the network’s family lineup. I felt that the broadcast potential and strength that ATN was offering would be a great vehicle to get the series out to the widest possible audience, Asian and non-Asian alike. The plan to broadcast in both English and Tamil reflects a fitting balance between the story’s Kongu roots and its modern re-telling in English”

The Legend of Ponnivala has previously been seen only as a feature film in select international settings. One extended excerpt received a nomination for Best Animated Film (Home Video) at the 2012 FICCI BAF Awards in India. Another extract was a featured presentation at the MOSAIC International South Asian Film Festival in Mississauga, Ontario.

Dr. Brenda Beck, Adjunct Professor, Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto, adds more, “ Now that its premiere Canadian broadcast has opened the door, we’re looking to build on that momentum and get in touch with additional networks in order to really move the story forward onto an international stage.”

The Legend of Ponnivala is derived from a vast, ancient Hindu folktale tradition from South India’s Kongu region. The story has traditionally been told through song and passed down through generations of singing bards. One such performance was captured on over forty hours of audio tape in 1965 by Dr. Brenda Beck, who directed the series. Art and animation on the project began in 2008. Animator Ravichandran Arumugam, whose grandfather was a traditional singer of the epic, was brought on board to lead the art and animation team.

Informing more on the story line of this series, Dr. Brenda, highlights, “In retelling The Legend of Ponnivala, I have tried to stay as faithful as possible to the story’s original style and content as I recorded it in 1965. At that time, the only place it existed was in the tales of the singing bards of the Kongu region, and it was only by chance that I was able to capture and preserve it on audio tape. This very colourful tale depicts the life of farmers in medieval South India through the adventures of three generations of local kings. Due to a curse, the royal family is forced to confront jealous outsiders who threaten their sovereignty over the land of Ponnivala.

Shares further, “The story has very close ties to other Indian epics, and has even been called a ‘local Mahabharata.’ Because this epic is only really known in selected parts of Tamilnadu, it is fresh and unique, but its size and scope certainly make it powerful enough to stand alongside other great world epics like the Odyssey or Beowulf.”

Also involved in the project is award-winning Celtic musician and world music expert Steafan Hannigan, along with the voice talents of Sivakumar, Sumit Bhatia, Lata Pada, Afroz Khan, Ishwar, and Sanjay Talreja.

“The Legend of Ponnivala” is an epic adventure story for all ages. Part mythology, part fairytale, part historical drama and part action series, Ponnivala promises to delight and entertain viewers of all ages and across all cultures.

On the closing note, Dr. Brenda, expresses, “The Legend of Ponnivala is more than just a TV series. We’ve already released a comic book set in both print and digital formats on our website. It is being taught in elementary schools in Canada, using our lesson plans plus creative added exercises thought up by teachers. The story provides a unique window on ancient Indian culture, and is even being used as an exhibit at Canada’s Royal Ontario Museum this spring. The whole scope of the project is so much more than just a television series, but with this broadcast the breadth of its cultural, educational, and entertainment value will now be revealed to a much wider audience than we could possibly reach on our own.

If you would like to learn more about the Canada-India Legend of Ponnivala project, please contact Dr Brenda Beck at [email protected].

Canada – A growing destination for Indian students

April 7, 2013May 18, 2013Canada India Education Council (CIEC)

By Avinav Sharma

Canada has never been so popular with the Indian students as it stands now. It is all thanks to the great and impactful reforms done by the Government of Canada to make Canada an attractive destination for International Education of 21st century. A fact concreting is that in 2012, for the first time Canada welcomed a record number of international students. A first in history, international students in Canada crossed the number of 100,000.

Students from India are very much interested to pursue their studies in some of the best countries of the world. There is no dearth of talent in India. USA and UK have always been old preferred destinations, but now Canada is slowly making its way to the list of most preferred destinations for the Indian students. Canadian institutions are fast gaining popularity with Indian students. Some of the Canadian universities had long been coming to India since the 90s and been engaging with students and educational institutions. Student exchange, faculty exchange and research collaborations have been part of it.

With the passing time and globalization, more and more Canadian institutions have entered Indian market to search for the best and smartest talent. The engagement of Canadian polytechnics and community colleges is increasing with institution representatives doing recruitment events at various cities of India and entering into alliances with reputed and trusted educational agents. Institutions and education agents are working closely on a common goal of matching the students’ academic interest and their educational pursuits to programs available at the institutions.

The quality of technical and professional education is very high in Canada. Strengthening the interest of Indian students is the low tuition fee structure of the institutions. Lower tuition fees and the high global ranking of Canadian universities are of much interest to Indian students seeing the growing cost of getting quality education in India. Another attractive aspect is the Cooperative Education which most of Indian students are not aware of. Co-op as a term is relatively new to students and at first instance students are not able to understand it. With more and more information coming into Indian market on Canadian education, the Canadian education system and terms are being familiarized but a lot needs to be done in this field. Most of the students choose their program unaware of co-op opportunities and realize that later on. Even the students who choose the co-op are not aware of the real value and benefit of a co-op. They end up not maintaining the required GPA or percentage that will entitle them to be placed into the co-op by the institution.

With educational opportunities and systems differing from province to province in Canada, Indian students find it difficult to map their academic interest and choose an institution that can best cater to their needs. Official website like that of AUCC try to bridge this gap by providing comprehensive information on universities, programs offered and their contact details. Still the information is not reaching in that amount in which it should, primarily because of unawareness among Indian students. The university admission procedures, steps involved, international credential evaluation are highly complex and time consuming as compared to the admission systems of countries like Australia, UK and New Zealand which are fairly very simple and easy to understand. The entering admission requirements are also a bit high and some of good and genuine students are not successful in making to their university of choice because of it. With the presence of different central and state school boards and higher education institutions in India, a student’s academic score can vary and not present a true picture of his capability of successfully completing his intended program in Canada. This one aspect should be taken into consideration by the universities and institutes of Canada.

Research opportunities are tremendous in Canada and with funding opportunities available to deserving students at every step; Indian students are now getting attracted to research master and doctorate degrees in Canada. Numerous choices of specializations and research areas available help Indian students choose the field that they may not have even thought of pursuing. It just does not stop here. The flexibility of Canadian institutions also allows student to come with a completely new field in which he may want to pursue research and the institution fully support the students with their research ideas and makes them available proper resources.

I can say that a lot more is still to be traversed in promoting Canadian education among Indian students and making them understand every bit of it. It has to be a continuous and result oriented process.

Avinav Sharma is the Country Head — Canada of Kangaroo Studies Private Limited, India.

Indians break another ceiling in Canada as Bharat Masrani is appointed CEO of top bank TD Trust

April 7, 2013May 3, 2013Canada India Education Council (CIEC)

Source: News East West

TORONTO: Finally, an Indian-origin person is becoming CEO of Canada’s top financial institution.

Bharat Masrani, who is in charge of the bank’s US personal and commercial banking operations, will take over as the CEO of TD Trust – which is Canada’s top bank – from Nov 1.

It will be the first time that a person of Indian origin becomes the head of a bank in Canada. Currently, Sarabjit Marwah , who is the number two in Scotiabank in Toronto, is the highest-ranking Indian in corporate Canada.

But 56-year-old Bharat Masrani will now be the top Indian in corporate Canada when he takes the reins of the country’s top bank.

Masrani, who has been with TD Trust since 1987, started his career as a Commercial Lending Trainee where he rose to Account Manager, Commercial Accounts in 1988. He progressed through a number of positions and responsibilities before assuming the role of Vice President and Head, Corporate Banking Canada.

In 1996, he was appointed Vice President and Country Head for India and then to Senior Vice President, Corporate Finance and Co-Head in Europe in 1997.

In 1999, Bharat also served as Senior Vice President and Chief Executive Officer of TD Waterhouse Investor Services in Europe. Prior to his current position, Bharat was Vice Chair and Chief Risk Officer, Corporate Office, TD Bank Financial Group.

Bharat Masrani, who earned his Bachelor of Administration with Honours in 1978 and then his MBA in 1979 from York University’s Schulich School of Business, currently lives in Portland, Maine, with his wife Shabnam and two children.

“As we look to the future, the Board is confident that Bharat’s leadership, breadth of experience and global business insight will serve him well,” TD Trust chairman Brian Levitt said in a statement on Wednesday.

Outgoing CEO Ed Clark said, “Bharat brings a continuity of strategy, culture and values. I am extremely confident in the future of TD.”

The TD Board opted for Masrani for the top job because of his excellent execution of his boss Ed Clark’s strategies in the US where acquisitions of many banks, including those of Commerce Bancorp for more than $8-billion and some Florida banks, made TD Trust as one of the top ten banks in the US. In fact, the bank has more branches in the US (over 1,300) than in Canada (1,100).

Canada to spend $10M to woo foreign students

April 2, 2013May 3, 2013Canada India Education Council (CIEC)

Source: Ottawa Citizen

Tenfold increase in recent budget wins plaudits from cash-poor universities

The Canadian government is hoping to corner the market on foreign students by making a significant investment into Canada’s education brand.

The recently tabled federal budget directs $10 million over the next two years to the effort – a large increase from the funding it set aside for marketing education from 2007 to 2012, when it budgeted $1 million each year.

Efforts will focus on strengthening the “Imagine Education au/in Canada” brand, a program that aims to promote the high quality of a Canadian education to international students.

Foreign Affairs spokesman John Babcock said the extra funding is a “very positive signal,” and that the federal government will continue cooperating with the provinces to strengthen the international education strategy.

Canada is already a top destination for foreign students. According to the budget, some 239,000 students in 2010 contributed $8 billion to the economy, making them a rich vein for colleges and universities to tap.

The University of British Columbia, for instance, has almost 4,000 students from 120 different countries. Foreign students’ tuition is, on average, five times higher than what Canadian students pay.

“It’s a lot more than about economics,” said UBC president Stephen Toope. “They really bring a richness to the educational experience that all Canadian students benefit from.”

Jennifer Humphries, vice-president of membership, public policy and communications for the Canadian Bureau for International Education, said the Canadian education strategy to attract these students has several facets.

“The brand is all the things Canada does,” said Humphries, adding that immigration regulations, tourism campaigns, the schools themselves and even the Vancouver Winter Olympics are all a part of the marketing effort.

“I still think, and the government seems to agree with us, there needs to be more investment and more work on establishing a brand, because we aren’t where we need to be,” she said.

The budget also included $13 million for Mitacs Globalink, a Vancouver-based program that matches international research students with schools.

“We’re unique in being able to make sure that students are being put into labs that will be really interesting to them,” said Arvind Gupta, CEO of Mitacs Globalink. “They know that when they come to us that we will have a good project for them.”

The Imagine Education campaign has only been around a short time, so it remains to be seen how it affects recruitment.

MP Shory: Canada does not consider India a poor country

April 2, 2013March 11, 2015Canada India Education Council (CIEC)

Calgary, AB, April 2, 2013 – “Indians and Canadians of Indian descent should be proud of India’s strong economy, particularly that it is no longer considered a poor developing country,” said Devinder Shory, MP (Calgary Northeast) in response to concerns raised by some that Canada was removing India from the list of countries under the General Preferential Tariff (GPT).

As part of Economic Action Plan 2013 the Canadian Government removed India, along with several other BRIC countries, such as Brazil, China, and Russia from the special tariff deduction list. Countries were placed on this list back in 1974 based on criteria set by the World Bank, and had lower tariffs applied to their exports in a bid to give preferential access to the Canadian market for poor developing countries. The removal from the special tariff deduction list will be effective January 1, 2015.

“Removal from the special tariff deduction list is evidence of how far India has come during this period. Its economy is growing each and every year and this growth has lifted millions of people out of poverty and into long-term prosperity.”

“The good news, said MP Shory, is that Canada and India are currently negotiating a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). Trade between our two countries could reach $15 billion by 2015, and the agreement, once signed, will help to increase trade between our countries.”

“The removal of India from the GPT will encourage both our governments to finish trade agreement negotiations by the end 2013, which is the target set by both our governments. The goal of the negotiations is not only to eliminate or reduce tariffs and non-tariff barriers to trade, but also to increase and improve investment and expansion opportunities for businesses from both countries. Once the trade agreement is signed there will be no discernible impact from removing India from the GPT.”

Changes to 485 visa make it easier for students to stay

April 1, 2013May 13, 2015Canada India Education Council (CIEC)

Source: World News Australia

Under new rules, foreign students who graduate with an Australian bachelor’s degree, masters or doctorate can work for up to four years in Australia upon completion.

International students have greater chances to find employment under the federal government’s changes to the 485 Temporary Graduate visa.

Under the changes to visa subclass 485, which took effect on March 28, foreign students who graduated with an Australian bachelor’s degree, masters or doctorate, can obtain a visa to remain and work in Australia for between two and four years, depending on their degree — a significant increase on the previous limit of 18 months.

In an already competitive job market, the incentive is to lure high quality overseas students to study in Australia.

“Technically, it’s now much easier for international students to stay in Australia,” said Danny Ong, Multicultural Employment Consultant at Monash University. “But the main concern is that there is now a bigger group of international students competing for work opportunities”.

Remaining in Australia can be a gamble.

“This is a question that international students need to ask: it’s whether I can get a job,” Mr Ong said.

For international students, tuition fees could cost up to $30,000 per year, paid up-front, and application fees can cost almost $2,000.

“A lot of students find it very difficult to deal with parental expectations,” said Mr Ong. And this is affecting the quality of the international student experience.

“They tend to make an association between money and the quality of education. And that influences their interaction with the university,” he said.

Lyndal Partington, careers consultant at the University of NSW, says it is important to learn skills away from the classroom for a holistic education.

“It’s important to help them [international students] develop communication skills, team work skills — soft skills employers look for in graduates,” she said.

“One of the challenges is that they don’t have local work-experience and it’s hard to get their foot in the door. And another challenge is the difference in workplace culture between Australia and their home country,” said Ms Partington.

Under the 485 Temporary Graduate Visa, students can obtain a two-year work visa if they studied in Australia for at least 16 months and have completed either a bachelor’s degree or a masters by course work. Students who completed a masters by research can qualify for a three-year visa, while those who completed a doctorate get four years.

Canada gets an ‘A’ in education, but needs to fix links between post-secondary schooling and workforce

March 27, 2013May 3, 2013Canada India Education Council (CIEC)

Source: Canada Newswire

OTTAWA, March 27, 2013 – Canada’s system of education and skills remains one of the best in the world, but needs to do much better at matching what Canadians learn to evolving labour market needs.

Canada ranks second only to Finland among 16 developed countries in The Conference Board of Canada’s Education and Skills report card. As part of its overall “A” grade, Canada earns “A”s on seven of 20 indicators – including the second-highest rate of high school completion, and the top rate of college completion.

“Canada gives its students a first-rate education at the primary and secondary levels,” said Daniel Muzyka, President and CEO, The Conference Board of Canada. “Our priority must be to build on this strong foundation to make Canada more innovative, competitive, and dynamic.”

“A pressing need is to strengthen the links between high school and the post-secondary system. Within the post-secondary system, we must improve coordination among offerings, thereby creating better pathways to workplaces, jobs and careers. And Canadian employers need to step forward with increased resources for education and retraining of their workers.”

HIGHLIGHTS

Canada delivers a high-quality education to people between the ages of 5 and 19 with modest spending compared to its peers.
Only 21 per cent of Canada’s university graduates are in science, math, computer science and engineering, the third consecutive year that this share has declined.
The gender gap in education has reversed: only 83 men graduate from Canadian universities and colleges for every 100 women.
Canada’s current educational approach is inadequate for many people who, for one reason or another, have not acquired skills in traditional school settings.

Canada’s university completion rate is a “B” grade. In the United States, which gets an “A” grade on this indicator, people may be more motivated to compete university because of the high returns on their university investments.

Canadian university graduates get a comparatively lower payback for their educational investment, according to two new indicators. Canada gets a “B” for return on investment in post-secondary education (women), and “C” for return on investment in post-secondary education (men). On another new indicator, Canada has relatively significant gender gap in tertiary education – for every 100 women who graduate from universities and colleges, only 83 men do so.

And Canada continues to get a “C” grade for percentage of university graduates in science, math, computer science and engineering, and a “D” in the number of PhD graduates.

“Even though the number of PhD graduates has grown by three per cent annually over the past decade, we are still second-to-last among our peers on the PhD graduate rate, and our share of graduates in math, science, computer science and engineering is declining,” said Muzyka.

The Conference Board of Canada is launching a Centre on Skills and Post-Secondary Education to investigate how Canada can meet its rising skills needs through broad changes to its post-secondary system.

Canada earns an “A” grade on two other new indicators to the report card:

the difference in reading test scores between 15-year old students in the most and least disadvantaged schools; and
equity in learning outcomes in reading between Canadian-born students (who speak the language of the test at home) and the children of immigrants (who do not speak the language of the test at home).

The final two new indicators are the foreign student index, where Canada gets a “B” grade; and adult participation in non-formal job-related education, where Canada gets a “C” grade and ranks 10^th of 15 countries.

This relatively low grade on non-formal job-related training illustrates how Canada lags in workplace skills training and lifelong education. Canadian employers’ investments in workplace training programs lag far behind European and U.S. competitors, and only a very small percentage of what they do invest—less than two per cent—goes to basic literacy skills.

How Canada Performs is a multi-year research program at The Conference Board of Canada to help leaders identify relative strengths and weaknesses in Canada’s socio-economic performance. The How Canada Performs website presents data and analysis on Canada’s performance compared to 16 peer countries in six performance categories: Economy, Innovation, Environment, Education and Skills, Health, and Society.

Academic & Corporate Memberships Now Open at CIEC

March 15, 2013March 27, 2020Canada India Education Council (CIEC)

Academic relations between Canada and India are at an all time high and yet education linkages remain well below potential. This is despite the trailblazing work being done against the backdrop of cordial relations between our two countries; the size and growing importance of the Indian ‘Diaspora’ in Canada and significant efforts devoted in recent years to strengthening academic linkages in this exciting sector. After observing India’s keen interest in reaching out ‘Internationally’ and the capacity gap ‘widening’, Canada India Education Council (CIEC) was founded in 2010 by bringing together 15 academic & non-academic organizations in Canada.

Since our creation, CIEC has gradually evolved into a valuable bridge between Canada & India and is poised to soon become the “go to” organization for Canada-India academic relations. CIEC is one of only a few organizations offering critical ‘on the ground’ presence in both countries and helps Institutions position themselves advantageously in an increasingly competitive environment. CIEC combines corporate governance with the benefits of a public-private partnership balanced with an entrepreneurial methodology to remain independent and yet be financially sustainable.

CIEC has invested countless hours and resources in paving the way for academics, organizations, governments and other stakeholders to collectively work with each other and have helped lay the foundation for smooth academic relationships and exchanges. We are proud of our accomplishments in this short span but also realize that we have only just begun to scratch the surface. Besides planning delegations, organizing missions (recruiting & otherwise) and hosting our flagship annual ‘Synergy’ Conference for over 6 years, there remains much more to do and many opportunities to be seized.

As CIEC opens its Membership ranks to Institutions across Canada and India we invite select Colleges | Universities and interested Corporations to join us as we enhance ties and create opportunities for academic institutions and learners from both countries. Members will have an opportunity to network with each other and showcase themselves and their institutions in this vibrant and burgeoning Canada-India education corridor.

Your CIEC Membership will also serve as yet another way to profile your Institutions programs, commitments and initiatives in this vibrant ‘corridor’ and with thought provoking discussions led by experts from both countries via our weekly newsletter (reaching over 19,000 academics and thought leaders from both countries), members can highlight recent developments, new programs, dialogue on emerging opportunities, stimulate thought and discuss new initiatives and ideas. CIEC’s highly penetrative and potent network reaches academic champions from both countries, high level government representatives and policy makers besides key Canadian & Indian Colleges and Universities.

Being mindful of shrinking budgets, CIEC’s ‘Membership fee’ is a nominal $200/month which we hope will allow for broader participation and create a greater value proposition for Members.

CIEC members will enjoy*:

•   ‘Rep’ office(s) in India and Canada
•   Tile or logo (clickable link) & a banner on CIEC’s website (if available) in Media campaigns in both countries
•   Access to CARE (Canadian Academic Advisors Representing Excellence) – CIEC’s exclusive ‘Agent’ Membership category
•   Discounted Registration fee at CIEC signature events (Annual Synergy Networking Conference in Canada & on delegations to India)
•   One-call telephone number for Members & ‘On the ground’ presence in both countries
•   Access to CIEC’s vast and expanding corporate and academic network
•   Access to market intelligence and identifying leads in ‘market development’
•   Advice on logistics and support in planning visits and meetings in either country

*For a full list of membership benefits, please visit: http://canadaindiaeducation.com/members/benefits/

CIEC invites you to join us as we work together to create a win-win situation and by building on past successes, we look forward to a promising future. The budget friendly Membership fee of $100/month will not only demonstrate your interest in reaching out to key academic leaders from other institutions but also afford access to exclusive ‘Member only’ events and enable hosting visiting delegations on your campus.

CIEC is a bi-national, bi-partisan, independent, event-driven, membership-based organization established to operate exclusively in the ‘Canada India education corridor’, enhance ties and create opportunities for academic institutions and learners from both countries.

To become a Member and be counted as a leader and be visible in this dynamic and growing sector, click here to get started. We look forward to working with you.

Kind regards,

Hon. Pierre S Pettigrew, PC Prof Roseann O’Reilly Runte, President & Vice Chancellor,
Chair-CIEC Carleton University
Academic Advisor-CIEC