You will notice more students from Colombia and Chile in the years ahead as a result of new agreements to make it easier for students to study and conduct research here.
The agreements were signed between government agencies in Colombia and Chile and a group of four leading Canadian research universities working together to offer international students a single point of assistance to further their studies in Canada.
The CALDO consortium – the Universities of Alberta, Laval, Dalhousie and Ottawa – forms strategic partnerships with funding agencies around the world. The group was created three years ago so students in Latin America could access services from a national organization representing accredited and recognized universities in all regions and official languages in Canada. The first agreement was signed with CNPq in Brazil, the country’s National Council for Scientific and Technological Development, last year.
Beyond Brazil
These new agreements with Colciencias in Colombia and CONICYT in Chile represent an expansion of Dalhousie’s international recruiting efforts in South America targeting sponsored students, particularly graduate students.
The four CALDO universities have already welcomed more than 200 students from Brazil’s Science without Boarders program, which encourages Brazilian students to study at universities around the world. Of these students, 40 are here at Dalhousie in Science and Computer Science. Half of these students will stay an additional term in internships.
These programs are gaining popularity because countries like Brazil, Colombia and Chile want more PhDs and highly qualified personal (HQPs) working in their home countries.
Opening doors
These agreements with Colombia and Chile were signed in February by Dalhousie’s Director of International Relations, Alain Boutet as a member of the CALDO Executive Committee, and Vice-President (Academic) Carolyn Watters on behalf of Dalhousie University.
The outcome of these agreements will be greater diversity on campus, and greater use of joint doctoral programs, which allow international research experience through a co-supervised thesis at two different universities. And while the door opens mostly one way for now, the popularity and success of these international partnerships should, in time, increasing opportunities for Dalhousie’s domestic students to study at partner universities in South America.
At the moment, Gillian MacDonald from Dal's Recruitment and Admissions Team is Colombia, meeting with prospective students. Read about her travels at the Passport to Dal blog.
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