(MENAFN- Gulf Times) Choosing the right kind of degree programme at an affordable high quality educational institution is an important, delicate and often a tricky decision to make for many students looking for foreign education.
Canada is a popular study destination, attracting thousands of international students annually to its various institutions.
A seminar by top accredited universities of Canada recently held here in Qatar, organised by Glinks International Consultancy, helped potential international students understand the reasons why Canada could be one of the best options for studying abroad.
A number of people, they say, have chosen Canada for world-recognised programmes, affordable education, multicultural society, healthy and safe communities, world-class language education, exciting campus lifestyle, innovative and abundant research opportunities, being land of possibilities and the possibility of immigration.
The international student recruitment advisers from the University of Alberta, University of New Brunswick, University of Waterloo, Vancouver Island University, Thompson Rivers University, Columbia College and Vancouver Film School personally interacted with students during the seminar at Mercure Grand Hotel.
The advisers provided potential students with a platform to learn more about post-secondary education options in Canada and the exciting academic and practical experiences as well as post-graduate opportunities that Canada offers.
"We are all here to present students with upfront accurate information because we are from the universities. Our desire is that the students will absorb this information and ask us multiple questions, so that we can tell them why studying in Canada is the best thing to do," Karuna Ausman, International Marketing and Recruitment Specialist from University of Waterloo, and the organiser of the seminar told Community.
Thomson River University and Vancouver Island University are also targeting graduate students with their MBA, Masters of Education and Environmental programmes. All the other universities are targeting under-graduate studies.
There was a lot of interest in engineering, business, health sciences, nutrition and variety of subjects, besides focus on work and study and co-operative programmes. However, most of the students came in to seek information on undergraduate programmes.
"I would not say that I know what Qatar wants, but I believe business and engineering degrees and health sciences degrees will be most welcome here," said Karuna.
Some university programmes, she said, are very tough to get into. For instance, at the University of Waterloo, any score below 90% will not get you into an engineering programme, whereas there were colleges that accept students with 65-70% marks. Thomson Rivers will take, for instance, 73 percent average for a student to get in to.
For top universities like Alberta and Waterloo, the scores will be way high. "It is not that the teaching quality in the other universities will be less, it is that we have fewer seats and more applications so we have the luxury of being competitive," said the international recruitment specialist.
Waterloo, she said, is in one of the top 155 universities of the world in QS ranking, a 5-star university in the QS, which means it is a top ranking university, 24th top university for engineering in the world, has the top Mathematics faculty in the world and has lot to offer to the students.
They also have the largest co-op programme, which means that you cannot go into their engineering programme without a co-operative education. You must study and work. It is a direct entry programme that gives you access to potential employers.
Canada, Karuna said, is a country that offers students the right to come and study and work 20 hours a week the day after they arrive and get their social insurance number. They can work during the summer holidays for 40 hours a week.
After they finish their studies and if they have studied for 3-4 years, the students will get a permit for 3 years and after that if they decide to apply for permanent residency and if they qualify, they may make Canada their home.
"If you have to compare the cost of education, UK, USA, New Zealand, Australia, and even UAE will come out higher than Canada. Our cost of education is much lower and our quality of education is much higher and right now Canadian dollar is so low that it will be beneficial for people to come and study in Canada," said Karuna.
Almost all universities also offer some sort of scholarships. The University of Waterloo offers a President's scholarship, an entrance scholarship and department scholarship. There are many scholarships that applicants are automatically considered for, others you have to apply to, said Karuna.
Khadija Jetha, Recruitment Coordinator for the University of Alberta, told Community that they are among the top 5 universities in Canada.
"We are very well-known for our high research funding, our good library system as well as our high rankings in science and technology programmes. We offer 200 degree programmes in 18 faculties. Some of our unique programmes include Computer Process Control, Petroleum and Mining Engineering," said Khadija.
The university is also home to the National Institute of Nano Technology, which is one of only five institutes in the world. In Computing Science, they have a certificate in computer game development which is good for students who want to study artificial intelligence, game software and app development.
"We also have a very highly ranked business school- it was ranked among the top 100 by the London Financial Times. We have programmes that focus on natural resources, energy and the environment," said the Alberta recruitment coordinator.
Prabhjeet Singh, the General Manager of Glinks International, which is based in UAE, was also present at the site. Speaking to Community, he said his company assists students to decide and pick a right career path for them.
'We advise them as per their need and requirements keeping in view their educational qualifications and their financial situation besides the programmes that they want to go into," said Singh.
The company also assists students with visa once they have secured admissions.
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