British Columbia has announced CAN$150,000 in scholarship funding for 120 students from China, Japan and South Korea. The Canadian province has also signed agreements to expand education cooperation between BC and Asia.
The scholarships were announced by Education Minister Peter Fassbender during a five-day trade mission to Beijing and Tokyo to support BC’s International Education Strategy which identifies China, Japan and South Korea among the province’s top priority countries.
“International education is a priority for BC and our partners in Asia”
Partial scholarships of $1,250 a year will be awarded to 20 K-12 students and 20 Grade 12 students from each country to support study in the province.
During the trip, Fassbender signed Memoranda of Understanding with China’s Ministry of Education and two provincial bodies and the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology in Japan to promote student mobility between BC and each of the two countries.
He also announced a $25,000 fund for up to 50 BC students studying Chinese at high school jointly funded by Canada’s Ministry of Education and the Education Office of China’s Consulate-General in Vancouver.
On the second leg of his trip he officially opened the province’s first offshore school in Japan, Bunka Suginami Canadian International School, which will focus on English immersion to help students enter Anglophone universities overseas.
Fassbender described the mission as a “milestone” for international education programmes.
“International education is a priority for BC and our partners in Asia, and by working together, we can achieve our shared goal of providing these important opportunities to youth,” he said.
“We will continue the discussions we have had with our educational stakeholders, and build on the strong collaborations between our province and countries in Asia.”
There are currently more than 17,000 international students in BC’s K-12 system, contributing an estimated $400m annually to the provincial economy.