Oxford International Education Group has acquired a Canadian career college in Halifax, Nova Scotia, as it expands its vocational education offering in North America.
The East Coast Language College and East Coast International College has a “strong history of high-quality training” including pathway programs, vocational programs, and language training, Sharon Curl, OIEG North American managing director explained.
“With the addition of our resources and strategic capabilities, we are looking forward to building upon this history and developing a new chapter for the school,” Curl noted.
Through the acquisition, the private education company is expanding its vocational offer in a “vibrant country”, where inward migration set to grow, it added.
The country’s government recently said the student residency pathway is a “key pillar” for its immigration target of welcoming some 1,233,000 new permanent residents between 2021 and 2023.
The Career College will allow students to work alongside their studies, gaining skills and employment, and potentially opening-up residency in Canada after graduation, the partners said.
“Our new Career College route is a real validation of the quality of our educational models”
It will also introduce new offerings of the Continuing Care Assistant program in 2022, with more courses available shortly.
“Our new Career College route is a real validation of the quality of our educational models and our responsiveness to the needs of our local communities,” Lil Bremermann-Richard, OIEG chief executive, explained.
“Canada is such an interesting and vibrant country and with inward migration set to grow we are delighted to be able to service the needs of both established and new members of the communities in which we operate.”
OIEG’s “core values of academic quality, care for their students, and passion for what they do exactly mirror” those of ECLC, the college’s president Sheila Nunn added.
“We feel confident that this will be an excellent foundation to build into the future,” Nunn stated.
“In addition, the ambitions and roadmap for the group were incredibly exciting to us, offering additional pathways for existing and prospective students. We look forward to the continued delivery of exceptional educational services and an exciting new range of choices for our future students.”
Current and prospective ECLC students will also benefit from access to OIEG’s “innovative hybrid models of learning”, Bremermann-Richard suggested.
“The OI Digital Institute continues to grow, delivering a hybrid method of education that is timely, relevant, and convenient for the student. The Career College model is an exciting new development that enables OIEG to provide access for more students via its learning pathway.”
