Jalandhar, Oct 13 : Educational institutions in Punjab are in the process of becoming truly global by providing students the option of studying abroad.

Over 1,000 students of Lovely Professional University in Jalandhar have come together to interact with the Canadian university representatives that include Conestoga College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning and Thompson Rivers University.

The delegates highlight differences in teaching methodology adopted by the Canadian education system.

“As part of the Canadian education fair, Canadian education network is an organization that promotes education for Indian students in Canada. The advantage of coming directly to organisations such as this is that there is a lot more opportunity for students to know about colleges and universities and for colleges and universities to know more about the students,” said Lois Shannon, Executive of Thompson Rivers University, Canada.

India and Canada, through the University Grants Commission, are now pursuing measures to promote academic cooperation in fields beyond humanities and social sciences, to include institutional cooperation in fields such as natural sciences, medicine and engineering.

Compared to other Western countries, Canada has more to offer. “It is possible to work on campus in Canada. After studying for six months they can work off campus for 20 hours in a week. If a person studies under co-op program then they are able to work full time. When students complete at least two years and graduate from their four years degree program they can stay in Canada and work for three more years. This is not so in other countries of the world,” said Shannon.

With increasing availability of quality education in India, the trend of Indian students going abroad is witnessing a shift now.

However, in states like Punjab a majority of students still look forward to settling abroad. And this is what makes India the most-favored recruitment destination for a number of countries.

Maria Mathai, Director, Canadian Education Fair, says, “India is a priority market for most of the Canadian universities and colleges. The Government of Canada has identified four countries that are BRIC nations (Brazil, Russia, India and China).

“In the last three years there have been five-six delegations, which have come from Canada. This includes representatives of universities and colleges, ministers and presidents of institutes,” added Mathai.

In a rapidly globalizing world, the emphasis is more on mutual cooperation between universities. Indian institutions like the Lovely Professional University already has working relations with more than 10 foreign universities that helps in exchange of academic knowledge. This is of great help to students who look forward to joining a foreign campus. (ANI)