Higher degree courses: EU delegation sends off 100 students to European institutions

The delegation of the European Union to Pakistan organised on Tuesday an event to send off the 100 member students, the largest ever group of Pakistani students who are recipients of scholarship funded by the Erasmus programme, to European institutions for higher degree courses.
Speaking at the event held at the EU Residence Acting, Chargé d'Affaires a.i. Anne Marchal said: "There is nothing more rewarding for a diplomat than interacting with students and youth in Pakistan. They are the future of their country and I hope that the Erasmus scholarships will equip them to contribute in their own way to the development of Pakistan as well as forging a better mutual understanding across regions and cultures."
She further said the year 2019 is not only special as a large number of postgraduate students are departing for EU to get important educational degree, but also a special year for the EU-Pakistan relations as, further to the visit of the High Representative Federica Mogherini to Islamabad and the return visit of Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi to Brussels, a new 'Strategic Engagement Plan' (SEP) has been signed, giving a new impetus to the bilateral partnership, deepening political relations and cooperation.
A whole section of the SEP, she said, is dedicated to enhancing partnerships in higher education, including academic exchanges such as those offered through scholarships and fellowships funded under the Erasmus programme and the Marie Sklodowska Curie Actions.
She informed Business Recorder that there is a central selection committee in the EU which selects students throughout the world and this selection is not based on quota system for various countries. She further said that each year the number of students to get degrees from EU instructions in various disciplines is increasing under the programme.
This academic year, no less than 100 students, about half of them young women, were selected through Erasmus, the EU flagship scholarship programme, to pursue their studies in Europe. Pakistani students, representing all parts of the country and hailing from various backgrounds, engaged in disciplines ranging from archaeology communication and development to applied sciences including engineering, robotics, and computer sciences, will be attending master level courses in 17 countries. This year students will be going to 17 different European countries including Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Germany, Denmark, Spain, Finland, France, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Sweden, Slovenia and the UK.
The event was an opportunity for Erasmus scholars to interact with representatives of EU Member States and the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan. They also met with Erasmus Alumni members, who shared their experiences of studying in Europe.
The European Union's Erasmus programme is one of the world largest scholarship programmes with a budget EUR 14.7 billion - including EUR 1.7 billion for international non-EU students for the years 2014-2020. The Erasmus programme combines all of the EU's schemes for higher education, training, youth and sport exchanges. The mobility of students expands and promotes academic and cultural understanding at the core of which is people to people contact. Erasmus is characterised by four major components: credit mobility, capacity building in higher education, a teacher training programme, and the Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters Degree (EMJD). Pakistan is the 4th largest participant in Asia.