University’s new partnerships unlock opportunities for international students

Students from Peru and Bermuda will have new access to university studies in Canada, thanks to two agreements the University of Ontario Institute of Technology recently signed with post-secondary institutions in these countries.

Partnership with Universidad Cientifica del Sur

The university’s Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Universidad Cientifica del Sur (Cientifica), located near Lima, Peru, promotes co-operation in academic pathways, as well as faculty and student mobility and research.

Peruvian students can now prepare for entry into a Canadian university program by earning their Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) through Cientifica. They will receive conditional admission to the University of Ontario Institute of Technology upon entry to the OSSD program, with final admission pending graduation with an OSSD and a competitive grade point average.

Cientifica offers the OSSD in partnership with Rosedale Academy, an online high school teaching the Ontario curriculum. Rosedale Academy partners with educational institutions around the world to deliver Ontario high school courses in a blended-learning environment (a combination of online and in-class learning) for students seeking to bridge into a Canadian university program.

“While students in Peru typically complete 11 years of standard education, this partnership allows students to complete a 12-year education, providing them with extended learning opportunities and new academic pathways to undergraduate study at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology,” says Shannon Bracken, the university’s Director of Recruitment and Admissions. “The agreement also opens Peru as a new recruitment market for the university.”

The agreement also opens possibilities for co-operation in:

• academic training
• collaborative research
• faculty exchanges and/or visiting programs for teaching and research
• student exchanges
• teaching

Agreement with Bermuda College

Bermuda College offers two-year associate degrees which prepare students for entry into Year 3 of a four-year undergraduate university program.

Under this new agreement, Bermuda College students earning an Associate of Arts, Science or Applied Science can now transfer credits toward a Bachelor of Arts, Commerce, Allied Health Science or Nursing degree program at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology. This is the university’s first diploma-to-degree partnership outside of Canada.

“These program areas are important to Bermuda’s economy and are the flagship program offerings at Bermuda College, the sole post-secondary institution in that country,” says Bracken. “This diploma-to-degree partnership is just the beginning: we hope to develop more opportunities for both Bermudian and University of Ontario Institute of Technology students, staff and faculty.”