This year, it is undeniable to say that there is no bigger disruption than the COVID-19 pandemic. However, as the whole world continues to address the global health crisis, one thing remains unchanged in our society: The passion for learning, which is even getting stronger during this tough time. International cooperation is hence, at the moment, a vital approach to face this challenge.
At Edunation Finland, we shared this vision. Last week, on the 2nd and 3rd October, I had the opportunity to represent Edunation at the European Higher Education Fair (EHEF) 2020, a highly anticipated showcase event where top higher education institutions from the EU present their programs to aspiring Filipino students.
Edunation has been participating in the EHEF every year since 2017, however, this year, because of the Covid-19, the EU Delegation has decided to host the event virtually for the first time ever. The 2020 fair made use of the digital transformation by staging the much-anticipated annual education fair live online. This made the event even more accessible to Filipino students and members of the academe, and especially, extended reach to other provinces in the country as well as other nations.
EHEF 2020 was organized by the Delegation of the European Union to the Philippines, together with EU Member States’ Embassies in partnership with the Commission on Higher Education, and supported by media partners Business Mirror – Envoys & Expats, Business World Spark Up, Gadgets Magazine, Roots & Wings Online, Sub Selfie, The Philippine Business and News, and When in Manila.
This year’s theme, ‘Study in Europe: The Future is EUrs’ further displays Europe as the Filipino youth’s gateway to excellence in higher education. EHEF 2020 aimed to redefine quality education and seek ways to make European higher education accessible to more Filipino students. Through the EHEF, the EU is opening doors for a sustainable partnership with local universities and higher education institutions.
The EHEF 2020 offered an amazing platform to introduce Filipino students to European universities and European higher education institutions. This year’s online fair featured webinars on research programs, sponsorships, and mobility opportunities. The webinars helped guide students on the best possible course offerings and support them to know more about the EU member states.
Virtual meeting rooms were set up for Philippine higher education institutions and their EU counterparts. Students had an opportunity to discover opportunities for distance learning, with many EHEIs offering post-graduate degrees through distance education programs. A total of 29 webinars were at stake in this year’s fair. The virtual fair featured 92 participating universities and higher education institutions from Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Slovak Republic, Spain and Sweden.
As a representative from Edunation – the only organisation from Finland that took part in the fair, I did a presentation on Finnish education and answered live questions from the audience. I was amazed and happy to see how Filipino students were so enthusiastic to learn about Finland and Finnish education. There were a lot of questions concerning Finnish universities, Bachelor’s and Master’s degree programs, PhD positions, admissions, scholarships, Edunation Pathway Diploma, and also international student life in Finland.
You can watch my online presentation at EHEF 2020 here and read about Edunation on the EHEF’s website here.
Written by Sophie Nguyen, Coordinator at Edunation.
