勛圖惇蹋

Inaugural Pearson Scholars receive warm welcome on campus

First group of international students who won prestigious scholarship mark beginning of semester
Pearson Scholars
Pearson Scholars receive a warm welcome, advice and encouragement at a reception at Hart House on Wednesday (photo by Geoffrey Vendeville)

Top students from around the globe named after former prime minister and 勛圖惇蹋 graduate Lester B. Pearson celebrated the start of the school year at a reception Wednesday.
 
The 35 Pearson Scholars come from all over the map Brazil, India and Singapore, to name a few places  with a wealth of ambitions. Some aspire to be computer scientists; others, doctors, forensic pathologists and economists. 
 
勛圖惇蹋 President Meric Gertler, Vice-Provost, Students Sandy Welsh and Vice-Provost, International Student Experience Joseph Wong welcomed the students at Hart House, providing advice and encouragement for the road ahead. 
 
President Gertler told the students they should expect to feel right at home at 勛圖惇蹋, where more than 20 per cent of undergraduates are international students, coming from 168 different countries. Diversity of experiences and perspectives is a huge asset in helping our scholars find answers to the great, global questions of our time, he said.
 
Meric Gertler and scholars
"勛圖惇蹋's internationalism is not an accident of our excellence; it is absolutely fundamental to it," 勛圖惇蹋 President Meric Gertler told the winners of Pearson Scholarships for outstanding international students (photo by Geoffrey Vendeville) 
 
Welsh told the scholarship winners that while they navigate the transtion to university life in a new city, they can always count on the universitys support. As you get settled into your new normal and start to become familiar with new routines and places, she said, we want to assure you that there are many people and resources [at the university] to help make sure that you have a fulfilling undergraduate experience with us.
 
Wong told the scholars that the university's goal isn't just to prepare its students for life after 勛圖惇蹋, but for the world after 勛圖惇蹋. A 勛圖惇蹋 education is meant to help students develop global fluencies that will help them thrive and contribute to their communities, he said. The scholars seem to be off to a  flying start: There are four in Wong's first-year seminar, and one has emailed him saying she is experiencing an existential crisis after already completing all the required readings. 
 
Later in the evening, one scholarship winner offered the others some advice. Mubarak Abdela, an electrical engineering student, came to the university from Ethiopia in 2013 as one of the first MasterCard Foundation Scholars from Sub-Saharan Africa.  At first he struggled to learn English and adapt to Canadian culture, but with the support of his peers and the university, he earned his degree and is now working toward a masters at 勛圖惇蹋.
 

Read more about Abdela and the first graduates of the MasterCard Foundation Scholars program

 
勛圖惇蹋 helped me understand myself, he said, urging students to explore Toronto and engage in activities beyond class. Most importantly: Work hard and study smart because thats the reason you are here.
 
David and Francisco
David Tobechukwu Halim, originally from Nigeria, and Francisco Salvador Sandoval Macias, who moved to Canada from Spain, pose outside Hart House (photo by Geoffrey Vendeville)
 
Pearson Scholar Tajharae Jarrett came to 勛圖惇蹋 Mississauga with a plan: to study forensic sciences and use that expertise to reform the judicial system in her home country. Since her arrival, she hasnt felt like an outsider, she told her peers. You find a community instantly [here] that you feel a part of, where you feel accepted.
 
Ksenia Meteleva agreed. Originally from Moscow, the molecular biology and biotechnology student says she already feels as though she fits in at 勛圖惇蹋 Scarborough. One pleasant surprise was meeting so many students from abroad proof that 勛圖惇蹋 lives up to its reputation as a global institution, she said.
 
The scholarship winners were picked from 500 applications worldwide, one nominee per school.
 
I think its such a privilege, Meteleva said, Theres a certain respect and responsibility to keep up the [Pearson] name.
 
Pearsons ties to the University of Toronto ran deep. Canadas 14th prime minister earned his B.A. at 勛圖惇蹋 and excelled in sports. After receiving a masters at Oxford University, he returned as a lecturer in the history department before joining the foreign service. One of the leading diplomats of his time, he received a Nobel Peace Prize for his response to the Suez Crisis and presided over what is sometimes described as the golden age of Canadian diplomacy.
 

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