Against the backdrop of the ongoing India-New Zealand Education Week, the New Zealand government has announced an investment of NZ$400K for internationalization and student mobility initiatives.
These include further engagement with the New Zealand Center at IIT Delhi for fellowship grants and re-introduction of partial scholarships under the New Zealand Excellence Awards, Education New Zealand said in a press statement.
New Zealand Excellence Awards (NZEA) is a scholarship scheme designed for Indian students and funded by Education New Zealand and all eight universities across the country. Since the launch of the scholarship in 2016, it has supported over 200 Indian students.
New Zealand High Commissioner to India David Paine, Education New Zealand Chief Executive Grant McPherson; Professor Alister Jones, Senior Vice-Chancellor, University of Waikato, and Dr Eric Lethander, Vice-Chancellor, Strategic Engagement University of Auckland.
Speaking at the event, Grant McPherson, Chief Executive of Education New Zealand, said, “New Zealand’s education system is future-oriented and multicultural, providing students with the opportunity to earn a work-ready degree.”
“India is one of New Zealand’s primary partner countries for collaboration, exchange and student mobility. We are excited that today’s announcements around the New Zealand Center and the launch of the New Zealand Excellence Award Scholarships demonstrate our commitment to India as an education partner. He added.
Pro. James Gomes, Dean International at IIT Delhi said, “The New Zealand center is emblematic of IIT Delhi’s efforts to embrace internationalisation, providing opportunities for new research collaborations and global exposure for our students. Jointly funded in 2022 The first round of research collaboration has helped in fostering collaborative, sustainable and self-sustaining research programmes.
“Today’s MoU further enhances partnership and collaboration in research, teaching and fellowship between India and New Zealand and provides an opportunity to explore other innovative ventures,” said Prof Gomes.