ISLAMABAD: Cultural Attach at United States Mission in Pakistan Judith Ravin has urged the Pakistani students to avail the opportunities for US higher education for promoting better understanding among people of the two countries.
This opportunity of students exchange programme being offered under the United States Educational Foundation in Pakistan (USEFP) also plays an important role in promoting bilateral relations, she added.
She was speaking as a chief guest during the pre- departure orientation, hosted by the USEFP, for 80 Pakistani students who will begin their graduate and undergraduate programmes in the United States this fall.
"The United States is a large and diverse country with people from across the world living in imaginable geographic location and climate, but nearly all Americans share some traits as part of a general culture that you should be aware of," she told the students attending the orientation.
Terming the United States' commitment to Pakistani educational exchange programmes long-lasting and unshakeable, the Cultural Attach? said that the US universities warmly welcome talented Pakistani youth with various intellectual abilities and from multicultural and diverse socio-economic backgrounds.
She aid that Americans tend to be independent, practical and work-oriented and strongly believe in the concept of individualism hoping that meeting different people and making friends would be an everlasting experience for the Pakistani students during their stay in the United States.
Earlier, USEFP Executive Director, Rita Akhtar, in her welcoming remarks informed about US university classrooms as a reflection of the country's rich diversity, saying that so far USEFP has helped over 5,000 Pakistani students to achieve the dreams of US higher education through different scholarship programmes and free advising services.
According to the latest statistics, currently there are nearly 11,000 Pakistani students studying in the US while the number of those beginning their studies in the US this year has increased by 3.4% since 2012-13, she said. She termed this a good sign for fostering educational ties between the two countries.
On the occasion, EducationUSA Pakistan's Country Coordinator, Umair Khan also offered tips to the students, which included travel documentation, campus life, academics, US society and culture.
"Similar orientation sessions will be held in Lahore and Karachi for a total of 180 students on self-funded and scholarship programmes throughout the United States," he said.
In a follow-up panel discussion and question-and-answer session, the audience asked about topics ranging from food options to security concerns in the United States.
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