IIT Madras, US Consulate General to hold virtual workshop on hosting US students

Hyderabad: The Indian Institute of Technology Madras in association with the US Consulate General, Chennai, will host a virtual workshop titled ‘Destination South India’ to help build the capacity of South Indian Educational Institutions to host US students.

The workshop will be from November 15 to 18 and will be hosted jointly with the United States-India Educational Foundation (USIEF), and the Forum on Education Abroad.

The last date to apply is October 15. The link to register is: https://ge.iitm.ac.in/Workshops/US_StudyAbroad.html

The key objective to convene this virtual workshop is to help educational Institutions in South India to understand expectations of US students, US institutions and Indian institutions, and to establish successful study abroad programmes.

The workshop will include sessions on credit transfer, safety and mental wellbeing, field visits and classroom sessions, role of Indian students, community connections, diversity and inclusion, research, ethical practices, and preparation for post-pandemic programmes, according to a press release.

Prof. Raghunathan Rengaswamy, Dean (Global Engagement), IIT Madras, said the primary goal of the project was to build capacity of Indian institutions to support more American students coming to India to study abroad. The project aims to promote south India as a study abroad destination for students from US institutions and to build capacity of south Indian institutions to foster partnerships with US institutions.

Speaking on the benefits for US students coming to study in South India, Anne Lee Seshadri, Public Affairs Officer, U.S. Consulate General, Chennai, said: “Destination South India is a virtual workshop sponsored by the U.S. Consulate General Chennai. Through this workshop, we want to help Indian institutions prepare to host U.S. students and to partner with U.S. universities. We also want to help American students understand that South India offers a fantastic academic and cultural experience.”

Those who can apply for this initiative include educational institutions in South India looking to expand their existing engagement with U.S. university study abroad offices/U.S. students, or institutions that have not yet begun such an engagement but with resources and capability to host U.S. students; and also NGOs that are equipped and interested in contributing to the field experience of U.S. study abroad students, the release added.