Ryerson University International College celebrates one-year anniversary
The one-year anniversary event was a celebration of how far these students have come. Credit: Garrick Kozier.
As the city has been rolling back some COVID-19 measures and the campus has been gradually re-opening, the Ryerson University International College (external link) (RUIC) hosted its one-year anniversary in person on March 31.
RUIC is a pathway program for international students designed to ease the transition to a Canadian university environment and to prepare them for academic success. This is an outcome of the 10-year agreement that Ryerson secured with Navitas, a global higher education organization, in 2020.
The partnership marked an exciting new chapter for the university that will broaden international education on campus and expand learning opportunities for international students.
RUIC provides students from around the world a unique opportunity to demonstrate their ability to succeed in Ryerson’s rigorous academic environment. Students who complete their RUIC first-year program successfully will be eligible to continue their degree studies in second year at the university.
Sabiha Raida was drawn to business subjects like economics and accounting in high school and since then has expanded her interests into human resources management.
One of those students is Sabiha Raida, who started at RUIC last September and will be attending the Ted Rogers School of Management as a second-year student this fall. Raida came to Canada from Bangladesh to pursue her higher education, with a focus on business studies.
Due to COVID-19, all of Raida’s first semester classes were virtual and with the time difference, she had to tune into classes either late at night or early in the morning. Raida said her RUIC instructors were there to support her every step of the way, including when she came to Canada for the winter term.
“I have gotten a huge amount of support from the RUIC team,” says Raida. “This was my first time being away from my family for a prolonged period of time and it was nerve wracking. RUIC helped me through the whole process and I’m incredibly grateful.”
RUIC started in January 2021 with 36 students from 11 countries. Wessen Rawazik, college director and principal at RUIC, says they are hoping to further diversify into other regions of the world including Europe, the Middle East, Latin America and North Africa.
From left: Darcy Rollins, chief operating officer, Navitas Canada and Navitas USA; Angel Lam, director of marketing and recruitment, RUIC; Mohamed Lachemi, president and vice-chancellor, Ryerson University. Credit: Garrick Kozier.
The goal of the RUIC program, Rawazik says, is to provide international students with opportunities to access quality education in Canada, which is desirable globally due to the favourable immigration policies and economic stability. RUIC supports international students with everything from the visa application process to settling into life far from home
“I am so excited about the one-year anniversary as it’s an opportunity for us to celebrate our partnership with Ryerson,” said Rawazik. “This is a moment to take a pause and really reflect on how far we have come. We are so proud of the resilience of our students and thankful to the supportive Ryerson community.”
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