Message from the Vice President & Dean

Greetings from New Vice President, Students, International and Alumni – Cebert Adamson

I am delighted to bring greetings in this issue of the International department newsletter. I want to start by acknowledging the great team of persons in the department and our partners who are making a difference in the lives of our international student population at Mohawk College, in the pursuit of excellence. As a team you have consistently demonstrated a keen attention to not only support the strategic priorities of internationalization at the college, but also our students, many of whom are excited and sometimes scared, coming to a new country.

I think it goes without saying that we are in a new era for post-secondary education. As an institution, we are adopting new, innovative and creative strategies and models to guarantee a sustainable, successful future. In the next 3 – 5 years, as we focus on recovery, growth and sustainable development, my vision for international includes an enhanced enrolment management framework and support system, greater and deliberate partnership development and student engagement. Among other things, this means offering students an education that is more affordable, personalized, and relevant. Institutions are not only grappling with better methods and innovations to accommodate students’ needs, they are also struggling with economic pressures to define the value of a degree, increase college completion rates, and access to and provision of high-quality education. ;Keen attention must also be paid to global issues, especially relating to recovery efforts in countries where we recruit students. Internationalization of the college and an exceptional end-to-end student experience, in order to make Mohawk the first choice for international students, remains paramount.

I urge everyone to be committed to exceptional service, recognizing the diversity of our learners and team members. Our efforts are focused on being responsive to students’ individual needs by providing consistent, high quality, timely guidance, services, and supports through knowledgeable, well-informed staff and engaging programs. I envision support for a community of learners connected to opportunities in our region, nation and beyond. Building relationships with our students and providing opportunities for them to build relationships with one another and with our communities is central to our work.

I am optimistically excited about the future prospects of what we will achieve together in the coming years.

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Greetings from New Dean of International & Partnerships – Anuraj Bajwa

In the midst of the uncertainty and chaos of 2020, with a heart full of hope, I joined the dynamic International team at Mohawk College and found a group of people raring to go and conquer the world.

While the year 2020 will certainly be remembered for its devastating and unprecedented impacts around the world, it was gratifying to join a close-knit, positive team working hard and committed to an exceptional experience for our students and dedicated to nurturing agent partner relationships. It is a pleasure to be part of such an enterprising team with entrepreneurial spirit second to none.

Before moving ahead, I wanted to recognize and appreciate the exemplary work done by my predecessor, Mr. Keith Monrose, in transforming Mohawk International into one of the best International Teams in the country. Thanks to the values instilled in the team by Keith - caring, impactful, team player, and continuous improvement - we, as a team, have been able to withstand the pressures and uncertainties caused by the pandemic.

Over the last 11 months, we have continued to collaborate with both internal and external stakeholders to support our international students in realizing their dream to receive a world-class Canadian education, either online from their home country or from inside Canada. The team has been nimble-footed in our actions in response to changing government travel and isolation policies and has consistently ensured our international students and agent partners have the best experience possible. 

In the last few months, we have also witnessed the successful culmination of efforts to modernize our systems and processes and to build process efficiencies across a number of teams. In addition, we’ve also on-boarded new partnerships:

• International Admissions as a function has been moved under the Registrar’s Office
• Ontario College Application Service – International Application Service (OCAS-IAS) was selected as the international application processing and agent management system with an objective to both automate application processing and provide a better quality experience to applicants and agent partners. International Admissions has started working with OCAS to implement the new system in the next 4-6 months.
• Discussions are underway to build an integrated service model across the institution with an aim to provide the best quality services to our students
• In January 2021, Mohawk College was approved for a Public College Private Partnership (PCPP) with triOS College, to offer select Mohawk College programs through triOS at their location in Mississauga. Mohawk will be responsible for recruitment, enrollment management and program development and triOS is responsible for delivering these programs.

As we continue to develop recovery efforts from the pandemic, we are also in the process of defining and shaping International’s vision for the next five years. Our focus will be on building on our strong foundations, with an emphasis on ‘Comprehensive Internationalization’ (CI).

 

In the next few months, as we prepare for things to go back to some kind of new normal, in terms of international travel, engagement and in-person delivery of education, we will also be working diligently on defining what ‘Comprehensive Internationalization’ looks like for the Institution, with all the pillars, components and stakeholders of CI defined. These may include: Academics, Domestic and International Students, Staff, HR, IT, Finance, EDI, Facilities, Student Services, Applied Research, International Partners, City of Hamilton, Local Immigration, Cultural, and Ethnic Associations and Groups, Local Industry Partners, and others. We look forward to hearing from you, our valuable partners, as we develop these plans.

Please enjoy the information presented in the newsletter and feel free to send us you valuable feedback, comments and suggestions. Collaboration and shared ideas are key to the success of all our future endeavors as we all work together in creating a broader visibility, presence, partnerships and success for Mohawk, nationally and internationally.

 

Hudzik, J. K. (2011). Comprehensive Internationalization: From concept to action. NAFSA.