E-Paper
ETS says number of applications to Canada unaffected after diplomatic friction
Rohit Sharma, SVP of global higher education and workskills, ETS, said ever since TOEFL was included in the student direct stream list of Canada on August 10, the number of applications has gone up as SDS fast-tracks the process
Educational Testing Service (ETS), which conducts the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) for students looking to study in other countries, has claimed that the recent diplomatic friction between Canada and India hasn’t affected the number of applications from Indian students.
Rohit Sharma, SVP of global higher education and workskills, ETS, said ever since TOEFL was included in the student direct stream (SDS) list of Canada on August 10, the number of applications has gone up as SDS fast-tracks the process. He said India sending back diplomats from Canada has only made it harder for their government to process the visa applications but the demand has not faltered. The officials added that Punjab is a very crucial market for them but didn’t share numbers related to how many applications they receive from the state.
Sharma was in the city as ETS signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Chitkara University to support students for studies abroad. They have also appointed Canam Consultants as TOEFL ambassador for Chandigarh.
As part of learning support, ETS will train teachers and trainers at Chitkara, organise TOEFL and GRE training classes, offer free TOEFL practice tests to registered test takers and invite students to participate in informative webinars by foreign universities.
ETS will also offer two merit scholarships totalling ₹2,50,000 for students at Chitkara University taking the GRE and TOEFL tests in addition to a discount on test fees to all students and alumni of the university.
Additionally, ETS announced that Canam will start TOEFL preparatory classes across five cities in Punjab.
Nearly 300 students are expected to get trained on TOEFL each month. The enhanced version of TOEFL has been implemented since July 26, making it the shortest among the three most popular English proficiency tests.
