Scores of high school students turned up at an international education fair in Kigali this week.

The fair was organised by Worldwide Education Group Ltd, an international education consultancy in Uganda, in partnership with DNK Events & Media Rwanda.

It attracted several international universities, offering partial scholarships to woo prospective students.

The expo showcased with study opportunities for Rwandan students, including 20 per cent  scholarships in tuition fees for all female students and 25 per cent for Christian students pursuing engineering courses in the St. Marys Group of Institutes in India, represented by Raghuram V. Amanaganti, the director of international operations.

Martin Clark, the international marketing officer for Brunel University, London, said the university gives out 140 scholarships annually which come in a full package with both accommodation and tuition fees. He said the scholarships were still available to students who have excelled in academics.     

Patrick Douse, the director of international office at the Cyprus International University, also presented a number of scholarships, where by all Rwandan students that apply will be offered a 37 per cent tuition discount in their first year of study.

Douse said the university  also offers ambassadorial scholarships, whereby applicants are required to submit written essays explaining why they  should be awarded scholarships to study at the institution.

He added that in cases when the student’s academic performance is outstanding, they can get up to 25 per cent or more discount off  tuition fees.    

"Brunel International University  is a credible institution ranked 15th  among top international universities in the world,” Douse said. 

Christain Caissy Nakurt, a communications graduate from the University of Rwanda, said she was happy that the fair came to Kigali because she is looking forward to pursuing her masters degree in media and public relations at Brunel International University in UK. She applied for a scholarship and is waiting for the outcome.

 The Universities that participated at the education expo include; Brunel University of London, Symbiosis International University, Cyprus International University, Nilai University, St Mary’s Group of Institutes among others.

 "Such education expo will be held in March every year and is expected to provide an educational platform for Rwandan prospective students of overseas universities, colleges and academic institutions to come and obtain help in planning and making informed decisions prior to furthering their studies at those institutions,” David Kamanda, of DNK events and media Rwanda said.

The expo was graced by different representatives of higher institutions of learning who shared with students and parents, on the do’s and don’ts of Universities overseas. It ended on Tuesday.

 "We target students who want to study abroad. We bring international universities and colleges closer at a one stop centre for easy access,” David Kayongo, a representative of Worldwide Education Group Ltd said.

He called upon parents to engage in the fair because the application process is free and they deal with credible universities.

 Every year, the Rwandan community will get to discover and access direct education, immigration and travel information about new study destinations around the world at the expo, with a chance to learn key factors like competitive costs of education, streamlined procedures, part-time work schemes for foreign students and the unique lifestyle, making studying abroad an attractive destination for higher education as well as professional training.

Worldwide Education Group says it is welcomes all students to benefit from this "great opportunity” by applying for university degrees for the 2014 – 2015 intakes in courses ranging from; Medicine, Engineering, Business, Environmental Science, Biomedical Science, Communications, Media, Law, Finance, Computer Science, among others.