Fourteen Bhutanese professionals have been selected to study in Australia in 2019 under the Australia Awards(AA) Scholarships. The certificates to the awardees were presented at a ceremony in Thimphu yesterday.
A teacher at the Wangsel Institute for the Deaf in Paro, Yeshi Gyeltshen is one of the award recipients this year. He is the first, hard of hearing person to receive the award. Through the scholarship, he will pursue Masters in Learning Intervention with a specialization in Deaf Education at the University of Melbourne.
He was selected from the 200 Australian Awards applicants.
“Receiving the scholarship indicates there is also good support to the people with disabilities like me. In future, I hope I can support others like me,” Yeshi Gyeltshen said.
However, this year’s intake, 14, is a decrease from 28 Australian Awards recipients last year.
“Bhutan remains an important friend and a partner of ours. The scholarship numbers will go up and down, but I hope they will continue to be the strong foundation of our relationships for a long time to come,” Rodney Hilton, the Deputy High Commissioner of Australian High Commission, said.
He reaffirmed Australia’s continued support to Bhutan.
The applications for the next round of Australia Awards Scholarships will open on February 1, next year. The Australia Awards for the first time will be offer diploma and certificate level courses in the areas of Tourism and Hospitality in addition to short course and informal learning opportunities.
Bhutan has been receiving scholarships to study in Australia since it joined the Colombo Plan in 1962. Currently, there are 2,017 Bhutanese studying in Australia.
