Chilean graduate students in Asia

By David Azócar

Asia is the world's economic engine and Chile is aware of that fact. The proof of this is its FTAs with Korea and China, not to mention the upcoming FTA with Japan. Are there any Chileans studying in Asia? Or is our knowledge limited to the region’s autos and stereo equipment? It is time to answer these questions.

Cultural exchange between Chile and the rest of the world has been characterized unilateral financial aid sent to Chile by developed nations. Under this scheme, many Chileans have studied abroad with scholarships. The preferred locations have been Spain and United States, while Asia has traditionally been ignored.

According to a Chilean expert in the field, the most common reasons for the Chilean lack of interest in Asian scholarships are the language barrier, lack of information on available scholarships and a complete ignorance of what can actually be learned from countries so culturally different than our own. These reasons were cited by Cristian Prado, who is in charge of Asian scholarships at the Agency for International Cooperation (AGCI). The agency disseminates information on many of Chile’s foreign-subsidized scholarships.

The spectrum of learning opportunities in places like Japan, South Korea and China has increased over time. There are now many private and State-sponsored scholarships which pay for all a student’s expenses for many types of study, including doctoral studies.

Opportunities for brave grad students

Study in Asia is very different than in Chile. Karina Gonzalez, Professor of Education at Santiago’s DUOC, understands this fact. She was awarded a Monbukagakusho scholarship offered by the Japan Ministry of Education for teachers. She stayed a year and a half in Japan, specializing in teaching methodologies at Tokyo Gakugei University.

One of the main reasons she chose to study in Japan was the quality of its schools. "Among its merits are its results in international tests of math and science skills (TIMSS). Students are disciplined from a young age. I worked with groups of more than 35 children and it was shocking to see that, from an early age, they learned to organize themselves and work together for the common good."

Grammar and high school earning styles weren’t the only difference between Japan and Chile. University study is completely different, too. "One thing that surprised me is that the university system is very open. It is the responsibility of each student to attend classes and meet their responsibilities. Self-study is crucial, which can be comfortable for anyone with clear objectives. It can also be a two-edged sword for the undisciplined,” says Gonzalez.

Study topics and class schedules are varied. Cristina Jara, a fifth-year PUC Civil Engineering student, received a scholarship to study Korean culture to 10 days. The trip was in 2006 and she traveled with two other Chileans. Funds were supplied by the Embassy of South Korea in Chile.

The two-week allowed the Chileans to see how Koreans study. During the trip they had the opportunity to visit various universities, in order to study English and Korean. And you cannot live day to day without speaking Korean, says the engineering student.

Asian generosity, when it comes to scholarships to study in their countries, appear to have long-term goals, in Jara’s mind. She explained that the invitation was extended to many nations. “Our delegation was composed of people from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, China, India and Russia. Korea considers that these powers will be important in the medium-term. In turn, students are selected based on their potential to play important roles in their home countries in future. This why we were given 10-year visas, so that we might return, after we begin working at home.”

Many Asian scholarships are aimed at breaking the language barrier which exists between Latin America and the rest of the world. The Embassy of China in Chile is well aware of this fact and raised its language scholarships to 17. Students travel to China in order to study Mandarin for 10 months. These students may then opt to apply for a postgraduate scholarship to study in China.

These are just three possibilities, but there are 10 slots available in Japan, 17 in China and 4 in South Korea (via AGCI) which are offered annually.

Short courses (from 2 weeks to 6 months) are essentially offered at Chile’s AGCI offices and the embassies of each country. There are also non-governmental institutions like the World Bank, the Bank of Japan, the Interamerican Development Bank, the Korea Foundation and the Japan Foundation, which all offer funding.