Sept./Oct. 2000 Volume 13, Issue 5 CONTENTS COVER PAGE Return to cover page PRACTICAL INFORMATION [Free Access] Malaysia's System of Education REGIONAL NEWS [Subscribers only] Africa The Americas Asia & Pacific Europe Middle East   FEATURE [Subscribers only] Book Discusses the Pros and Cons of Distance Education NEWS YOU CAN USE [Subscribers only] Cyprus: Private Tertiary Education Programs Accredited by the Ministry Of Education And Culture   INFO Masthead: Learn more about eWENR and its editorial staff. Subscriptions: Don't miss future issues of eWENR. Workshops: See a listing of upcoming workshops sponsored by WES. Search or Browse WENR Archives: View back issues of this newsletter or search for specific words or terms. Useful Links: See a list of Web sites that may be helpful to eWENR readers. BREAKING NEWS WES opens new office in Toronto.

Breaking News WES Canada Now Open for Business World Education Services (WES) is pleased to announce the Oct. 2 opening of its new office in Toronto, Canada. The official inauguration and ribbon-cutting ceremony will take place Nov. 2. Last March, WES signed a contract with the Ontario Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities to establish a foreign credential evaluation service. The new facility will assist foreign-educated individuals in obtaining recognition for their academic qualifications and to provide equal opportunity for immigrants seeking employment, professional licensing or further education. Ontario receives approximately 100,000 immigrants a year. The contract was awarded to WES following a rigorous selection process conducted by the Ontario government to choose an agency to provide this service. WES was chosen based on its proven track record and expertise within the field of foreign-credential evaluation in addition to its service capabilities and demonstrated understanding of Ontario's educational system. WES has been operating in the United States since 1974 and is the largest -- and one of the oldest -- credential evaluation services in North America. The work that WES performs is based on thorough and ongoing research, using continually updated information on education systems around the world. The organization's specialized database contains information on 223 countries/jurisdictions, more than 16,000 academic credentials and approximately 30,000 institutions worldwide. WES has provided credential-evaluation services for more than 250,000 individuals since it began. The advent of the Internet and an increasingly globalized economy has greatly accelerated the international mobility of students and working professionals alike. As a result of this trend, there has been a dramatic surge in the demand for foreign credential-evaluation services during the past decade or so. Hence, what started out as a specialized service catering to a relatively small group of people, has now become an indispensable tool for helping tens of thousands of qualified immigrants either to find work to match their academic achievements or to further their education. With the opening of this new branch office in Canada, WES has truly become an international service provider. "Our purpose has always been to facilitate the integration of people from one country into the educational system and work culture of another," said WES Executive Director Mariam Assefa. "So the WES mission is well suited to fulfill the needs of Ontario's foreign-educated immigrant community."   E-mail your comments to the editor The eWENR staff welcomes your feedback regarding this article or the newsletter in general.  RETURN TO TABLE OF CONTENTS