ISLAMABAD: Twenty-one high school students from nine different cities of Pakistan participated in a three-week long Career Pathways Tour and visited 10 colleges and universities in the Midwestern USA (Iowa, Illinois, and Indiana), from July 2to 23, 2017.

This was the second summer immersion program organized by Education USA at the United States Educational Foundation in Pakistan (USEFP). The tour provides Pakistani high school students a unique opportunity to experience American college-level academic learning through short classes and interactive workshops.

One of the participants, Hashim Jalal from Roots International School, Gujranwala explains how the tour helped him learn about his prospective major: “Career Pathways has given me great exposure and opportunity to explore different educational fields. During my visit to the University of Northern Iowa, I learned about business and entrepreneurship and got a chance to visit local businesses. This opportunity gave me insight on what it is like to be a business major at a U.S. university.”Shaherbano Noor from Super Nova College, Islamabad says: “The tour taught me that it’s not just IVY league academic institutions that offer the major I am interested in. Public universities and liberal colleges are also great options.”

Education USA Pakistan Manager Umair Khan notes that students, parents, and school counselors are often unaware of the breadth and variety of academic majors and professions available in the United States. “This tour introduces Pakistani students to the large variety of academic programs available in the U.S. and encourages them to think beyond the conventional fields of medicine, engineering, and business. Traveling with our Education USA advisers and their own school counselors also promote students’ maturity and independence.”

During the tour, students learned about, career development, health sciences, business, entrepreneurship, computer sciences, media sciences, film production, engineering, informative, hospitality, and culinary arts.Activities like visit to the Indiana Dunes State Park and Jane Addams Hull-House Museum at UIC, baking pizzas at Kirkwood Community College, celebrating American Independence Day, canoeing, trying out virtual reality gadgets, making their own video game, and Zumba Dance classes were also part of the program.