ISLAMABAD, JUL 20 (DNA) – Thanks to the U.S. government-funded program, over 108 students from across Pakistan will spend a semester in the United States studying at colleges and universities alongside American peers.

During a pre-departure orientation in Islamabad, American Embassy Chargé d’Affaires John Hoover congratulated the students who have been selected to participate in the fall 2018 Global Undergraduate Exchange Program (Global UGRAD).

Chargé Hoover told the students they would become “powerful messengers” between the United States and Pakistan.  “You will tell stories that go beyond the headlines,” he said, “and your stories will give your friends and families a genuine understanding of the shared values between our two nations.”

2017 Global UGRAD alumna Fer Ghanaa Ansari shared stories of her year studying in New Jersey and explained how her time abroad changed her. “I fully realized all that I had gained from the UGRAD experience only after I came back,” she said.  “I gained confidence; I wanted to take more initiatives to make my country better; I wanted to remain an active member of my community.”

USEFP, a bi-national commission established in 1950 by the governments of Pakistan and the United States, helps the American Embassy administer the Global UGRAD Program in Pakistan.

Executive Director Rita Akhtar said that since the program began in 2010, more than 1,500 students have participated as Global UGrads, and 60 have gone on to study for Master’s or PhD degrees in the United States on the prestigious Fulbright Program.=DNA

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