The Eastern Partnership (EaP) European School in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi has held a virtual graduation ceremony for its second cohort of students earlier today.
A total of 34 students of the class of 2021 from EU’s six Eastern partner countries - Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine - have graduated with an International Baccalaureate diploma and will pursue their higher education studies in their home countries, as well as in Europe and the United States.
30 percent of the graduates have received full or partial scholarships from well-known universities globally and will study in Spain, The Netherlands, Hungary, Italy, Belgium, Estonia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Turkey, United States and Canada.
Lawrence Meredith, Director Neighbourhood East and Institution Building DG NEAR, congratulated the students in a video address:
Today we celebrate the graduation of our 34 #EaP students from the #EU ????????European School in Tbilisi ???????? Well done to all for this academic milestone & admirable #resilience in these challenging times ???????? @eu_near @euneighbours @EUinMoldova @EUDelegationUA @EU_Armenia @EUinGeorgia pic.twitter.com/0cCTiwO7yh
— Lawrence Meredith ???????? (@LMeredithEU) June 22, 2021
Georgian Minister of Education and Science Mikheil Chkhenkeli said in an address that although the global pandemic is a challenging task, the students have done well.
You are smart and clever young people, full of determination, energy and curiosity and I wish you a life full of opportunities to achieve personal and professional success. Quality education is a major investment in life and I believe this investment will pave the way to remarkable accomplishments for you in the future”, he said.
Out of the 34 graduates, 11 students are from Georgia. Many of them follow the footsteps of their peers from the first cohort to study Biochemical Engineering, Medicine, Law, Computer Sciences and Economics, mostly in European as well as US universities.
Being part of a diverse community at New School made me realise that efficiency is maximised when people from varied backgrounds work together… I believe that experience gained in the last two years will make it easier for me to fit in within the new university group as an aspiring future scientist”, Nino Zhuzhunadze, a Georgian graduate from Akhaltsikhe said.
By 2021, the European School has a total of 64 students from two cohorts, 44 girls and 20 boys, who graduated with the IB Diploma, pursuing careers in a diversity of areas.
Another group of 40 students is set to join the programme for 2021-2023 after completing a very competitive recruitment process through applications, written tests and interviews.
???? Graduation day for 34 students from ???????? ???????? ???????? ???????? ???????? ???????? who finished the #EU European School scholarship programme.@LMeredithEU director for @eu_near congratulates these bright minds. @eu_eeas@UNOPS_Ukraine@UNOPS @EUDelegationUA
— EU Neighbours (@euneighbours) June 22, 2021
@euninmoldova @EU_Armenia @EUinGeorgia pic.twitter.com/KLA2ZVZqFi
The EU-funded school offers high-quality education to students from the six EaP countries Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine.
As one of the EaP's 20 deliverables for 2020, the school provides students from the EU’s six Eastern partner countries with an innovative academic programme while fostering multicultural exchanges and cooperation.
The unique diploma programme offered at the European School combines academic excellence with specialised teaching inspired by the European school system.