Marco Carvalho
The University of Saint Joseph (USJ), Saint Paul School and two of the units of St Joseph Diocesan College have recently signed direct progression agreements. The new mechanism provides some of the three secondary school graduates with the possibility to pursue their academic career at USJ. The selected students will be granted scholarships awarded by Lucas Lo, a local businessman of Peruvian descent.
The President of the Similan Group, a company with very relevant investments in the real estate sector, made a commitment in July to finance twelve scholarships – six full grants and six partial grants – so that the best students from the three schools can continue their studies at the University of Saint Joseph. The Sino-Peruvian businessman has allocated more than 1.5 million patacas to Macau’s Catholic University, so that the higher education institution can attract students currently enrolled in the local Catholic Schools.
The direct progression agreements were signed by the rector of the University of Saint Joseph, Deacon Stephen Morgan, and by the directors of the three secondary schools. The agreement grants the selected students financial support for a period of four years: “The direct progression agreement with the diocesan schools is an important part of USJ’s collaboration with CDSJ5, CDSJ6 and Saint Paul School in providing a through-train within the Catholic education system in Macau. All four institutions – USJ and the three schools – are a part of the Diocese of Macau’s commitment to education and it should be a natural thing for students in the diocesan schools to see USJ as the logical best step when going to University,” professor Stephen Morgan told O Clarim.
“We are always working with schools in Macau, and especially the community of Catholic schools, to provide routes into higher education. Students who want an experience of a truly international University – a third of our students are foreigners, coming from 47 different countries – and want to be best prepared for an increasingly global working life, can experience that without leaving Macau by studying at USJ. Direct progression agreements and targeted scholarships help us to do that,” the rector of the University of Saint Joseph added.
Graduate students from Saint Paul School and from Colégio Diocesano de São José 5 and 6 can apply for the direct progression program until the end of December. The chosen students – four from each school – will be selected by the Directors of the educational institutions where they are enrolled, based not only on their academic achievement but also on their service to their own schools, the Catholic Church and to the community that surrounds them.
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