Reunion: Global UGrads renew commitment to community service

300 alumni welcomed by US ambassador on their first reunion.

A total of 300 alumni of the Global Undergraduate exchange programme (Global UGrad) were welcomed by US Ambassador Richard Olson to their first alumni reunion on Friday, said a press release issued by the embassy.

The undergraduate students, who belong to modest backgrounds, were selected under the Global UGrad to study one semester at an American university. During the reunion, they discussed their experiences in the United States and what they learned to create service projects in their hometowns in Pakistan.



“There are so many impressive young people in Pakistan.  Each of you is a talented representative of this nation’s bright future,” said Ambassador Olson.  “To think that my country has had some role in advancing your education and helping your nation’s prospects makes me very proud of our cooperation, and of you.”

At the end of the reunion, the students, holding on to their commitment to community service, went off to clean up a hiking trail in the Margalla Hills as part of the Capital Development Authority’s cleanliness drive.



Since 2010, the US Embassy has sent 400 Pakistani university students from modest backgrounds to the United States for one semester of undergraduate study.  Under the programme, 100 more students will depart in January.

During their time in the United States, Global UGrad students gain the skills to implement long-term civic and economic changes in their communities.  The students undergo leadership training, training in their field of study, and participate in community service projects.

Implemented by the US Educational Foundation in Pakistan, the Global UGrad program in Pakistan is the largest US government undergraduate exchange program in the world.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 8^th, 2012.