Four years in the making—since the link was concocted in Barcelona between Cebu Technological University (CTU) and Western Galilee College (WGC)—the first cohort of CTU students is finally poised to complete the March–July semester in Israel.
Danao campus BSED English students Ronna Abadejos and Nariz Corbo will juggle five courses at WGC while continuing their classes at CTU, following the directive of the college’s evaluation committee.
Under the program, WGC provides tuition and, with a recent notification, will also waive accommodation for the duo’s entire stay. Considering Israel’s high cost of living—comparable to a city like New York—CTU Internationalization and ASEAN Integration (IAI) Director Rhodora Magan, in a statement, described WGC’s offer as very generous.
Meanwhile, CTU, in trying to resuscitate its outbound pathways, covers airfare, provided all university protocols are met. Abadejos and Corbo are responsible for their meals, personal allowances, insurance, and visa fees.
The pair initially approached the IAI last October, expressing their interest in outbound mobility—an opportunity available to all CTU students and staff. They first considered South Korea but ultimately chose WGC for its academic offerings and rich cultural environment.
WGC is located in Akko (formerly Acre), a city with a storied past as the capital of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem in the 12th and 13th centuries. The student body reflects this diversity, with Muslims, Jews, Druze, Christians, and students from other cultural and ethnic backgrounds studying side by side. Such a multicultural environment will give both a unique opportunity to experience academic life in a truly pluralistic milieu within a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Their successful departure will set a precedent for future CTU students in outbound mobility programs from this year onward. The student mobility will also register CTU’s second delegation at WGC, following faculty mobility for lectureship conducted in 2023.
IAI Director Rhodora Magan, in a statement, expressed hope to sustain the partnership with CTU’s sole ally in the Startup Nation, recalling it as the upshot of her encounter with WGC executives at the Barcelona conference in 2022.
She added that her IAI team has actively campaigned for more opportunities for CTU students, not only in Israel but around the world./IAI
