5OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY STUDENTS GAIN
INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE THROUGH QEII
SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM
HEATHER ALDERSEY, PHD
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR, QUEEN’S NATIONAL SCHOLAR
I
n March 2015, Queen’s School of Rehabilitation
Therapy (SRT) was pleased to announce that it
would be a host site for Queen Elizabeth II (QEII)
Diamond Jubilee Scholarships in International Community
Based Rehabilitation (CBR). The unique QEII program runs
from 2015-2018. Students selected for this prestigious
scholarship are named “Queen Elizabeth Scholars.” The
QEII scholarship programs “aim to activate a dynamic com-
munity of young global leaders across the Commonwealth
to create lasting impacts both at home and abroad through
inter-cultural exchanges encompassing international edu-
cation, discovery and inquiry, and professional experi-
ences.”
One component of the SRT’s QEII scholarship will en-
able sixteen Occupational Therapy students to have Com-
munity Development and Advanced Clinical Practicum in
low- and middle-income Commonwealth countries. This
summer, an inaugural class of four Canadian OT QE Schol-
ars will travel to India and four OT QE Scholars will travel
to Tanzania. We plan to select eight more OT QE Scholars
for the 2016-2017 school year.
Throughout their time in the program, QEII Scholars
will engage with each other and with QEII Scholars from
across Canada and other Commonwealth countries. These
connections will support the development of a global net-
work of leaders committed to enabling positive change in
communities throughout the world.
For more information about the QEII Scholars pro-
gram, visit:
http://www.queenelizabethscholars.ca/Also, to follow along with Scholar journeys around the
world, check out the QEII Scholars Board here:
http://www.queenelizabethscholars.ca/qescholars/