The Panamanian Shipowners Association (ARPA) awarded scholarships for more than 86,000 dollars to first-year students from various parts of the country, who will pursue higher studies at the International Maritime University of Panama (UMIP), which will help them cover all your career in this sector that increasingly requires more skilled labor.
This award of scholarships is part of the “Sea of Opportunities” Program created by ARPA and will benefit some 15 students, who were selected from a total of 30. These young people were chosen through a rigorous evaluation process coordinated by the UMIP Academic Council and in which a multidisciplinary team of professionals such as teachers, psychologists and social workers participated, who evaluated the academic profile and socioeconomic level of the participants.
This economic benefit It includes the costs of the entire degree, during the four years, the summers, as well as the uniforms and boots of all the beneficiaries.
The president of ARPA, Rodrigo Hernández, indicated that with this initiative they seek to generate growth opportunities for these young people, contribute to the training of qualified Panamanian labor and that in the future they are the ones who take the reins of this industry to continue maintaining the country as a leader in the maritime industry in the region.
The students selected to receive the scholarships have excellent academic performance and will study Naval Machinery, Naval Construction, Maritime Administration, Maritime Transport and Navigation.
The UMIP vice-chancellor, Juan Carlos Ayú Prado, indicated that it is a great satisfaction for this house of study to receive these 15 scholarships from ARPA, which are a seedbed from which future sailing administrators and shipbuilders will emerge, offering them the opportunity to forge a better future. “These scholarships have been distributed among all the careers offered by the UMIP and we are sure that with this example, other entities would also join in to develop the potential of these young people”, he pointed out.
For his part, the coordinator of the Mar de Oportunidades Program and member of ARPA, Juan Diego Reyna, indicated that the Association, as part of its commitment to education, has the objective of strengthening the national maritime culture, through projects that allow more young people and people who are part of the sector have access to various training programs and theoretical-practical training. “Undoubtedly, this scholarship program demonstrates not only the commitment of the companies that are part of the association to education, but also the dream of valuable young people who aspire to be the generational successor to this industry,” he said.
For her part, Stephanie Magallón, one of the scholarship students, thanked ARPA for the opportunity of being chosen to receive this benefit and assured that she will give her best effort to become a maritime port administrator.
