As part of a unique, government-led scheme, the Dominican Republic is preparing its university students for careers in international business using expertise from Cambridge ESOL.
A total of 4,200 students have enrolled onto the ‘English Immersion Program to Meet the Competition’. A first group of almost 800 students sat the Business Language Testing Service (BULATS) test in Santo Domingo and Santiago to assess their ability to deal with the demands of a global business environment. The collaboration follows a first meeting between the President of the Dominican Republic, Dr Leonel Fernández, and Cambridge ESOL on a visit to the UK in March 2006.
Ellen Ducy of the country’s Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology, said: ‘Those who graduate are able to easily understand spoken English and effectively communicate both orally and in written form, and will thus be able to work in call centres, banks, free zones and international companies with offices and facilities in the Dominican Republic. They will be able to support themselves and at the same time, contribute to the economic progress of the country.’