Training at the capital of Europe

At the Atomium in Brussels

As previously mentioned, I was lucky to be selected as one of the participants in the long running training for librarians which happens to be in Brussels, capital of Europe. They call it capital of the Europe because Belgium is a host country to European Union, the economic and political union of 27 member states located in Europe.

STIMULATE 10 or Scientific and Technological Information Management in Universities and Libraries: an Active Training Environment (the last one in the series) is a three-month training for librarians and information specialists about information management in a lecture and hands-on training given by the professors who are expert in that field. Classes are conducted mostly at Vrije Universiteit Brussel Campus Etterbeek and a little on Campus Jette. The funding of the program came from VLIR-OUS.

The contents of the training are as follows: Management in Libraries and Information Centers, ICT for Libraries and Information Centers, Information Retrieval, Information Architecture and Digital Libraries, and Library Visits. Most of the library visits are limited to the area of Flanders, a region in Belgium where Brussels is located and where most people speak Dutch.

More to follow...:) 

My Once-in-a-Lifetime Chance

VUB Campus Etterbeek

I've been wanting to share this but along the way, I did not have the time to write. Uhm, why is that? I also wonder. Anyways, I really have to start writing now and keep this blog updated just like my very good chum, the Demigod Librarian Darrel Marco :)

Well, at the start of this year, I applied for a scholarship in Belgium for librarians. The training will last for three months and its about Information Management. I tried applying because there is no harm in trying. Who knows, I might get lucky. And lucky indeed, because last April I received the notification that I was selected. Yipee! The first thing I did was to run to the Demigod Darrel, jumped for joy and hugged him. Well, he knew about it as he also helped me in the preparation of documents.

And now, I am here in Brussels attending the training at the
Vrije Universiteit Brussel with the other two Filipinos and other classmates from various countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America. The notification at the beginning was really exciting but the experience of actually being in Brussels is way more exhilirating.Europe is a dream destination for most of us and by going there, all free is really such a blessing! I can't thank God enough for this wonderful opportunity and a once-in-a-lifetime chance! I am also thankful to all the people who helped me with the recommendation letters (Ms Natalie Dela Torre and Ms Dinah Franco) with special thanks to Mr Darrel Marco :)

I never knew that there are grants for librarians before till I tried it as suggested by other colleagues. And never did I dream of being selected as a participants. Wel, for all those who want to try this scholarship you may check this website:VLIR-UOS
And for the complete information on my scholarship,
you may check it here:STIMULATE 10

I will blog more about the program in the next posts. I hope some readers will be inspired to try scholarships in Europe because there are a lot of opportunites out there. We only have to search for it and have the courage to send application. In the end, we'll never really know we might get lucky. As I continue to participate in the training, I promise to share all the knowledge learned here once I get back home.

Mabuhay ang mga Filipino Librarians!