Cuban Higher Education Scholarships for International Students: An Overview

Abstract

Cuba’s program of higher education scholarships to overseas students is one of the most significant ways by which the Cuban people express their solidarity with other developing countries. Many of these countries have not had the opportunity to develop their higher education sector extensively, and Cuba’s provision of fully funded scholarships to the young people of these countries demonstrates how the Cuban government applies the principles of internationalism. In this chapter, the author discusses the main characteristics and achievements of the Cuban scholarship program in a manner that illustrates the principles discussed in chapters 1 and 2. The chapter also considers how Cuba is attempting to meet the main problems encountered in the program, and discusses the impact of the program in an international context.