Sprott Shaw College will provide 13 full scholarships for incoming Syrian refugees, the college announced.

Each scholarship is worth up to $20,000, and each of Sprott Shaw’s 13 colleges across the province will offer full tuition, books and fees for one of the college’s programs from a selection including the Health Care Assistant Program, the Early Childhood Education Program, the Business Administration Bookkeeping Program, and many more.

According to a government announcement made this week, 2,500 refugees could arrive in B.C. before the end of the year, as part of the federal government plan to bring 25,000 Syrian refugees to Canada by the beginning of 2016.

Sprott Shaw is offering the scholarships as part of a Canada-wide initiative by the National Association of Career Colleges, in partnership with the federal government, to help welcome Syrian refugees into the country.

“We want to help the newcomers from Syria in the most effective way we can to make sure they are welcomed, and that they can get high-quality education and training to find meaningful jobs,” says Patrick Dang, president of Sprott Shaw College. “Our intention is that the training they’ll receive with us will empower them to integrate into the British Columbian economy and fulfill the very real need for skilled workers that is predicted in the province in the years to come.

According to the British Columbia 2022 Labour Market Outlook, there will be more than one million job openings in B.C. by 2022, with approximately 44 per cent of these jobs expected to be in the skilled trades and technical occupations.

Once the winners are announced, Sprott Shaw will provide them with career counselling to help each select the best program for his or her skills and interests. Programs start monthly.

After graduation, the scholarship recipients will benefit from the college’s Lifetime Job Placement Assistance Program, as well as upgrade and refresher courses, so that they can always receive assistance finding work in their field.

“We want to provide the scholarship winners with industry-standard, in-demand skills that will help them integrate into B.C. workforce,” says Dang.

For information to go to Sprott Shaw's website.