Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India] August 21 (ANI/NewsVoir): The countdown for the global movement of empowering every school to drive sustainable and inclusive counselling is right around the corner with the launch of the fourth edition of the 2019 Annual International Career and College Counselling (IC3) Conference.

The event is scheduled to take place in one of the most preferred education hubs of the country - Mumbai, on 28-29 August 2019 at the Grand Hyatt. With over a 300 per cent growth in attendance from 2016, the conference is expected to witness participation from 35 plus countries and anticipates over 1000 plus educators from across the globe. Moreover, as a stalwart and pioneer in the education industry, Ashoka University will be the co-host for the two-day conference in Mumbai.

A one-of-a-kind global platform of educators, the IC3 Conference will attract attendees from India, South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Australia, and New Zealand, among other countries for a collaborative dialogue on counselling and admissions practices focused on student success.

Moreover, noteworthy schools such as Aditya Birla World Academy , American School of Bombay , the Bombay International School, Garodia International Centre for Learning Mumbai, Dhirubhai Ambani International School, Oberoi International School, SVKM's JV Parekh International School, Universal Education, Utpal Sanghvi Global School, and Vibgyor Group of Schools have joined forces as host schools for the event.

The IC3 Conference will feature over 45 breakout sessions, insightful keynote addresses by leading education experts, planned networking opportunities, and high school/university fairs, exclusively for educators.

The IC3 Awards that felicitate schools, counsellors, and universities for their outstanding contributions to the field of career and college counselling would be announced during the main conference as well.

The event will also see the release of a timely report by IC3 and IIE that highlights the global flow of knowledge and talent especially in the form of students who travel abroad in the light of an environment of higher costs and growing competition for college seats.

"The student mobility landscape is poised to undergo significant changes, and it is time for us to revisit the brain-drain issue and examine the fundamental ethics, assumptions, and power dynamics that underpin student mobility, thus ensuring that the mobility of students and talent is based on principles of access, equity, and inclusiveness", said Dr Rajika Bhandari, the report's author and Senior Advisor for Research and Strategy at the Institute of International Education (IIE).

As the world becomes increasingly globalised with the shifting education scenario, the theme of the conference this year is: 'Finding the Elusive Fit: Navigating Domestic and Global Opportunities'.

The conference will also feature a prestigious group of renowned speakers, one of them being the well-known homeopathy practitioner - Dr Divya Chhabra. She will speak about her unique method of practice that may help one understand the students and support them in making better career choices.

IC3 along with the College Board will also host two pre-conference workshops on August 26 and 27 in Mumbai, which will provide thematic, skills-based training for professionals responsible for guiding students from India to world-class higher education opportunities. The Pre-conference Workshops are ideal for administrators and college guidance counsellors.

Before and after the IC3 Conference, the IC3 Committees will host IC3 Fair and Symposium events on August 27 and August 30 at some of the host schools in the Mumbai region. At these events, students (currently in grades 9-12) and parents from leading high schools in Mumbai will have the opportunity to meet and interact with representatives from over 100 universities. There will also be 30-minute breakout sessions where students and parents will get to know about emerging careers, education systems in various countries, the applications process, and more.

As a precursor to the main conference, IC3 will also be organizing the historic, third annual Presidential Forum, hosted this year by the American School of Bombay on August 27 in Mumbai. The forum will have an assembly of presidents and senior educators of educational institutions and business, industry, and governmental leaders from around the world.

The IC3 Presidential Forum will feature thought-provoking ideas with esteemed speakers from research universities, distinguished schools, businesses and industries covering some of the following areas: 'Balancing and juggling priorities leading to a world-class school', 'Careers 2040: Learning in the new age', and 'Learn to fail, or fail to learn: How failure sets you up for success'.

This special event will feature leaders like Dr Barry Craig (President, Huron at Western University, Canada), Dr Bhimaraya Metri (Director, Indian Institute of Management, Tiruchirappalli, India), Dr Pankaj Chandra (Vice-Chancellor, Ahmedabad University, India), Dr Sunder Ramaswamy (Vice-Chancellor, Krea University, India), Craig Alan Johnson (Head of School, American School of Bombay, India), Michelle Whittingham (Assoc Vice Chancellor, UC, Santa Cruz, US), and Prof Dishan Kamdar (Vice-Chancellor, FLAME University, India); among others.

With a view that career and college counselling is as important as teaching Mathematics or English in high schools, IC3 aims to empower high schools with professional development opportunities to ensure that students find the best answers to questions like "what to study," "where to study," and "how to make it happen."

"Young people leaving school today are like airplanes without a navigation system. They don't know where to go. Since the launch of the IC3 Movement, we have come a long way in providing resources and training to help develop career and college counselling offices across India. With the growing challenge among students of navigating a plethora of career and college choices, a career and college counselling department at school has become a critical necessity. Our objective is to continue guiding schools so that they have a deeper understanding of student needs and provide appropriate solutions", added Ganesh Kohli, Founding President, IC3 Movement, and Chair, 2019 IC3 Conference.

Through the Annual IC3 Conference, IC3 Regional Forums and the IC3 Institute, the IC3 movement envisions that every high school in South Asia and the surrounding region will run a robust, well-resourced career and college counselling office.

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