Our students successfully represented our faculty at the 68th International Veterinary Students Association (IVSA) Symposium, which was held in Morocco, and IVSA Cyprus was established.

Kaan Kaşıkçı and Melissa Aksaç, students of  Near East University Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, attended the International Veterinary Students’ Association (IVSA) symposium, organized for the 68th time in Rabat, the capital of Morocco, to represent our school and our country.

During the symposium, our students successfully represented our school with their presentations and they have made new contacts with students from all around the world. After a voting, their  IVSA membership application was accepted. As a result, IVSA Cyprus was established.

During the symposium, interviews were done with students from various countries and information about our university, faculty and country was given. Our students, who expressed that the participants showed great interest, stated that they were listened with great admiration and reached the satisfaction of answering a lot of questions.

WHAT IS IVSA?

IVSA stands for International Veterinary Students’ Association. It is a non-profit organization run by volunteer veterinary students and it was founded in 1953.  The mission of IVSA is “To benefit the animals and people of the world by harnessing the potential and dedication of veterinary students to promote the international application of veterinary skills, education and knowledge.”

IVSA helps to expand the worldwide collaboration of over thirty thousand students, enriching their student experience and improving their skills as future veterinarians. The way in which this is achieved is by arranging annual meetings (congresses and symposia), facilitating exchanges between our members and many projects and educational opportunities focusing on animal welfare, one health, education, soft skills and wellness.

What was done in Morocco?

In order to complete the application of becoming an IVSA member, a presentation about Cyprus and the Near East University was held at the 68th IVSA Symposium in Morocco, and after the voting, IVSA Cyprus was established. This has been a success for our country and our university.

Apart from that, a cultural night was held where every country had their own stand to present their cultural foods. Another event were the international stands. In this event, each country introduced itself and its universities. Cyprus and Near East University attracted great attention and gained a lot of interest at these stands. Our university and Cyprus are were represented with great success. Apart from these, our Cyprus representatives represented Cyprus by attending IVSA General Assembly meetings, various lectures and presentations (about beekeeping, fisheries, one health, animal welfare etc.), Moroccan animal hospital visit, Rabat city tours. Hundreds of students from other countries also attended these events.

In addition to this, Kaan Kaşıkçı and Melissa Aksaç attended all the general assembly meetings held in Morocco, so they got the rights for Cyprus to vote  in the next congresses and symposiums.

About IVSA Cyprus:

Among our founding members who have been involved in the establishment of IVSA Cyprus are: Melissa Aksaç- president, Kaan Kaşıkçı- student exchange officer, Atasel Petin, Kağan Erdim, Taha Akyol, Erinç Faraçoğlu, Adem Ulugün, Beril Banoğlu, Ekin Topkaya, Coşku Atılganoğlu, İpek Karakuş and İsmail Uygun.

The official facebook account of IVSA Cyprus is IVSA Cyprus and its official instagram account is named @ivsacyprus.