October 22, 2004 Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island A program that combines intensive international trade training courses and one-year work placements will continue to be offered by the University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI) with support from the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA). The trade internship program, which began in 2003, features course offered on-campus through the nationally recognized Forum for International Trade Training (FITT) professional certification program. The sessions are open to interns as well as private sector company representatives. Topics include international market entry and distribution, trade research, marketing, trade logistics, finance, management, legal aspects of international trade and global entrepreneurship. ¿Exporting can offer endless possibilities for our Prince Edward Island companies which produce top quality goods and services,¿ said the Honourable Shawn Murphy, Member of Parliament for Charlottetown. ¿Companies must be prepared for new markets and trained individuals can bring practical skills and knowledge necessary to succeed in the global marketplace.¿ Over the next two years, ACOA will contribute $416,203 to UPEI's School of Business Administration to deliver the trade internship program. Interns are now enrolled in the various trade courses and will begin working with companies in early January, 2005. P.E.I. companies interested in exploring new export markets can receive a contribution of 75 per cent of an intern's salary. Interns can undertake export-related tasks such as international market research, developing marketing plans or business plans. ¿The response in our first year from the interns and companies has been extremely positive. New markets are being pursued by companies and students have the opportunity to stay in the province to study and practice international trade,¿ said Dr. Roberta MacDonald, Dean, UPEI School of Business Administration. Interns have worked at a variety of companies including Millworks Canada, Spell Read P.A.T. Learning Systems, Green Gables Farms, Atlantech, Baseline Business Geographics and BioVectra DCL. ¿Krystine Dunsford joined BioVectra DCL as an intern in September 2003. We have been extremely pleased with the speed at which she learned the key aspects of our business strategy, and the contributions she has made to the marketing programs in a very technical and quality-oriented business,¿ said Heather Stewart, director of Marketing and Customer Service, BioVectra DCL. ¿We can certainly directly attribute her successful internship to the quality and content of the FITT program, and we have offered her a full-time position within our marketing group as a result.¿ For more information about the trade internship program or the upcoming FITT skills courses, contact Bernadette Lynch, program coordinator, 894-2837 or visit www.upei.ca/trade . - 30 - Ron Crozier Office of the Minister of ACOA (902) 888-4150 Bernadette Lynch UPEI (902) 894-2837 Lynn MacDonald ACOA PEI and Tourism (902) 566-7491
