With United World College, Greenlandic upper secondary students have the opportunity to complete their education abroad and become part of a cross-cultural community with friendships that last a lifetime.
Would you like to attend a school where you discuss international issues with students from other cultures in a global community that has been nominated twice for the Nobel Peace Prize?
If the answer is yes, you can do like Upaluk Geisler Jensen from Nuuk and apply for a scholarship to United World College (UWC), an International Baccalaureate (IB) program with students from more than 90 countries. This opportunity is available to students at all Greenlandic upper secondary schools, with an application deadline each year in February.
“I have always wanted to study abroad and see what was outside Greenland. So it was something that just felt right for me,” says Upaluk Geisler Jensen. She is 20 years old and completed her IB in the Netherlands in 2024.
An IB is equivalent to a Greenlandic upper secondary diploma and can be used to apply for higher education programs around the world. However, there are some differences.
“At UWC, you normally only have six subjects, so you can really focus on what interests you. I focused on global politics, arts, and English,” explains Upaluk Geisler Jensen.
The opportunity for immersion has been significant for the young woman from Nuuk, who before her stay in the Netherlands believed she would study astrophysics. Instead, she is now studying Global Arts, Culture and Politics in Amsterdam.
“There is so much happening in the world, and I want to actually do something about it,”
– Upaluk Geisler Jensen
Hungry for new connections
The UWC Greenland scholarship that Upaluk Geisler Jensen received has existed for more than 30 years. One of the early students who went abroad in the 1990s is Aviâja Lyberth Lennert. Today, she is Deputy CEO at Royal Arctic Line.
“I had just returned from an exchange stay in New Zealand and was eager to travel again and meet new people,” says Aviâja Lyberth Lennert from her office at the harbor in Nuuk.
Aviâja Lyberth Lennert ended up in Norway, where she shared a room with four other girls. One of the best aspects of the stay was the sense of community and meeting peers from very different backgrounds around the world, she explains, adding, “You gain sisters that way.” Sisters she is still in contact with almost 30 years later.
The focus on community remains a hallmark of UWC and is something Upaluk Geisler Jensen also highlights from her stay.
“You really learn a lot from each other, and you make friends for life from all over the world,” she says.