Filipino culinary aspirant Chelsea Louise Villanueva has concluded the Canada-ASEAN Scholarship for Educational Exchanges for Development (SEED) granted by The Canadian Bureau for International Education (CBIE).
Funded by the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs Trade and Development, the fellowship provides qualified applicants from ASEAN with short-term exchange opportunities for study, or research in Canadian post-secondary institutions at the college, undergraduate, and graduate levels.
Facilitated through institutional collaborations, the open call for applications was cascaded by the Nova Scotia Community College (NSCC) Halifax to its academic partner, the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (DLS-CSB) Manila, where Villanueva was then pursuing Culinary Arts under the School of Hotel, Restaurant, and Institution Management (SHRIM).
A panel composed of Culinary Arts Chairperson Chef Margarita Marty, former International Hospitality Management (IHM) Chairperson Stephen Petranek, Practicum Advisor Jesus Mier Zapanta, and SHRIM Dean Marie Paz Castro deliberated on the selection for Villanueva.
A Benildean Student Envoy, an Academic and Service Scholar, and a consistent Dean’s Lister, she was chosen for her exemplary work and class ethics. She was likewise recognized for her outstanding skills and potential as a youth leader from her term as the co-promotions head of Chefs in Progress, the professional culinary organization of Benilde.
Villanueva, through SEED, enrolled in an extensive Baking and Pastry Arts course at NSCC Kingstec Campus in Nova Scotia, Canada, with a full scholarship covering all expenses, including airfare and supplies. During the eight-month program, she gained advanced skills in creating a wide range of confectionaries and refined her artistic abilities in designing pastries and chocolate showpieces.
She also worked as a part-time cake decorator and tutored local students, applying her newly acquired skills. Despite the challenges of living abroad, Villanueva credited her faith, family, and mentors for her success, ultimately graduating with honors.
After her NSCC journey, she completed an internship at the Fogo Island Inn in Newfoundland and returned to Manila to finish her studies at Benilde, graduating Cum Laude. Villanueva is now back in Canada, working towards her goal of becoming a head pastry chef in a five-star hotel in Paris.
