SAO PAULO – A score of Spanish universities on Thursday presented their study programs to thousands of Brazilian students during the second edition of the “Study in Spain” fair.

“One of the goals is to provide information about programs, the curricula our universities offer and the Spanish educational system as a whole,” Pablo Martin Gonzalez, the head of the Spanish Service for the Internationalization of Education (SEPIE), told EFE.

According to Martin, Brazil is a “strategic country” for SEPIE, as there are some 1,700 Brazilian students currently enrolled in Spanish universities, which evinces the “excellent relationship” between the two countries.

“It is a figure we intend to increase,” he said, predicting that the fair will be a success in Sao Paulo, as well as in Rio de Janeiro, where it is set to open on Saturday.

Since 2001, Spain has been the most popular destination within the European Union’s Erasmus student exchange program, which helped some 45,000 students from all over the world pursue their studies in the country in 2016 alone.

Brazilian students attending the fair will also be able to participate in informational activities explaining the legal and administrative process required to study in Spain.

Last year, some 100,000 international students were studying in Spanish universities.

A number of organizations – including the Carolina Foundation, as well as SEPIE itself – will also present their own scholarship programs and financial aid plans to assist students during their stay in Spain.