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Dominica

Dominica, officially known as the Commonwealth of Dominica, is a tiny island country in the Lesser Antilles region of the Caribbean Sea, with a total land area of just 290 square miles.  The country is located to the south-southeast of Guadeloupe and northwest of the island of Martinique.  The highest point in Dominica is Morne Diablotins, with an elevation of 4,749 feet, and the country’s capital and largest city is Roseau.
 
Nicknamed the “Nature Isle of the Caribbean,” Dominica, the youngest of all the Lesser Antilles islands, is renowned for its virtually untouched natural beauty.  The island is home to lush mountainous rainforests that are abundant with rare plant and animal species, including a colorful assortment of bird life.  The Sisserou Parrot, for example, can be seen commonly on the island and is the Dominica’s national bird, featured proudly on the country’s flag.
 
Dominica was first discovered by Christopher Columbus on November 3, 1492, a Sunday.  He named the island after the day of the week it was discovered, as Dominica, a Latin word, translates to Sunday.  The island became a colony of the British in 1805, and a member province of the short-lived West Indies Federation from 1958 to 1962.  The country proclaimed its independence in 1978, and since that time has operated as a parliamentary republic, with free elections and a market-based economy.
 
Dominica has a population of 73,000, of which the majority (87%) is of African descent.  There is also a significant minority of the population (9%) of mixed European and African heritage, with the European portion typically being English, French and Irish.  Smaller minority groups of Indo-Caribbean and East Indian descent are also present in the country.  English is the officially language of Dominica and is spoken by nearly all of the country’s permanent residents.  Approximately 80 percent of the population is Roman Catholic, although recently a number of Protestant-based churches have been established, and the country just built a mosque where its small minority of Islam adherents can worship.
 
Education in Dominica
 
Taking into account its small size and relatively remote location, the education system in Dominica is actually quite impressive.  The system, which is modeled after the British system of education, is administered by the national government and includes primary education, secondary education and higher education, although opportunities in the last category are somewhat limited.
 
Primary and secondary schools in Dominica offer a broad curriculum that features both academic subjects and vocational disciplines.  Those who successfully complete their secondary education and earn a diploma under the Dominican system, are eligible to enroll in the country’s one university, where undergraduate and graduate programs are offered in a wide range of academic fields.  Post-graduate degree programs that typically lead to a PhD are limited on the island, and only offered in a select few fields.
 
Dominica also plays host to a medical school, where those interested in medicine can continue their studies without leaving the island, as well as a tropical research and education center and a biological field station owned by the United states-based Clemson University.