SCHOLARSHIPS RAIN FOR EMERGING MARKETS
Guess who calls the shots on foreign campuses these days? Students from emerging economies .Global universities have instituted different kinds of scholarships and financial aid packages to woo students from developing countries like India and China.
The University of Chicago Graduate School of Business recently announced a new Emerging Economy Fellowship .These fellowships, worth $25,000 each, are offered to students from emerging economies. These economies include India , China, Indonesia, Malaysia ,former Soviet Republics, and some African countries .Rosemaria Martinelli ,associate dean of student recruitment and admissions, Chicago-GSB ,said, Students from emerging markets who wish to return after graduation often have a difficult time repaying study loans because of low salaries. This fellowship is intended to make it easier for students to return home and work after graduation .
Other schools like INSTEAD and IMD in Switzerland have teamed up with companies like Shell and Syngenta to create scholarships .IMD’s partnership with Shell, for instance, will cater to students from Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, and Latin America .On the other hand, Syngenta’s donation for scholarship to students from emerging countries is the largest ever scholarship gift INSTEAD has received .
Even top-tier US universities like Harvard and Yale are dolling out generous financial aid packages for students from these countries .For instance, in its under graduate courses, Yale has now done away with the distinction between domestic and international students.
D George Joseph, assistant secretary of the University ,Office of International Affairs, Yale University ,said. If a student has secured admission, but his family—whether they are in the US or any part of the World—earns less than $45,000 a year, the student need not pay anything
Students have to apply separately to get scholarship in universities like Yale .But, in most others, scholarships are given on the basis of merit and student’s financial status.
It is not for nothing that global schools have started focusing on these countries. Stung by the drastic dip in international applications between 2002 and 2004—where applications are dropped by as much as 30% in some cases—US schools want to ensure that such a situation does not arise again. While visa concerns post 9/11 and the poor state of the US economy were among the main reasons for the fall in applications, one cannot also discount the fact that schools in US and Europe tend to be expensive .Other countries with lower costs, but good quality education had slowly started to wean students away.
Any global school worth its salt wants students from diverse backgrounds .Martinelli said, Diversity results in a richer experience inside and outside the classroom .No school cam be truly international without students from India, China, and other emerging economies .This new fellowship program will help us build on our diversity.