I’m a natural experimenter and adventurer at heart. That’s why I’ve chosen to pursue education in the U.S. As an Emirati citizen. I think that international students should look for an opportunity to study more and return back with experience they can use to improve their community’s life. Currently studying in the USA, I appreciate the scholarship opportunity that allowed me to receive my Bachelor’s degree here. However, according to the conditions I received my grant for, I have to return for work in the UAE. The USA provides lots of opportunities. I can stay in the U.S. is to obtain a Master’s degree. I took my notebook, sat near my window as the evening slowly passed, and decided to search for the best American scholarships for graduate students. Below, I’ll tell you about my successful journey.
Scholarships to Consider for Emirati Students
There are multiple options to get scholarships in America, though for those interested in receiving a business-related Master’s degree is a little bit difficult. During my research for a perfect scholarship that would help me cover at least tuition, I’ve realized that business schools offer a lot of scholarships and grants for college, but most of them don’t offer support for those interested in graduate school. It turned out that I didn’t have so many options after all, mainly because of my location. I’ll focus on that later. Seeing my panic of not being able to find something outstanding, my friends and family offered me the options below, and I think you’d love some of these alternatives.
- Fulbright Foreign Scholarships is one of the best-known scholarships available for the international students on all levels, and it covers full tuition. Yearly, approximately 4,000 students receive assistance from the U.S. government.
- The MasterCard Foundation sponsors thousands of students each year and provides them with the resources they do not have to help them accomplish their learning objectives. Some of the universities with which the foundation cooperates are Michigan University, California University, and Wellesley University.
- Rotary Peace Scholarship offers opportunity financial internationally, and many individuals use it to visit a broad list of countries for educational purposes. It provides college scholarship and grants in many countries, including the USA. This field does not limit itself for international or American students and chooses those it considers the most suitable for its program.
- American University Online Program Scholarships are also an affordable and appropriate learning alternative for students who need scholarships opportunity but do not necessarily want to visit the particular location. It would be a great option for me as well since I currently reside in Washington D.C. Dupont Circle area.
- The Knight-Hennessy Scholars scholarship opportunities are also outstanding for those who want to visit Stanford University and receive a unique and valuable experience. It focuses on helping the learners develop more diverse views and meet like-minded people with different backgrounds.
- Farleigh Dickinson University also allows opportunity scholarships for international students regardless of their field of study. It supports students from international and general grants based on students’ achievements and allows for a renewal of the scholarship.
My Final Choice: Rotary Peace Scholarship
During my search, I realized that it was difficult for me to learn how to get scholarship because of my unique position as an Emirati citizen and American student. Among all the college scholarships and grants I’ve decided to pursue, my final choice fell on the Rotary Peace Scholarship. Since such Master’s programs often require students to first study in the UAE to get scholarships to continue their education in the U.S., I was in a difficult situation because I had graduated from an American university. It is nearly impossible to apply for a Master’s degree as an Emirati student living in the U.S. To apply for the grant, I have to be a Master student in the UAE.
After a lot of reflection on the choice, I decided to opt with the Rotary Peace grant because it was the best choice for me. Compared to many similar programs, it didn’t have many reviews online, so I decided to browse through Reddit. For those of you looking for any useful info, you can find a whole community of enthusiasts who will always offer some useful suggestions there. But because I couldn’t find any details, I looked for the participants of the program on Facebook and in my uni. A few people responded to my requests, and it turned out that Rotary could cover all my expenses.
The only drawback of this scholarship opportunity is that it has limitations in terms of the university choice. In the U.S., a person can study at either Duke University or University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
I’ve learned that Duke University offers only Master’s in international development policy, which doesn’t directly relate to my goals. Fortunately for me, the North Carolina uni allows a student to get a graduate degree from various departments available.
To be eligible for this foundation scholarship, a student must know English well and have a bachelor’s degree.
However, it is a common requirement for college grants and scholarships. Fortunately, I needed only TOEFL or IELTS to apply, and I chose the former. From the personality standpoint, an applicant should possess leadership qualities and express interest in cross-cultural understanding and peace. The last requirement is to have at least three years of full-time experience in peace or development work. Fortunately for me, I had more than three years as a consultant at a local NGO in my area, which is directly related to this scholarship program in terms of economic development.
I liked the chance to study at such an impressive university with a long history of research and high-quality education. The Master’s program lasts for 21 months and includes theoretical and practical activities. I like that the university offers me a chance to have career counseling and different service opportunities. However, I didn’t like that I would probably need to move for my Master’s degree. But everyone has to make some sacrifice for their dreams, right?
- I chose two centers for the Master’s program.
- I located a local Rotary Club in Washington D.C., which is vital for those needing an opportunity scholarship. It is crucial to get a club recommendation if you want to have an additional boost to your application, and I didn’t take any chances.
- I submitted my application, which was a challenging but rewarding experience. As in many programs for scholarships, I had to include a resume, an essay, recommendation letters from my professors and a dean, a professional recommendation from my supervisor, and a transcript from my past educational experience.
- I had an interview with my Rotary endorser who contacted me a few weeks later. It was one of the most stressful steps for me, but our dialogue was successful, and he made a strong case for me.
- I received an email notification in November and applied for admission to my chosen university.
A Few Words on the Written Pieces
As I’ve written already, I had to write a resume, an essay, and a recommendation letter. For my resume, I used the popular online tool Canva that I love for all my applications and CVs. I included all the relevant information. Truth be told, I also added some extra things to just make it look more professional. I hope it worked!
The essays change with every application, so you needn’t think about them in advance. But I’ve spent a lot of time on my outline and researched Rotary Peace Scholarship essay samples.
The average size should be between 300 and 500 words, so I didn’t have much to write about. I tried to make my essay as personal as possible and maintain a formal style. Which wasn’t difficult, I suppose.
I decided to include two recommendation letters and asked my professors for them in advance. I’ve learned the hard way that quite a lot of educators simply forget to do that. And it isn’t like you can stalk your profs in the university, right? So, I sent 6 requests for recommendations, and only three professors provided them. I didn’t like one of them because it was clearly written in a rush. That’s why I didn’t include it.
What Now? My Path Forward
After I’ve told you about my long fight for the opportunities for scholarships, I will end by reflecting on my future. Perhaps it will be useful for the other Emirati students who are unsure about finding a program scholarship. According to the conditions of the grant issued, I have to work in the UAE. If you’ve got the same situation, don’t run to cancel scholarship! We should return the knowledge we’ve received to give back to our communities. I hope to bring back lots of new things for my society after scholarship ends.
It’s possible to get outstanding opportunities in the UAE.
I have found that it is possible to transfer to BIG-4 from the U.S. to the UAE. All types of business and entrepreneurship opportunities in my local community are possible.
For example, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Deloitte are the Big-4 potential employers for me, and they accept transfers from the USA back to my native country. I am happy with my professional and volunteer experience at the moment, and I have never considered choosing a scholarship cancel application. I look forward to working in the audit companies in the UAE and do my best to apply the cross-cultural and contemporary experience to help my community.