If someone mentions that kin is studying abroad the first that comes to mind is how the family can afford to send them abroad.
Yes, the first thing that comes to mind is not the brilliant mind but how expensive and how much sacrifice has gone into sending the child abroad.
Financial stability is a very important aspect when one is considering furthering studies not only in the home country but also in a foreign country.
In our country, students who perform well are sponsored by the government, and their fees are subsidized to a reasonable amount which they can then make up for from their parents or their pocket, applying for bursary fund and the most popular one is getting the Higher Education Loan Board to give loans to students which of course requires an application and paying off.
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In the end, the student has multiple methods they can find their studies but what about that person with a dream of studying abroad?
Financial stability when in a foreign country for further studies as aforementioned is a very important matter and many universities require proof that a student can afford to live and support themselves and at the same time cover tuition and other things that require money during their stay in the institution.
There are several types of international students and their financial capabilities. The first group is the ones who easily afford to pay for tuition and living expenses as well as an allowance as their parents are wealthy and can afford to keep them.
These students only have to worry about grades. The second group is those who rely on scholarships, fellowships, exchange programs and, work-study to get by
These programs are usually from individual organizations, the institution partner, the government, etc. Scholarships are either partial or full. A partial is when the sponsor pays a part of the expense, for example, the tuition fee and the student has to should the rest, as for full scholarship the entire cost from tuition, accommodation and allowances.
There is also a merit and a need based scholarships. The need based mainly targets those student who are from low income background and have the thirst to study in their University while the merit based scholarships usually focus on the outstanding things that the students can do.
These students can either be outstanding in community or school for example showing strong leadership skills. These students can also Excel in extracurricular activities such as theatre, swimming, baseball, or basketball. Many athletes have gotten these scholarships because they were outstanding.
Exchange programs allow students to go to other countries to experience their culture, history and learn. These programs help build their student’s portfolios and also broaden their horizon.
Fellowship is a program that is a financial aid designed for graduate students to pursue graduate studies and research. A student may have financial aid but still, need extra funds for self-support and that’s where the work-study program comes in.
This program is tailored for students who want to earn an extra coin. It helps a student earn as they study for example a student can be a librarian and at the same time continue her studies undisturbed.
As they say, studying abroad is an investment in your future but one should be prepared to take down the financial hurdle by whatever means possible.
The following are some of the organizations that support international students seeking a chance abroad. The commonwealth, Erasmus Mundu, The Chevening Scholarship, and The United Nations scholarship, churches, government, etc.
These scholarships provide an opportunity to actualize the dreams of these students. The only thing that the students are required to do is to meet all the requirements and submit an application.