Scholarship snapshot
23 December 2020
Part of what makes UWCSEA so special are our scholars. Each year, around 100 young people join the College in Grade 8, 10 or 11 on full or partial scholarships. Our scholarship programme is funded by both school fees and by generous donors.
UWCSEA has welcomed scholars for many years and life alongside these enthusiastic champions of the UWC mission greatly enriches our classrooms, our boarding houses and life across the campuses for us all. The travel restrictions caused by COVID-19 this year have meant an especially challenging start for many. In August, we joined with our sister schools in supporting our UWC family, and welcomed some scholars to Singapore who were not able to return to finish their diploma at UWC Changshu China, while several scholars who were not able to travel to Singapore are now successfully enrolled in the IB Diploma Programme at UWC East Africa.
After a challenging period of remote learning for students and teachers, our community was pleased to welcome the final few incoming scholars only after the October break. A warm welcome to UWCSEA’s 2020/2021 scholars—from Bhutan to Brazil, Cambodia to Colombia, Guatemala to Ghana, Malaysia to Malawi and beyond.
While we farewell our scholars at graduation each May, they remain connected to the College and are an important part of our alumni community. We were delighted to catch up with some of our recent scholars, who continue to live the UWC mission to the fullest, and are a true expression of the UWC values through their ongoing impact in their communities. The impact of the Scholarship Programme goes well beyond these individuals alone, for they are committed to creating deep, meaningful and lasting change for a peaceful and sustainable future.
Read more to learn about the Scholarship programme and hear from some of our alumni scholars themselves about the impact of their education and how they are working to make a difference in the world.
Chiao Tieh Lin ’19, scholar from Taiwan
I am currently a sophomore at the College of Idaho, majoring in Biomedical Sciences with the support of a Davis UWC scholarship. I have been in Taiwan since March due to the pandemic. It has been tough to learn this way, online and at night because of the time difference, but it’s special for me to be with my family.
UWCSEA provided me with an opportunity to step out of my comfort zone and enter another world; different people, educational system, and language. Most importantly, I believe in the cycle of giving and will support others who need help—and hope that I can inspire more people in my hometown to believe in the power of education!
Kengthsagn Louis ’13, scholar from Haiti
UWC made me aware how much my own cultural perspectives matter. This realisation has become the backbone of my research—I’m currently doing my PhD in Psychology at Stanford, exploring the intersections of culture and health on social psychology. UWC values about affecting positive change in the world have guided me, and now I have the tools to tackle the issues. Post-UWCSEA I attended Skidmore College, and won an award for my work on social entrepreneurship which came out of a Davis Peace Project I ran at the end of my undergraduate years. Much of the research in the field of psychology has been done by white, middle-class thinkers, yet we also need to understand and research how different people experience the world-—how other cultures and mindsets impact health outcomes.
My goal is to lead more community-based research; to create an academic centre in Haiti, that will train and fund scientists to investigate and solve problems in the different cultural contexts of low and middle income countries.
Carmen Barrios ’17, scholar from Honduras
My UWC scholarship changed my personal and academic life completely. After graduating from Dover, I was fortunate to receive a full Davis UWC scholarship at Skidmore College in the United States, and I am now applying to universities around the world to study a master’s degree in public health and epidemiology. Eventually I plan to enrol in medical school with the goal of becoming a physician who works to eliminate disparities in healthcare and provides compassionate, high-quality, patient care to individuals from all backgrounds.
Raquel Marquez ’15, scholar from Bolivia
I recently returned to Bolivia, after completing my undergraduate studies as a Davis UWC Scholar at Bennington College in the United States. My time at UWCSEA was the beginning of the road of a personal transformation. I never imagined that I would study human rights in college and much less that I would choose to dedicate my life to the advocacy for gender equality and sexual minorities’ rights.
Now that I look back, I understand the need to share the UWC mission, values, and experiences. Without a doubt, I can say that the experiences I had at UWC and the relationships that I created at such a young age have made me a better person and inspired both my education and work.
2020/2021 scholarship programme by the numbers
How are scholars selected?
Students hoping to obtain a scholarship to a UWC in Grade 11 nominate themselves to their UWC National Committee to be considered for a scholarship based on their personal commitment to the UWC mission.
Each scholar-nominee goes through a rigorous selection process, run by the UWC National Committees, made up of 3,000 volunteers across 158 countries. Although the selection process varies by country, National Committee scholar-nominees undergo a series of interviews, activities and testing over a period of months, designed to uncover their core strengths and abilities and their commitment to the UWC mission. Prospective scholars are challenged to work in teams, think on their feet, explain their thoughts and ideas to educational and community leaders, all while being assessed for their commitment to the UWC mission and potential. The selection process is so effective, UWCSEA was inspired to design a similar Immersion Day for all High School applicants, to give them an opportunity to show their true potential to live the mission.
If successful, the scholar-nominee is awarded a place at the UWC that the selection committee feel will best suit the scholar and their financial package is offered in line with their families’ means.
Many of our scholars receive a Davis UWC Scholarship and go on to complete undergraduate study at one of nearly 100 US universities or colleges on a full or partial needs-based scholarship.
Inspired? Find out more about UWCSEA’s Scholarship Programme.