February 14, 2017
Just as in many developing countries, West African students from poor backgrounds are often under-represented at higher level of education. DIWA addresses this imbalance by providing postgraduate scholarship assistance to indigent students in order to fill their “unmet” financial needs.
DIWA in collaboration with Da’wah Institute of Nigeria (DIN) runs a scholarship assistance program for students undergoing Master’s Degree, PhD as well as Postgraduate Diploma programs in West African universities. The program opens doors for postgraduate students, by providing financial aid for those who need it most.
The program is designed as supplemental scholarships that fill “unmet” financial aid need of postgraduate students, particularly from low income families or backgrounds. Its mission is to increase postgraduate studies access among low income communities and under-represented minorities, which in the long term increases their chances and give them more advantage in the present day competitive world.
Program outcomes:
- The program targets three West African countries- Nigeria, Liberia and Sierra Leone
- A total of 88 students have been given financial assistance for their postgraduate studies
- Of the 88 beneficiaries, there are 79 males and 9 females
- The beneficiaries comprises 9 PhD, 61 Master’s Degree and 18 Postgraduate Diploma candidates in the fields of social sciences, Management, Education, Language, Islamic Studies, Law, Engineering, Environmental, Biological and Agricultural Sciences, and CT
- Beneficiaries were selected on merit, enrolled in 15 Universities
- A total of US$53,729.2 was spent on the program
DIWA hopes to expand the scope of this program in the coming years to cover more students from the three target West African Countries- Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Liberia.
US$500- $750/student/program is enough to assist a postgraduate student in these countries fill their “unmet” financial needs.