Saturday, April 19, 2014

QS News: MBA Scholarships for Women

Here is the link to the actual article: QS Top MBA - MBA Scholarships for Women
If you go to that site, you'll be able to find links to other scholarships available (and not just for women).

If you'd rather not click to the site, below is the article in full.

Words of advice: For women, do check out the list of schools where Forté Foundation funding is available. These are grants that are exclusively available to women. I got one of these myself, though I'm not exactly sure how my school allocates them - the donor I wrote my thank-you letter to was not the Forté Foundation.


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The disproportionately small number of women in leadership roles globally is one of the major challenges for the world’s top business schools, given their essential role in producing the world’s future leaders. However, boardroom imbalance is reflected in business school cohorts, with the vast majority of the world’s business schools still a long way from achieving a 50/50 balance.

Many top schools are moving to address the issue. One key way of doing this is through the provision of merit-based MBA scholarships for women, to encourage exceptional female candidates to enroll on MBA programs and gain the leadership skills they need to advance in the world of business.
This is by no means a comprehensive list of schools offering MBA scholarships for women – indeed, it is only intended to serve a snapshot. Check school websites for details of what MBA scholarships for women are available at schools in which you are interested (see a full list of schools at which Forté Foundation funding is available).

The following schools offer need and/or merit-based scholarships to all or specific demographics of candidates that are open to male and female candidates which may also be appropriate to your needs. The following list looks only at scholarships available exclusively to women.
 
North America

Chicago Booth

At Chicago Booth a number of MBA scholarships for women are on offer: Herman Family Fellowships are intended to encourage female entrepreneurship (US$50,000), the India Trust Fellowship (two awards of US$10,000) is open to candidates living and working in India at the time of admission and Wallman Fellowships are aimed particularly at female candidates from underrepresented minority groups (full tuition for two years). Forté Foundation Fellowships are also available to female students of Chicago Booth.

Thunderbird School of Global Management

The Thunderbird School of Global Management's Women in Leadership Scholarship offers US$5,000 to female candidates.

Yale School of Management

As well as participating on the Forté Fellows program, female students of ‘particular promise’ at the Yale School of Management are eligible for the Janet "Ginger" Gelb Scholarship.

Europe

London Business School

London Business School offers a number of merit-based MBA scholarships for women. All successful female applicants are automatically considered for the London Business School Women's Scholarship (first-year fee), the Carlsson Family Scholarship (£20,000), and Forté Foundation Fellowships (two awards of £20,000). UK residents or nationals are automatically considered for the Lloyds Scholars MBA Scholarship for Women (four awards of £30,000) and may apply for the Celia Atkin Avent Scholarship (first-year fee).

INSEAD

INSEAD states a commitment to a world where 50% of managers are female. Accordingly a number MBA scholarships for women are available at the prestigious school: INSEAD Alumni Fund Women's Scholarships (up to €15,000), Forté Foundation Fellowships (two awards of €15,000), Groupe Galeries Lafayette Endowed Scholarships for Women (€10,000 with preference to those from regions in which the Groupe Galeries Lafayette operates or will operate), and Judith Connelly Delouvrier Endowed Scholarships (up to US$15,000). Scholarships are generally open to candidates at all INSEAD campuses. Candidates win the awards by writing set short essays.

Asia
Many top Asian schools have scholarships to promote female leadership. These include the Women Leadership Scholarship at CEIBS, the Scholarship for Women with Impact at HKUST (up to five merit-based awards for 25% of tuition), the Women-In-Business Scholarship at NUS.

QS Scholarships
QS also offers a number of scholarships, both independently as part of its business mission and in conjunction with top schools around the world. Two schools offer MBA scholarships for women through TopMBA.com:

EDHEC Business School

The EDHEC Scholarship for Women offers €19,000 to three women who attend QS Women in Leadership Events in New York or Toronto. To win, applicants must write a short essay about the challenges they face as a woman in the workplace, or whether they are in favor of quotas in the workplace. The deadline is May 14.

IE Business School

The IE Business School Scholarship for Women, is worth €22,500 to the two winners. To win, applicants must write an essay on technological initiatives that can promote female leadership. The deadline is May 31.

Friday, April 18, 2014

Graduation Pics

www.flickr.com
In the Philippines, it's practically a tradition to take graduation portraits before you graduate. Students give wallet-sized portraits away to their friends, writing dedications at the back, and put up larger-sized pictures in frames at home. In the US, I found out that it wasn't as much of a big deal. (At least for grad students.) Why? Because the portraits are so expensive!

The portrait booth was tucked away into a corner during the grad fair. I had to go around twice before I found it. Unlike in the Philippines, there were no make-up artists or hair stylists to assist you. I had asked the photographer how much the portraits would cost, and he was sort of dodging the question. He just told me to let my parents pay for it. Since there was hardly anyone lining up at the hard-to-find booth, I was able to take my time with my portraits. I waited for the link that he said would come, which would take me to the ordering website.

I was really surprised with how much the portraits cost! Since I only had this experience with one provider, I am giving out a disclaimer. But here is a sample of the listed packages:

  • Set of 8 wallets - starting at $29.95
  • 1 8x 10 photo - starting at $29.95
  • 1 5x7 with a presentation folder - starting at $14.95
  • 2 5x7s with folders and a jpg of your image - starting at $64.95 (Value Package)
  • 1 8x10, 2 5x7s, 8 wallets, folders and a jpg of your image - starting at $79.95 (Standard Package)
  • 2 8x10s, 2 5x7s, 4 3x5s, 8 wallets, folders and a jpg of your image - starting at $94.95 (Premium Package)
  • 2 8x10s, 4 5x7s, and 8 Wallets - starting at $89.95 (Mix & Match Value Package)
  • 1 10x14; 3 8x10s; 10 5x7s; 24 Wallets - starting at $179.95 (Mix & Match Premium Package)
  • Single image download (with $10 to spend at an online photo site) - $59.95

The Mix & Match packages mean that you can order different portrait poses from the set you had taken. The rest are only for a single portrait pose. Again, these are only a sample of the packages available; there are more options to choose from.

I was trying to decide whether to content myself with a 5x7 photo (the cheapest option), which I could then scan, but my sister persuaded me to order the 8x10 photo. The prices above are labeled "Starting at..." because you had to shell out more for glossy pictures, for retouched pictures, etc. I chose the matte, non-retouched photo. But I didn't account for shipping (around $6) and taxes!

I procrastinated on ordering because I couldn't get over the price (the gown, cap and hood had sticker shock too). When I finally did (I got the 8x10 photo), I received a coupon code for free shipping! Gah. But I had made a mistake in my order, so I had a valid reason to cancel it. Then I reordered with the free shipping code.

When I got the picture by mail, I saw that they didn't follow the instructions in my order. So I complained, and they sent me another photo for free. A few days later, I had two more photos in my mailbox! I didn't realize that they had sent me the first one by mistake (they had confirmed that they cancelled it anyway). Needless to say - with three portraits for around $30 - I was a very satisfied customer.