The MasterCard Foundation Scholars Program provides academically talented yet economically disadvantaged young people from Africa with access to quality university education. McGill is proud to be among the select group of global MasterCard Foundation Scholars Program partners selected based on academic excellence, nurturing environments, and programs relevant to growth sectors in Africa.
The MasterCard Foundation Scholars Program at McGill will welcome 13 students from Africa in its inaugural year in 2013-2014. Over the next ten years, McGill will welcome 67 MasterCard Foundation Scholars at the undergraduate level and another 24 at the Master's level, for a total of 91. Unique to McGill, some of the Scholars will be from French-speaking countries and as such, will benefit from enhanced English as a Second Language instruction.
The MasterCard Foundation Scholars at McGill will receive a holistic set of financial, social, and academic supports throughout their education and during their post-graduate transitions coordinated through the Office of the Dean of Students with the support from the Office of the Deputy-Provost (Student Life and Learning). Professor Lauren Chapman will serve as the lead mentor, and together with the Office of the Dean of Students, will assemble a mentoring team composed of McGill Faculty members and peer advisors who have valuable knowledge and experience at McGill and in Africa to share with the Scholars.
The MasterCard Foundation Scholars Program at McGill will leverage the comprehensive network of student support services already in place and will develop customized initiatives to further ensure that The MasterCard Foundation Scholars are fully supported and given every opportunity to succeed in a welcoming environment. This will not only benefit the Scholars, but their home communities as well because Scholars will be selected based in part on their motivation to give back/go back to Africa both while studying at McGill and at the completion of their degree.
As Canada's leading research-intensive University with more than 37,500 students from 150 countries in a bilingual, cosmopolitan city, McGill is an ideal partner of The MasterCard Foundation Scholars Program.
