How To Overcome Challenges Faced By Scholarship Applicants from Developing Countries
Education is expensive, especially if one wants it from a tier-1 university. The cost of attending schools in the US or the UK is expensive. For instance, a master’s degree in the UK can range from 12,000 to 18,000 pounds. This may not be easy for someone in a country like Nigeria to pay for. The exchange rate is like 2000 Naira to 1 pound. So, one needs between 24,000,000 and 36,000,000 Naira to pay for a master’s program in the UK. This amount does not include feeding, housing, and traveling expenses. This is why students from developing countries seek scholarships to access quality education abroad.
Some people are of the opinion that students should use their home universities instead of stressing over universities abroad. The truth is that a good percentage of home students can’t afford higher education without scholarships. For instance, you can’t attend Covenant University if you don’t have close to one million naira. Also, you can’t study courses like MBBS in any federal university if your parents or guidance can’t foot the bills. Many students find scholarships to help them pay the tuition fees and other expenses to access quality higher education.
One of the primary reasons people look to study abroad is the quality of higher education. Most believe these universities equipped them with specialized skills and significantly increased their earning power. The good news is that most of these schools offer scholarships for international applicants. This is an attempt to attract talented students and to have diverse students. However, students from developing countries always find it difficult to access these opportunities. Some of these challenges are:
Financial barrier
The cost of applying for scholarships to foreign universities may be high for students from developing countries. Some schools in the US and the UK require tests of English (TOEFL, IELTS, Duolingo), application fees, GRE, SAT, WES evaluation, etc., and all of these are at a cost. You must have a minimum score in some of these standardized tests before being eligible for financial aid. For example, if you write two exams with an application fee, the cost of applying will be about $430. And if you convert this amount to naira, it will be almost N800,000. This amount is huge for an average Nigerian student who wants to secure financial aid to study in the US.
To overcome this challenge, seek out schools that can waive some of the exams and even the application fee. Some schools do waive the TOEFL for Nigerians, as the country is counted among those whose official language is English. Also, if you have a good CGPA, some schools might waive the GRE and application fee for you. The idea is to look for schools that will remove the financial barrier.
High Competition
Many well-funded programs have limited slots, ranging between 10 and 100. However, the number of applications these schools receive is always in the thousands. So, imagine 1000 applicants from different countries in the world jostling for, let’s say, 50 slots. The probability of being among the 50 slots could be a lot lower. Global competition puts pressure on students from developing countries as they compete with students with access to quality education.
To overcome this, you must have outstanding academic achievements, solid extracurricular involvement, leadership skills, research experience, and work experience to stand out in this pool. Aside from the grade, many funded programs require these as part of what they look out for in students they want to fund. This implies that when you apply, ensure your application shows them that you are the best fit for the program.
Fear of Rejection
Some students don’t want to experience the pain of rejection, so they don’t want to apply for scholarships. People know that getting into a well-funded program is not an easy task due to the competition involved. Because of this, some might feel they should rather not apply than be rejected.
The solution is to ensure that you don’t allow your feelings to dictate the direction of your life. Life is about winning some and losing some. If you approach life with such an attitude, you will have better chances of success.
Visa application processes
Another challenge is the cost of visa applications and other expenses. Most scholarships don’t cover these expenses, so awardees must fund them out of pocket. For a student from a developing country, these expenses might be huge. In addition, it is possible to have an offer for a fully funded program and still have your visa application rejected. Some of these countries have strict immigration policies, which is one of the challenges faced by students from developing countries.
Sourcing for funds from family members or taking up loans might help remove the burden that comes with the cost of visa application. Also, applying for the visa early and being convincing during the visa interview will help your application to be granted.
