Student Participant Report

Go for the Rotary

One of the Best-Kept Secrets of Education Abroad

By Brad Jensen

Although the Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarship Program has sent over 30,000 students overseas since its inception in 1947, it is still one of the best-kept secrets of international educational exchange. True to its motto, "Service Above Self," the Rotary offers a great opportunity for study abroad but seems modest about advertising it.

Rotary's annual expenditure of more than $20 million a year for international exchange programs makes it the largest source of funding for international study. Scholarships are available for high school programs, short-term intensive language study, and academic study abroad. Smaller programs support vocational exchange and university teaching.

The application process is straightforward but it does require some individual initiative. Applications can only be made to local Rotary clubs. It is up to the student to find out when the club meets, who the contact people are, and if the local Rotary has scholarships available for the intended year of application. If you are lucky, your Rotary club will be allowed to select a limited number of applicants, including you, to go on to the district interviews.

It is a good idea to apply to the Rotary in your home town (rather than in your college town) because the first selection occurs at the local level and you will most likely have more competition from other students in a university setting. International students will have to apply from their home country and may not apply for study in their current institution. Each Rotary club sets its own deadline for applications --as early as March and as late as July.

I first learned about the Rotary Scholarships by word of mouth. I was warned ahead of time that I needed to apply far in advance, so I started my search early in the year prior to my intended year of study. The best place to start is with the Rotary's web page (www.rotary.org) to find out where your local club meets and get details about the Rotary Foundation. The web page does not include telephone numbers or contact names, so I called the Chamber of Commerce in my home town and asked for the name of the club's president. Since your local club's president will become your official sponsor, it is a good idea to develop a relationship. Do not show up on the due date and ask for an application without having spoken to the president beforehand.

The main application form is short, straightforward, and easily completed in one or two days. You will also need two recommendations, transcripts, three short essays, and a language competency form. Since I was the first applicant ever from my home town, I had no competition at the local level. My sponsor was satisfied with my application, and she forwarded it on to the district level. In areas where competition is keener, you might be asked to come in for an interview or to give a speech to the local club. In my district, about one in four of the applications receive scholarship awards.

My interviewers seemed most interested in how I would represent Rotary and the U.S. abroad. Rotary is a service organization and my field of study, Information Technology for Development, probably gave me an advantage over other applicants. You are required to name at least five institutions where you would like to study. There seems to be a preference for applicants who are interested in going to universities other than the popular European institutions, particularly those in developing countries.

An important additional advantage of being a Rotary Scholar is the support you receive from the Rotary clubs locally and at your destination country. You are required to give presentations at Rotary clubs, but you should see this more as an opportunity than as a requirement. Many returning scholars that I have talked with mentioned their contacts with Rotary clubs as one of the best experiences of their exchange year. Rotary clubs are found in almost every country, and as a Rotary scholar you have the option of stopping by for a Rotary lunch or dinner almost anywhere in the world.

Rotary Scholarships

Ambassadorial Scholarships. The scholarships are generous and cover all expenses. Anyone with at least two years of college or two years of vocational experience may apply for almost any institution in any country. There are no age limits. This is one of the very few scholarships available to undergraduates, so take advantage of it.

The scholarships are for direct enrollment only and may not be used to fund a study abroad program sponsored by a home country institution. The Rotary will not fund unsupervised research, medical internships or residencies, or full-time employment. You can not apply to study in a city, state, or province where you have lived or studied for a period of over six months. You may not be related in any way to any living Rotarian.

Academic Year and Multi-Year. The oldest and largest of the Rotary Scholarship programs, the academic year scholarship, provides up to $23,000 for an academic year abroad. Multi-Year scholarships are available for up to three years--$11,000 per year, $33,000 maximum--and are intended to allow students to complete a degree program at one institution. There are no restrictions on the field of study.

Cultural Ambassadorial Scholarships are available for three or six months of intensive language training and cultural immersion in at an institution assigned by the Rotary Foundation. Scholarships are available for study in the following languages: Arabic, English, French, German, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin Chinese, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swahili, and Swedish. Applicants must have competed at least one year of college-level study of their language choice. The awards for 1999-2000 are $10,000 for three months and $17,000 for six months of study.

University Teachers in Developing Countries. Applicant must hold (or have held) a full-time college or university appointment for three or more years but not held any particular title. They must be proficient in the language of the country of choice. Rotarians and non-Rotarians may apply. Candidates must agree to devote at least half of their working time to teaching, but they may also spend time on research or other activities. Awards are available for three to five months ($10,000) or six to 10 months ($20,000).

Vocational Study Scholarship. The vocational scholarship program is a pilot program; only 10-15 scholarships for either $10,000 or $15,000 will be offered per year. Applicants must have at least two years' work experience in their field and be proficient in the language of the country of their choice. Special consideration is given to candidates who plan to study in the fields of food production, literacy, the environment, drug abuse prevention, care for the elderly, or urban peace.

For more information contact your local Rotary club (preferably) or: The Rotary Foundation of Rotary International, 1 Rotary Ctr., 1560 Sherman Ave., Evanston, IL 60201; www.rotary.org.

BRAD JENSEN is a graduate student studying Information Technology for Development in the School of Information at the Univ. of Michigan. He will be a Rotary Scholar next year in Pretoria, South Africa.