FURTHER – Page 4 – Furthering the Cause of Humanity

Scholarship Awards 2014-2015

Many thanks to FURTHER Scholars who submitted their reports for renewal of scholarship for the current academic year. In spite of severe constraints, we have managed to renew scholarships for all candidates from last year who are continuing their studies. Congratulations to all of you.

However, this is the first time we are unable to offer new scholarships in an academic year. Our funding has reached a low point and this is a matter of both concern and disappointment for us. We rely on the good word of our Scholars once they graduate and find jobs to remember and mention us to their employers as well as others who may be able to contribute. Please remember that all of us have an obligation to our fellow human beings.

We have pledged nearly Rs. 1,500,000 in scholarship and relief aid for the 9 months of the academic year starting in September 2014 and ending in June 2015. The scholarships shall be disbursed in two equal installments in October 2014 and March 2015. Full details shall be provided in an email to be sent shortly to each recipient. Funding has been renewed for the following FURTHER Scholars:

Haseeb Ahmed Khan Jadoon, FAST-NU Islamabad
Hassam Bashir, NUST Islamabad
Fahad Imran, FAST-NU Islamabad
Fouzia Shafi, Nishtar Medical College Multan
Muhammad Adnan Khan, FAST-NU Peshawar
Muhammad Ammar Khan, NUST Islamabad
Muhammad Ayaz, De’Montmorency Dentistry College Lahore
Muhammad Qayyum, NUST Islamabad
Muhammad Shehryar Raza, FAST-NU Lahore
Muhammad Zakir FAST-NU Islamabad
Rida Naeem, NUST-EME Rawalpindi
Samreen Hassan, FAST-NU Islamabad
Shazia Shafi, Nishtar Medical College Multan
Sikandar Baig, FAST-NU Islamabad
Sohail Ahmad Shahzad, NUST-EME Rawalpindi
Zain Muhammad, Ayub Medical College Abbottabad
Zia Ur Rahman, Ayub Medical College Abbottabad
Zohaib Shabir Saeedi, NUST Islamabad

Congratulations and good luck for the academic year. Please remember to mention FURTHER to your peers, professors, and other associates so that all of us may continue to meet our obligations to our fellow human beings. Thank you.

Scholarship Awards 2013-2014

Today marks the completion of our third year of scholarship awards for deserving and talented university students in Pakistan. All candidates interviewed last week have successfully verified their documents and have been awarded FURTHER Scholarships for 2013-2014. Details shall be provided in the award letter which will be emailed shortly. Successful candidates must submit a fully executed Affidavit before they can start receiving their scholarship payments. Please send a scanned copy of the completed Affidavit by email and follow it up with the original via post. The Affidavit may be attested by a government officer (Grade 17 or above), a bank branch manager, a university professor, or a notary public.

We have pledged about Rs. 1,500,000 in scholarship and relief aid for the next 9 months. This amount shall be distributed among 23 highly deserving young people. The students were selected through a transparent and efficient process over a period of 6 weeks. Our awareness campaign had limitations of time and budget but we were able to reach a highly deserving pool of talented candidates in a very short time. We assigned each candidate a score based on need (50 points), academic ability (35 points) and quality of academic programme (15 points). In assessing the latter, we considered the University’s curriculum as well as reputation among students and employers. Our over-arching philosophy was to identify financially distressed young people who are doing well at reputable institutions so that they can find good jobs upon graduation and thus help their families and communities. The following statistics provide a clear snapshot of the quality and need of the successful candidates:

Average GPA: 3.47 (Source: University Transcript)
Average Intermediate Score: 82.80% (Source: HSC Certificate)
Average Matriculation Score: 86.92% (Source: SSC Certificate)
Average Household Income: Rs. 18,158 per month (Source: Proof of Income)
Average Number of Dependents: 5.26 (Source: Family Form B)
Average Household Income per Dependent: Rs. 3,452 per month

Congratulations to all our successful applicants. We are proud of your courage and commitment. As long as we have young people like you, this country may yet have a future. We have learned from you a good deal about our society, our values, and ourselves. You have also helped us understand a few things that will hopefully enable us to become better administrators of this Trust. Thank you and good luck.

Third Update 2013-14

We received over 200 applications for 10 scholarship awards this year. The quality of applicants was generally very high and many of them had an extremely pressing need for support. After great agony, we were able to short-list 27 candidates based on need, academic performance, and quality of academic programme. All those candidates have been informed already and must present the required documents by today. Unfortunately, we shall only be able to support 10 of the 27 short-listed applicants. If there is a tie between any two applicants, it would be resolved with a ballot. Please make sure that you check your email frequently, including your “spam” and “trash” folders, and also visit this website regularly for updates. It is your responsibility to read and respond to all emails.

Our apologies to all those whom we weren’t able to help this year – they have also been informed by email. Hopefully, we can muster greater resources next year. Good luck to everyone for the year ahead.

Second Update 2013-14

The deadline for new applications has now passed and the online application system has been disabled until next year. All applicants will be notified by Wednesday, 11 September 2013, whether they have been short-listed or not. Only short-listed candidates shall be invited for an interview during the 3rd and 4th weeks of September. Please note that the interview is by invitation only and you must not show up for the interview until you are notified of a specific date and time by email. Please read these instructions carefully and comply with them. Thank you.

First Update 2013-14

The last date for scholarship applications is Friday, 6 September 2013. No applications submitted after this date shall be entertained. All applicants will be notified by Tuesday, 10 September 2013, whether they have been short-listed or not.

*** The following applies only to existing scholarship recipients from 2012-2013 session ***

Current scholarship holders need not re-apply; however, they must appear for an interview in person at our office between 10 AM and 4 PM on the 10^th or 11^th of September 2013. No scholarships shall be renewed without this interview at the designated time and place. Please send an email to Mehreen with your chosen time and date for your interview.

Good luck to all applicants.