OPINION: More Tanzanian youth should apply for international study scholarships

At the turn of the millennium back in the year 2000, the world embarked on a fifteen-year journey towards the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

The journey culminated in 2015, and gave way to the current Sustainable Development Goals.

To the common man, while the settings under which such goals are set and agreed may be foreign – how much is his understanding about their implication and his possible involvement in the implementation?

One of the MDGs for instance was to ensure universal access to primary education, which has particularly seen great success in many parts of Africa.

In Tanzania for example, some of the efforts were the introduction of ‘Shule za Kata’ and free primary education. Our northern neighbors Kenya have just gone a step further and introduced the competency-based curriculum which will ensure a hundred percent transition from primary to secondary education. I suppose indeed, Africa is on the move.

While the continent is moving, so are its young people. Data shows that the number of young Africans who received university education abroad,more than doubled between 1997 and 2017; however, many never return.

Even in that case, diaspora is instrumental to Africa’s development. Besides, we live in a free world anyway.

The steep rise in the number of Africans who pursue tertiary education abroad was partly a result of the global response, particularly to two MDGs: Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women; and Develop Global Partnerships for Development, by offering more scholarships to Africans and women in particular.

Now, were Tanzanian youth equally competitive in this pool of funding, or did the so referred as ‘more aggressive’ counterparts meet the expectation?

Many young Tanzanians aspire to become scholarship recipients and study abroad but quite often don’t achieve these aspirations.

Some of the reasons are around difficult processes, to which I will say, if it were easy everyone would get. The other biggest reason is lack of information and advice on how best to prepare and increase one’s chances to win a scholarship.

As a two-times recipient of full scholarships, I have learnt some lessons alongthe way which can be invaluable to aspirants.

1. Qualifications – While some scholarships are need-based, most are merit-based; both academic and professional merit. It goes without saying that anyone who wishes to win international scholarships must strive towards getting good grades and work hard on their job – while they still can.

2. The application pack – Most scholarships require almost the same things from candidates, and preparing these is usually the most daunting process. However, once completed it is worth the effort. The most common requirements are: personal statement, CV (academic CV for PhD), an outline of all achievements and a cover letter.

3. IELTS or TOEFL are not the end of the world – The difficulty of these exams is usually exaggerated. The truth is, with enough preparation they are quite easy.

4. The search– The best approach is bottom-up, and leveraging on targeted scholarships. For instance, women can search for scholarships for women.

Going up the pyramid for instance could mean searching for country or continent specific scholarships, for example scholarships for Tanzanians/Africans/developing countries/sub-Saharan Africa, etc.

5. Tweak and apply – Once the application pack is ready and some potential scholarships have been identified, it is time to start the application process.

The only additional step is to tweak the application and include any specific information that may be necessary. The crux of the process is to apply one at a time, and to go all the way.

A friend once said, “people are willing to pay you to study”. In the current knowledge-based economy, and many unresolved global challenges, indeed, the world will pay you to study. However, one must have persistency to win a scholarship.