Maria Rosario Lazzati Niada Scholarship for Afghan Women to Study in Switzerland

Job Description

Opportunity Brief Description:

The Maria Rosario Lazzati Niada Postgraduate Scholarship has been established to support Afghan women with a university degree who wish to enhance their knowledge in international relations and development. The scholarship provides the opportunity to enrol in a two-year master’s program at the Geneva Graduate Institute.

Maria Rosario was a distinguished high school history and literature teacher who graduated with honors from the State University of Milan, specializing in the history of Christianity. Her thesis on witchcraft, co-authored with two other historians, became a reference text due to its focus on the persecution of women accused of witchcraft in Europe between the 13th and 17th centuries.

In 2005, Maria Rosario played a key role in establishing the Comitato Arghosha Faraway Schools, a charity focused on women’s education in Afghanistan. The organization has since funded the construction of 15 schools for 8,000 pupils, with a majority of the students being girls. The organization has also supported literacy courses for 500 adult women and provided university scholarships for talented girls in different universities in Kabul. Maria Rosario regularly visited Afghanistan to oversee the project’s implementation until 2019, when Covid-19 disrupted international travel.

Given the present situation in Afghanistan, with strong restrictions to women’s higher education, the master programmes at the Geneva Graduate Institute aim to broaden the reach of Afghan women’s university education abroad, giving them a competitive advantage in the global community. A master could provide access to an academic and diplomatic career, a job in international and non-governmental organisations, or in international corporate companies.

Fields of study available at Geneva Graduate Institute: 

• Master in Anthropology and Sociology
• Master in International History and Politics
• Master in International Economics
• Master in International Relations/Political Science
• Master in International Law

Detail:

Host University: Graduate Institute of Geneva
Target: Afghan women
Application Deadline: October 15, 2023
Eligible Nations: Afghanistan
Level: Master
Application deadline for Graduate Program: January 2024
Application start for Master program: 10 October

The application procedure has two successive stages: 

1. the submission to and evaluation by the Committee of the Maria Rosario Lazzati Niada Scholarship for Afghan Women, which initially screens the candidates and decides to grant the scholarship;
2. the application to one of the Geneva Graduate Institute’s master programmes, where the final admission decision is made.

The Maria Rosario Lazzati Niada Scholarship

• The Maria Rosario Lazzati Niada Scholarship is a two-year scholarship. The scholarship beneficiary must prepare a report at the end of their first year of studies with proof of their success. Based on this, the scholarship will be renewed.
• The annual amount of the scholarship is 25,000 Swiss francs.

Conditions

• The scholarship is open to all Afghan women, without consideration of social class, ethnic and regional origin, or religion.
• Applicants must be Afghan women, living in Afghanistan or have close ties with Afghanistan.
• Applicants must meet the Geneva Graduate Institute’s admission requirements. The main requirement to apply for one of the Institute’s master programs is a bachelor’s degree, or a degree deemed equivalent, in a discipline relevant for the programs. Candidates must also meet the Institute’s language requirements.
• Candidates must send their applications for the Maria Rosario Lazzati Niada Scholarship to the Steering Committee (see procedure below). Then, the selected candidate must apply for one of the Institute’s master programs and be admitted to receive the scholarship. The two procedures are independent.

Application Deadline: October 15, 2023 (Candidates must email afghan.scholarships@graduateinstitute.ch, supplying the following documents to the Steering Committee:

• A motivation letter with the following information: the reason they are applying for the Maria Rosario Lazzati Niada scholarship, which Geneva Graduate Institute master programme they would like to apply to and why they chose the Institute, their financial needs, and what their post-graduation plans are.
• A curriculum vitae.
• Copy of university diplomas (from a university accredited by the Swiss authorities: https://aaq.ch) and qualifications obtained.
• Official academic transcripts showing all coursework, accompanied by grades and their value (credits).

The Steering Committee is composed of two members of the Association Arghosha appointed by the Association; two members of the Institute, including at least one professor, appointed by the Geneva Graduate Institute; and at least two persons of Afghan origin or with very close ties to Afghanistan appointed by the members of the Steering Committee. The Committee reviews the applications and contacts the candidates in late November to inform them of their decision regarding the scholarship.

The Steering Committee will help prepare the application file for the Geneva Graduate Institute.

How to Apply?

The Swiss Postgraduate Scholarship for Afghan Women application procedure has two successive stages:

1. Submit the applications documents mentioned above by email to the Committee of the Maria Rosario Lazzati Niada Scholarship for Afghan Women, which initially screens the applications and decides to grant the scholarship
2. Apply to one of the Geneva Graduate Institute’s master programs and be admitted.
3. two procedures are independent.

Submission Email of Scholarship application: afghan.scholarships@graduateinstitute.ch

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