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Central America Scholarship Program

At InternationalStudent.com, we believe in the power of receiving an international education. That’s why in 2019 we joined forces with MPOWER to help students from Central America pursue higher education in the US. Through the MPOWER/InternationalStudent.com Central America Scholarship, three deserving Central American students have received scholarships. Although this scholarship has been closed, check out the recipients and explore other scholarships you might be eligible to receive.

Natalie Fahsen Paetau

Natalie Fahsen Paetau — $3,000 Scholarship Recipient

Natalie is a Guatemalan student enrolled at Georgetown University. She impressed us with her outstanding achievements as the former research director of Fundegua, an organization specializing in sustainable development in Guatemala. As a part of her mission, she convened a patient safety symposium with Guatemala Ministry of Health and Duke University and also created a STEM program for 400 Guatemalan students.
Reynaldo Pena

Reynaldo Pena — $1,000 Honorary Mention

Reynaldo was an intern at an agricultural lender in El Salvador. After seeing the exorbitant rates charged to small farmers, he teamed up with Amherst College to teach Salvadoran farmers more efficient farming and cooking techniques. He wants to use an MS in Data Analytics from Georgia Tech University to start a social enterprise to provide lower-cost, risk-based loans to small farmers in El Salvador.
Cindy Marin

Cindy Marin — $1,000 Honorary Mention

Cindy co-founded a business in her home country of Nicaragua called Arte Natural which involves 10 families in making handmade sustainable personal care products. She is hoping to use the International Marketing degree that she earns from Hult International Business School to grow and scale this business.

A big congratulations to all of our recipients, we know there are great things in your journey ahead.

Criteria

Each of our scholarship winners met the following criteria:

  • Be a citizen of a Central American country
  • Be enrolled or accepted to study full-time at one of the universities MPOWER supports in the United States or Canada for an undergraduate or graduate degree program
  • Be an international student allowed to legally study in the United States or Canada, as applicable:
    • For study in the U.S., this means that the applicant is either a U.S. permanent resident (Green Card holder), protected under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, or has a valid visa that permits study in the US.
    • For study in Canada, this means the applicant is either a Canadian permanent resident or has a valid Canadian study permit.

Application Process Requirements

The application, which is now closed, required the following:

  • A completed application and acknowledgment of communication from MPOWER and InternationalStudent.com
  • An essay written in English that answers:
    1. How the applicant has already contributed to creating opportunity, improving the quality of life, and/or advocating for and empowering marginalized communities in his or her home country and/or within Central America
    2. How the applicant will continue to do so after his or her education is completed
    3. How the applicant’s education will directly affect his/her ability to effect these goals

What is MPOWER

MPOWER Financing is an organization that helps students reach their academic and professional aspirations by granting student loans without requiring a student to have a cosigner, collateral, or credit history; they instead look at other factors to help determine if a student is eligible to receive a loan.

Exploring Other Scholarships

If you weren’t eligible to apply for the MPOWER/InternationalStudent.com Central America Scholarship Program don’t worry- we have a number of scholarships available to students from around the globe that you can find using our scholarship search tool.

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