THE MONTHLY NEWSLETTER OF THE NEPALESE CHILDREN'S EDUCATION FUND

gyan: n. knowledge acquired by direct perception

Student Selection 2015: Sixty-Two Students to Receive NCEF Scholarship for 2015-16

Each year, the NCEF Selection Committee assembles to review applications for student scholarships. This year, 62 students will be receiving financial assistance from NCEF to attend school with 22.5% of them consisting of new applications, and the remainder representing students who are renewing their scholarships. These students were selected as the most in need of assistance.  NCEF will also be supporting around 100 students in the Sindhupalchowk area as part of the earthquake relief program. More news on this program will be featured in the coming months. 

Applications for scholarships were reviewed by this year’s selection team: Jay Shrestha, Maheshwor Kafle, Rabin Aryal, and Suman Thapamagar. The team selected applicants from the areas served by NCEF which include Nepalgunj, Patan, Sankhuwasabha, and Sunsari. In order to qualify for consideration, students must have a submitted application, and must meet the selection criteria, both of which can be found on the NCEF website.  

The team first emails application forms to field volunteers in Nepal who in turn distribute them to parents and students in their areas. These volunteers also distribute the renewal application forms to our current students. The applications are then collected, along with the academic record of each student, and sent to the selection committee. Recommendations on students under consideration are also collected from the field coordinators to facilitate the selection process. 

In 2010, several questions were added to the new student application form in order to more accurately assess the financial situation of the applicants. These questions included whether or not the family has mobile phones, television, livestock, etc., which have been very helpful to the selection process. Further information on demographics of new students continue to be collected.

When selecting students who are applying to renew their scholarships, three things must be verified: (a) the student has been promoted to the next class, (b) the student’s financial situation has not improved to the point where they no longer need NCEF support (an occurrence which only happens on rare occasions), and (c) that the student’s home environment and health are good enough to allow the child to focus on his or her education. In some cases, a student may have circumstances which require special consideration, and in these cases, field coordinators discuss these factors with the selection committee to document any requirements that may need to be waived.

For new students, the committee begins by ranking each student in an area based on their application and recommendations from field volunteers. The student rankings are then averaged to give a composite ranking for that area. The top candidates from the list are selected for financial assistance. Any ties are resolved by discussion and voting among committee members, but all selections should satisfy the NCEF criteria. The following reflects the students who were chosen for the 2015/2016 school year:*

Male	23
Female	39
Patan	6
Nepalgunj	15
Sankhuwasabha	6
Sunsari	35

*These figures do not include the 100 students being helped in Sindhupalchowk as part of the earthquake relief effort.

The entire team at NCEF would like to thank the area coordinators and selection committee for their hard work during this time and we look forward to hearing more about the progress of our supported students.