Education and work: Special grants and scholarships for women
Text: Alexandra Bazhenova-Sorokina
Women around the world still face discrimination at work - it’s no secret that for this reason many people make choices in favor of the family, and not education and careers. Many groups still believe that a woman is not a reliable worker, because she is emotionally unstable, thinks wrongly in that hemisphere, is not strong enough and physically prepared, and may also be inappropriate to go on maternity leave.
In order to combat prejudice in the professional community at the system level, women are united in trade unions, compulsory quotas are created for women in educational institutions and organizations, and there are special funds that allocate money for career assistance to women, because they often lose to men in the struggle for grants by gender.
Funds are divided into national and international, as well as by field of activity or industry that they sponsor. Unfortunately, in Russia there is no national fund to help women professionals, but this does not mean that we have nowhere to go for material assistance for scientific work or promoting our own business. Many international foundations give women from different countries the opportunity to realize themselves in completely different fields of activity, from journalism to aeronautics, providing them with scholarships or grants. True, in most cases, they will have to practice their profession outside their homeland.
Howard Buffett Foundation for Women Journalists
Who it fits: to journalists
The Howard Buffett Foundation is a completely new offspring of the International Women's Media Foundation, a huge community of journalists based in Washington in 1990. He finances media projects, helps those working in a hostile environment and those who want to continue their education in the field of journalism. Also here you can get support if you are working on a group project. The fund is ready to finance a variety of media projects - from investigative journalism and recording radio programs to writing monographs and working on documentaries.
You should apply to the Buffett Foundation if you are a journalist at the time of submitting your application and have been working for at least five years. You can also apply as a journalistic team, but it should be issued in the name of a female journalist, and the team itself should consist of at least 50% of women. Freelancers have more chances to get financing. The Foundation also emphasizes that it is primarily interested in new ideas, as well as in promoting socio-cultural diversity.
All journalists are required to provide a preliminary budget for their project or an estimate of the cost of training. The amount and method of financing will depend on the project. The fund will distribute funding in May, July, September and November of each year, starting in May 2015. An electronic application can be sent from 2 to 23 March 2015.
iwmf.org
AAUW International Scholarship
Who it fits: scientists, teachers, public figures, women in business and not only
The American Association of Women in University Education (AAUW) was founded by 17 graduates from 8 colleges from different parts of the United States: they wanted to fight for the opportunity to continue their education and the main thing is to attract more girls to colleges. It was in 1981, the association has since grown to a national scale, with 1,500 branches across the country and 500 colleges and universities as partners.
In order to receive an AAUW scholarship today, an applicant must have the equivalent of an American bachelor's degree and apply for further studies at the desired higher education institution before contacting the association. More than five international master’s degree scholarships and other programs can be awarded in the second year of study. When selecting future AAUW scholarship holders, their academic performance and how they are included in the struggle for gender equality and women's education are taken into account. Most importantly, the association gives women the opportunity to continue to develop, having already received training on scholarships in the United States: grants are given to selected scholarships upon their return to their homeland.
AAUW allocates $ 18,000 for a master’s degree, $ 20,000 for a doctoral program, and $ 30,000 for a post-doctoral program. The application for funding (starting on July 1 of the next year) must be sent from August 1 to December 1 of the current year.
aauw.org
Cristiana Nüssline-Volhard Foundation Grant
Who it fits: a scientist with children
Christiana Nusslein-Volhard is one of the most important biologists of our time, a Nobel Prize winner, and since 1985 - Director of the Max Planck Institute for Research Biology. In 2004, she founded a foundation that issued grants to ensure that science does not lose talents for family reasons, and women scientists, especially those who are engaged in the natural sciences and medicine, can continue their careers. The organization helps young women who are already underrepresented in the scientific community to find a balance between family responsibilities and further career development. The fund covers the expenses of applicants for the payment of domestic helpers and additional expenses for child care. It is assumed that the time, which will be released thanks to domestic help, women will be able to spend on research activities.
The Foundation sponsors scientists of any nationality who are studying for a master's and doctoral program at German universities or research institutes. Doctoral studies should last at least another year from the beginning of the scholarship. The cost of housing and meals should by this time be covered by the applicant's salary or other scholarship. It is assumed that in this case children are already engaged in relatives or they go to kindergarten. Application for funding can be submitted until December 31, 2015.
cnv-stiftung.de
Future Schlumberger Faculty Scholarship
Who it fits: scientists, engineers, mathematicians and technologists
The Schlumberger Foundation was established in 1953 in the United States, and since 1985 it has had a second headquarters in Holland. The Faculty of the Future program, which appeared in 2004, provides scholarships to women from developing countries (including Russia) for a doctoral degree or for a postdoc program. Applicants should already be studying at a university abroad or at least submit documents to the desired educational institution. The main selection criteria are teaching experience, excellent academic performance, leadership skills, and the ability to become an inspiring example for others. It is assumed that the scholars, returning home, will become role models for women who want to make a career in the natural sciences. The scholarship of the fund covers the actual cost of studying abroad at a rate of up to $ 50,000 per year. Applications for funding in 2015-2016. It was necessary to send before November 14, 2014.
facultyforthefuture.net
"Women in Science" Scholarship of the L'Oréal-UNESCO Foundation
Who it fits: chemists, physicists, doctors and biologists up to 35 years
The program has been working in Russia since 2007 with the participation of UNESCO and the Russian Academy of Sciences and is part of the international program "L'Oréal-UNESCO for Women in Science". Its main goal is to show how few women are represented as pioneers and leading experts in almost all branches of science. Scholarships for doctoral studies and for their own research are designed to give the brightest young women in science the opportunity not only to make new discoveries, but also to become role models for future generations and gradually change the perception of women scientists.
To obtain a scholarship applicants must be candidates of science. The criteria for their selection are scientific advances, proving the benefits of the scientific research conducted by the candidate and the desire to work in Russian science. The prize is truly prestigious, as hundreds of people from across the country participate in the selection, and only ten people receive a grant per year. At the international stage, only five candidates receive such a scholarship, and among those who have already received there are two Nobel laureates. The presence of such an award also affects the subsequent career of the fellows, because the receipt of grants for group research projects depends on the track record and awards of the project manager.
The size of the scholarship in Russia is 400,000 rubles. The payment is made at the same time for the entire amount, including taxes, and the fellow has the right to dispose of it in any way: you can buy equipment, pay yourself a salary when conducting an independent study, hire a new employee or make repairs at home.
lorealfellowships-russia.org
Global Fund for Women Fund Grants
Who it fits: women's organizations upholding the rights of women and girls
Since 1987, the Global Fund For Women has been helping women’s groups around the world fight for gender equality. Its main offices are in New York and San Francisco, and the organization has sponsors in every state in the United States and in 40 more countries around the world. Grants are allocated to work in three main areas: ending violence, fighting political and economic inequalities, protecting women's sexual and reproductive health, and protecting their rights in reproductive medicine. To apply for funding, an organization must meet several requirements: be outside the United States and Canada, all key positions in it must be held by women, and the main activity of the team must be aimed at fighting for the rights of women. In this case, the organization may be a commercial structure. But the fund does not sponsor individual applicants. Grant amounts range from $ 5,000 to $ 30,000 per year. At the same time, grants received for the first time usually do not exceed $ 13,000.
globalfundforwomen.org
Scholarship Amelia Earhart Foundation Zonta international
Who it fits: scientists and engineers in aeronautics
The scholarship was established in 1938 in honor of the legendary pilots Amelia Earhart - the first female pilot who flew over the Atlantic. Since then, the fund "Zonta" every year finances candidates for a doctoral degree in aerospace science and engineering. The Amelia Earhart scholarship allows women to invest in state-of-the-art research equipment and computers, purchase expensive study materials and participate in special research around the world.
Financing can be obtained by applicants with high academic achievement, passing or intending to study in a doctoral program. For those who submit applications now, the program should last at least until April 2016. A scholarship may also request re-granting of a scholarship for the following year and go through the same selection procedure. Scientists who are on the postdoc program cannot count on this scholarship.
Each year, the foundation sponsors 35 candidates who receive a $ 10,000 scholarship and can pay for their studies at the university under a doctoral program anywhere in the world.
zonta.org
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