Baobab Digital Innovation Scholarship Application

Scholarship Overview

In partnership with the Mastercard Foundation, Arizona State University will provide graduate scholarships to train 25 Mastercard Foundation alumni at the Master’s level for various programs over the next 5 years (2021 – 2025). This scholarship program is situated within EdPlus, a central enterprise unit for ASU, focused on the design and scalable delivery of digital teaching and learning models to increase student success and reduce barriers to achievement in higher education.

This is a fully immersive and traditional on-campus 2-year Master’s program with a focus on training EdTech experts for Africa. While classes are in session, Scholars will work part-time with the Baobab team to gain hands-on experience implementing the strategic objectives of the Baobab Platform. The Baobab Platform consists of the implementation of an online learning community that serves over 8,000 users and is expanding to support 100,000 young Africans globally over the next five years. Between the first and second year, Scholars will be supported to participate in a 2-month Africa-based internship that aligns with their program of study.

5 Scholarships are available for students admitted for the 2021/2022 academic year, which will cover the full tuition fees, expenses for accommodation, and comprehensive support for the 2-year graduate program. On top of financial support, Scholars will participate in activities as part of the wider Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program at Arizona State University, including leadership curriculum, individual mentorship, and other events and programming.

A strong expectation of the Scholars Program is that participants return to their home countries to invest their gained skills and education in their country’s social and economic growth. Women, refugees and displaced persons are strongly encouraged to apply.

Scholarships are available for the following full time, on-campus graduate programs:

• User Experience, MS
• Graphic Information Technology, MS
• Computer Science, MS
• Information Technology, MS 
• Software Engineering, MS
• Learning Sciences, MS
• Digital Culture, MA

Eligibility Criteria:

• Applicants must want to apply for one of our eligible programs listed above.
• Applicants must qualify academically for admission to the degree of their choice, that includes a high level of English proficiency.
• Applicants must be a citizen of an African country.
• Applicants must be an alumnus of a Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program before July 2021 (*Please refer to the application question: “Please select the institution where you graduated as an Mastercard Foundation Scholar” for the full list of eligible Scholars Program institutions).
• Applicants must be between the ages of 18 and 35 on or before the application deadline.
• Applicants must demonstrate a track record of leadership and service within their community.
• Applicants must not have studied or intend to take up other graduate study before August 2021.
• Applicants must be able to live in Phoenix, Arizona for the duration of the program.

Value of the Scholarship

The Scholarship will cover the following:

• Costs incurred for visa application processing
• Costs incurred for English language tests
• Costs incurred for GRE or other equivalent exams
• Airfare to and from Phoenix, Arizona
• Full tuition, books and fees
• Housing
• Participation in Scholarship programming

Awards are tenable for the duration of the graduate program of study, and at the end of the award, candidates will be expected to return to Africa.
The deadline for all applications will be 16:00GMT (9:00AM AZ time) on Monday, 19 October.
All applicants are advised to apply for the scholarship first and, if successful, will be assisted in the process of applying for admission to Arizona State University. Interviews via video or phone calls will be held during November 2020, with final decisions made by February 2021. All successful applicants will travel to Phoenix, Arizona to join the Program in July 2021.

Please note that applicants are entitled to make one application per year to the Program. All applicants, once registered, should have read and understood the Application Guidance before submitting an application to the Program to avoid any errors or incorrect information. Arizona State University and the Mastercard Foundation reserve the right to cancel incomplete and/or late applications, to effect changes to the conditions of the scholarship or to make no awards at all. Admission to one of the eligible academic programs does not guarantee admission to the scholarship program.

Please see our Frequently Asked Questions here and direct any other questions to scholarship@scholarsbaobab.org.

There are 2 ways to submit your application:

1. To submit an online application, click NEXT.
2. If you have limited internet access, you can complete and submit a downloadable version of the application to scholarship@scholarsbaobab.org. To access the downloadable form click HERE.

Application Link  https://asu.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_9G3GiPEuqJIIUsd