How to get a scholarship

It’s been a long time since I have published a blog post but a day wouldn’t go by without me thinking about it. Writing down things is a very powerful way to see ones flow of thoughts: to see them clearly lying in front of the eyes. If specially you are writing about practical things and giving out information on a set of matters it might reach the right kind of reader and end be being very much useful. This is like as if it is coming in to a full circle: by writing you help yourself to visualize things better and for the others it serves as an insightful source of information. If you reader are thinking about applying to a university in Italy then consider this article where I will share my experience as a scholarship holding student in Umbria (Italy). It’s a region located in the center of Italy with many opportunities and study fields for students interested in joining a university course.

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About scholarship in Italy

As a foreign student interested in joining a university in Italy the first thing you need to do is the following: choose a city where there is the so called ''Agenzia per il Diritto allo Studio Universitario'' (short for ADISU) which translates as 'Agency for The Right to Study in University'. It is a regional based agency distributed all over Italy. The agency that takes care of my scholarship is called ''Agenzia per il Diritto allo Studio Universitario dell'Umbria'' (short for ADISU). It provides various services to the university students. These services include student dormitories, canteen service, scholarships for regular students and outgoing Erasmus students, university fee reduction. These are the main things they carry out but there might be some differences between one agency and another depending on in which region it is located. The one I will describe here is located in the region called Umbria.

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Scholarships in Umbria

In region of Umbria this agency provides its service in the following major cities: Perugia, Terni, Foligno, Assisi and Narni. My university is in the city of Perugia which has the highest number of scholarship holders and I personally think it is because many students choose Perugia because of the many study fields which are available in the university. Though keep in mind that some degree courses, like Tourism, are provided only in Assisi so you have to either consider stationing in Perugia and go back and forth or possibly get an accommodation in Assisi.

The following is the official website where it is possible to find detailed information: Adisu

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This is the Fontana Maggiore: iconic symbol of the city of Perugia where I study.

What are the requirements?

First of all you have to consider the deadline for the application which every year is in the last week of August/ first days of September. If you don't manage to fill out the online application by the deadline you will be automatically out of the game, so watch out! The good thing about this procedure is that it can be done from anywhere in the world as long as you have a computer with an Internet connection therefore there is no need to be physically present in the agency office. But if you choose to do so every year the staff of the agency sets up computers and is ready to assist you in the application process. Basic personal information, academical history, country of origin and your bank account details are just some of the data you will eventually need to provide while doing the online application. One important thing you should bear in mind is that you should have already chosen a study field because it is mandatory in order to finalize the online application process. Another factor that may exclude you from being a scholarship holder is your age: to be eligible for a scholarship you should not be any older than 28 years of age.

A list of study fields and faculties

While planning to stay in the beautiful region of Umbria, here is a list of the faculties you can join and therefore get a scholarship from the above mentioned Agency:

• Department of agricultural, food and environment sciences
• Department of chemistry, biology and biotechnology
• Department of civil and environmental engineering
• Department of economics
• Department of engineering
• Department of experimental medicine
• Department of humanities ancient and modern languages, literature and cultures
• Department of law
• Department of mathematics and computer sciences
• Department of medicine
• Department of pharmaceutical sciences
• Department of philosophy, social sciences and education
• Department physics and geology
• Department political sciences
• Department of surgery and biomedical sciences
• Department of veterinary
• Academy of fine arts

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I hope you can find your field of interest from the above listed faculties.

Advantages of being a scholarship student

One of the things that really had a positive impact on my academical carrier is to have had the scholarship holder status. No matter the ups and downs and all the difficulties you might face while searching for a university and then filling out all the online application for scholarship, I can assure you that it is worth it. This scholarship provided by the agency (Adisu) in Perugia is a game changer for the following reasons:

• Significant university fee reductions to all scholarship holding students and in some cases, depending on your income bracket, you will be asked to pay only a small symbolic amount.
• Apart from using the canteen service every day, with a scholarship you are eligible to stay at one of the many student dormitories here in Perugia (I will soon have an article about the student dormitory I am staying in here in Perugia).
• In addition to canteen service and student dormitory, based on your family's income bracket you will be given an amount of money so that you can pay off your day to day expenses. This means that you don't need to go looking for a part time job to earn extra money. Believe me this is a huge deal because you save a whole lot of time and energy that you can dedicate to your studies and dreams. In the best case scenario you can save this money and use it to travel abroad and benefit from all the possibilities offered to you.
• Having a scholarship also helps you to stay focused - eyes on the prize - because if you want your scholarship to last for the entire period of your studies then you have to achieve every year a certain number of ECTS or credit points that the agency will verify.

If all of these points aren't appealing enough for you to come and study in Perugia well I don't know what to say then. Bear in mind that it's important to take the chance and get out of your comfort zone: when I first had to move from my country, Ethiopia, to Perugia there were some hardships I had to endure but looking back at it now I would say Yes! Let's do it all over again!

Cheers to you all and I hope you found something interesting in this article.

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