Forward Together Scholarship Information Guide

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Agnes Rose
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1 USAID Promote: Women in the Economy Forward Together Scholarship Information Guide 1. INTRODUCTION Promote: Women in the Economy (WIE) is a USAID-funded program that will partner with Afghan women to increase their participation in the economy by securing employment or advancing in their careers, and with women-owned businesses, or businesses that employ 10% or more women to grow their revenues. Through a series of programs under the theme of Forward Together, Women in the Economy will work with job seekers, businesses, and many other stakeholders throughout Afghanistan that share the same goals to help them make investments in their own success. Women in the Economy will work throughout all of Afghanistan, and currently has service centers open in the regional economic centers of Kabul, Mazar-i-Sharif, Herat, Jalalabad and Kandahar. Forward Together Scholarships Forward Together scholarships are designed to help Afghan women and girls who have a basic education to gain job specific technical skills needed by employers, with the goal of getting a job. Applicants should have a high school, technical/vocational school, or university education. The questions and answers below will help you decide if you should apply for a Forward Together Scholarship. Who can apply? Women and girls between the ages of 18 and 30. Girls may join the Forward Together program before they turn 18, but must be 18 years old when they complete training. Women must be under 30 years of age when they begin training. This scholarship is intended to help women and girls who have identified a specific career or job opportunity but who lack some workplace specific skills or qualifications to successfully apply for the job. Applicants must be committed to getting a paid job within 6 months of completing training, and must show ability to complete their course of study. What types of study or training are covered by Forward Together scholarships? Forward Together scholarships will only be awarded for short-term technical training courses or programs that last less than one year. It is up to the applicant to identify the program or course of study. Scholarships can be in any technical subject as long as the applicant can clearly demonstrate how the training will help the applicant succeed in getting a job. In other words, the applicant should have already identified a job or career where there is high demand from employers for a specific skill or certification, and be able to explain clearly in the scholarship application why the course of study will help them get this job or enter this career. The skills studied must be one that employers are actively recruiting for, or will be recruiting for in the next 12 to 18 months. The training must also be suited for professional or semi-professional skilled jobs in the private sector. Training programs for handicraft production (sewing, embroidery) and livelihoods skills (raising chickens, growing vegetables, etc.) are not eligible at this time as they are already supported by many other organizations. The table below shows examples of what types of training may be eligible, and which types are not: How many scholarships are available? Up to 3000 Forward Together scholarships will be awarded from 2016 through 2018, subject to available funding. What languages can I study in? You can study in any language that you speak, understand and write well enough in to successfully complete the training. The application should be filled out in the language in which the proposed scholarship training program will be delivered in. 2. APPLICATION PROCEDURES: 1) If the applicant has not previously registered to participate in Forward Together, then the applicant should first complete a Women in Economy registration form (paper based or online) in order to obtain a participant ID number.

2 The process will go faster if you complete an online registration, although paper based forms are distributed through Forward Together s partners throughout Afghanistan. You must provide good contact information ( or telephone) to ensure that you receive your participant ID number. Once you get a participant ID number you can fill in a Forward Together Scholarship Application and submit it with three other required documents (educational certificates or degree, Tazkira copy, and CV) in order to be considered for a scholarship. APPLICATION CHECKLIST: FORWARD TOGETHER APPLICATION FORM: Check that you have completed all of the questions as accurately as possible. EDUCATIONAL CERTIFICATE: Include a copy of your high school diploma, technical/vocational certificate or diploma or University degree (whichever is the highest educational degree). Online applicants should use a scanned copy. TAZKIRA: A copy of your National Identity Card (Tazkira). Online applicants should use a scanned copy. CV: Updated CV in either PDF or word document format. The document file name MUST contain the applicants full name ( example Maryam_Amini_CV.doc ). If you save your CV under CV My CV or any other name we may not be able to locate the CV to process your application. Tip: If you are completing an online application and you do not have access to a scanner, you can try to take a clear photograph of your certificate or Tazkira using a smartphone. It is highly preferred that you complete your application online, at If you cannot get access to the internet you can call a Forward Together contact point to get instructions on where to deliver your application.

3 Forward Together Scholarship Application Applicants should fill in this scholarship application form carefully and submit for review and consideration. Please be aware that if the written application scores high enough, you will contacted for a scholarship interview with a member of Women in the Economy s technical team. 1. Full name of applicant 4. Telephone number: 2. Women in Economy Participant ID Number: 3. address: 5. Second telephone number: 6. Please describe the job or career opportunity you have identified and describe the training program you want to attend. (maximum 200 words) 7. Explain briefly how you identified this job or career opportunity and why you think it is a good fit for you. (maximum 200 words) 8. Please give the title of the course you want to attend, a short description of the course. 9. What new skills or knowledge will you have once you complete this training? (maximum 200 words)

4 10. What type of diploma, certificate or certification does the training provider issue at the completion of this course? 11. What language is the course taught in? 12. How long is the course (days, weeks or months) and how many hours is the course? (#) Pashto Dari English 13. Please provide the name, location and contact information of the institution. Days Weeks Month 14. Please explain how completing the training you identified in question #8 above will enable you to get a new job or a better job. Your answer should clearly demonstrate how the training will qualify you for the job. Please include any information about why the skills you described under question #9 and the certification described under question #10 will help you get a job. (maximum 250 words) 15. Please identify what position you expect to secure upon completing this proposed training / certification program?

5 In this section of the application you need to provide information on the financial assistance you are requesting. Please verify the fee information with the educational or training institution to make sure your application is accurate, then complete the worksheet below: 16. Institution Name: 17. Name of Course: 18. is there an admission fee? 19. Is there is a fixed tuition for the whole course? 20. Is there a monthly fee for training?. Training Fees and Associated Costs Calculation (All in AFA) Yes, No If Yes, please enter the amount of the admission fee on this line, if not go to line 19. Yes, No If yes, enter that amount on this line, then proceed to line 23. If No, leave this line blank and go to line 20. Yes, No If yes please enter the monthly fee here: 21. If you answered Yes to line 20, please enter the number of months of the training program (Months) 22. If you answered Yes to line 20, multiply the fee amount in line 20 with the number of months in line 21 and enter the amount to in this line. This is your total course tuition. 23. Enter the cost of books and materials required to complete this course, if not provided by the institution, in this line. 24. Enter the amount of total exam fees for this course on this line. 25. Add the total of Lines 18, 19, 22, and 23 above and enter the amount on this line. This is your total training cost. 26. If you will not be able to live at home or with relatives during your study, enter the monthly cost of your dormitory or other accommodation and enter it on this line. If you will be living at home or with relatives, leave this line blank. 27. If you cannot eat meals with family or relatives during your study, please enter the estimated monthly cost of food you must purchase on your own per month and enter it on this line. 28. If you must pay for your own transportation to and from training, enter the estimated cost of transportation per month on this line. 29. Enter the estimated monthly cost of any other training associated expenses you have on this line, and list what those expenses include here: 30. Add the totals of lines 26. Through 29 and enter the amount in this line. This is your estimated monthly expenses. 31. Multiply the number of months you entered in line 21 by the amount you entered in line 30 and enter the amount to in this line. 32. Enter any additional one-time expense in this line, such as travel to another city to attend training, purchase of a required computer or other one time expense. Explain the expense here : 33. Add lines 31 and 32 and enter the amount here. This is your estimated total expenses.

6 Applicant Contribution to Training 34. If you or your family have saved money for your training, please enter the amount of savings that you can apply towards your study in this line. 35. If you are working and will continue working during the period of your training, how much can you contribute towards your training expenses? Enter the monthly amount here: 35.1 Multiple the two numbers (line 35 with line 21) and enter the total to the right. 36. If you support from family or other sources (additional scholarship or tuition assistance funds) please enter the monthly amount here 36.1 Multiple the two numbers (line 35 with line 21) and enter the total to the right. If the support is a fixed amount and not a monthly contribution, enter the fixed amount in this line. 37. Add lines 34, 35 and 36 together and enter the amount in this line. This is your total possible contribution towards your own training. 38. Enter your total training cost from line 25 here. 39. Enter your estimated total expenses from line 33 here. 40. Add lines 38 And 39 together and enter the amount here. This amount is the total estimated financial requirement for you to complete training. 41. Applicants are required to pay for a minimum of 30% of their total estimated financial requirement. To calculate your estimated share, multiply line 40 by.30 and enter the amount to the right. 42. If the amount in line 37 is more than the amount entered in line 41, you are able to meet the minimum contribution requirement. If you do not meet the minimum contribution requirement, you will need to look for additional sources of funds, or look for help in order to reduce your estimated financial requirement. See if family or relatives can assist with accommodation, meals, or transportation. Ask the training provider about any scholarships they might have, or tuition discount programs for women and girls. Do the worksheet again once you have identified additional funds or ways to lower your study costs. Check the schedule of Forward Together information sessions at and attend a session to ask for help. 42. Forward Together Scholarships can fund only up to 70% of the total estimated financial requirement, and only to a maximum of AFA 60,000 per recipient. To calculate the total amount you are requesting in financial assistance, take the amount from line 40, and the amount from line 37. Enter the result on this line. This is the amount of financial assistance needed. If there is an alternate institution where you could study the same or a similar program, you can fill out a second worksheet. This next section of the application form is a written essay, and this is your opportunity to convince the scholarship committee why you should receive assistance. In one page or less, tell the scholarship committee about yourself including what motivates you to look for a new or a better job. Explain in your own words how you will ensure that you succeed in completing the training, and what steps you will take after the training to get a new or a better job. If you have worked or had an internship or apprenticeship before, please tell us what that experience was like for you. Finally, describe any activities including school projects, community service, volunteer work, etc. in which you have been involved and explain what you achieved and the result of your activity (example: how did your activity help your organization, your family, a business, or the community?).

7 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I, have read and understood the terms and conditions of the Forward Together scholarship program and accept them. I am confident and prepared to fully participate and complete all the required course work for my selected training program. I give permission to Women in the Economy to verify my documents and credentials to assure their validity. I understand that this scholarship application will be available only to eligible Afghan women who desire to advance their careers and work formally. I affirm that all of the information in this application, including the employment training proposal, is my own work. I confirm that all of the information provided is true and accurate to the best of my knowledge. Signature Date

Promote Women's Leadership Development (TT WLD)

Promote Women's Leadership Development (TT WLD) Promote Women s Leadership Development (TT WLD) Project USAID Contract no. AID-306-I-14-00010 WLD Task Order Task Order No. AID-306-I-TO-14-00031 Request for Information (RFI No. 0001 ) Provide Training