i-Scholar initiative, a non-profit organisation has reiterated its commitment to empowering and mentoring young Nigerians in order to advance their academic careers.
Speaking during a get-together for young scholars who are on their way to study in foreign universities, President of the initiative, Victor Ogunmola, noted that the i-SI was conceptualised on the basis of the passion and drive to develop the next generation of leaders.
Ogunmola said, “it is very simple for everyone to start complaining or talking about what we want for Nigerians. For us, when we look at what is going on in the contest of what we really want Nigeria to become, then we will know that the future of the country depends on the youth.
“They possess the creative and innovative ideas for the growth and development of this country’s tomorrow. But then, before they could be empowered to get to that point, we need to invest in them. So i-Scholar Initiative goes through a rigorous and robust process to identify talents and help them by connecting them to opportunities in world-class universities.”
He explained that i-SI mentors youths and provides funding for the standardised tests such as Graduate Record Examination (GRE), Test of English and Foreign Language (TOEFL) and others.
“And of course, we also help them to pay for the application fees. Some schools waive your application. Many schools may require you to pay application fees and you could spend between $100 to $500.00 depending on the number of schools and the type of school you are planning to secure. We cover that and, we provide end to end membership.
“We guide these scholars through the admission process. We have mentors who will review their statements of purpose, their education package, we organise a lot of webinars and workshops just to educate them and make them really competitive.”
One of the beneficiaries, Chibuzor Success Igweonu, a first class graduate of petroleum engineering, said: “It’s been a wonderful experience. ISI is not just about the scholarship or the payment of the standardised test fee and the rest, it is a family.”
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