(MENAFN- Jordan Times) AMMAN — Shorouq Maayah would not have been able to finish her undergraduate studies in civil engineering had she not received a scholarship by the Elia Nuqul Foundation (ENF).
Her family's 'difficult' financial conditions encouraged her to apply to the scholarship, which covers tuition and transportation fees for financially challenged students.
Over the past five years, the 23-year-old fresh graduate used to commute daily from her area of residence in Madaba Governorate to the Hashemite University in Zarqa Governorate.
The scholarship did not only lift the financial burden off Maayah's shoulders, but it engaged her in a number of training programmes that have boosted her self-confidence and honed her interpersonal and technical skills.
The ENF staff also provided her with guidance that helped her finish her graduation project, she told The Jordan Times in a recent interview, noting that she is persistent on transmitting what she has learned to colleagues and family members.
'I transformed from a very shy person who can barely speak in front of others to a motivated individual who seizes every chance to participate in events and gatherings,' she said.
Ahmad Swaity, an accounting student at the same university, is another recipient of the scholarship.
While he is about to start his second year at the university, the Amman resident said the training programmes he has enrolled in via the scholarship have helped him plan for his future career and have encouraged him to become 'more efficient' at everything he does.
Swaity said the scholarship's coverage of his transportation fees is as important as covering tuition fees, as students with low income sometimes do not have the money for transportation, a case in which granting them free education alone would not help.
To pay back the foundation back for what it gave him, Swaity plans to volunteer to pass his knowledge and skills to those who need it. He plans to become one of the foundation's ambassadors to spread the word about its scholarship programme.
Maayah and Swaity are two of 197 students that have benefited from the ENF's scholarships since the establishment of the foundation in 2008.
The foundation's scholarships fund covers tuition and transportation fees to financially challenged students with potential to innovate and create an impact, in addition to offering them educational guidance and career counselling services, said Randi Abdin, director of the foundation.
In parallel, the foundation also provides students with special curricula that seek to strengthen their interpersonal, linguistic and technical skills, including courses in leadership skills, information technology and English language, in a bid to enhance their employability.
Nearly 70 per cent of the foundation's graduates enter the job market 'immediately' after graduation, Abdin told The Jordan Times in a recent interview, noting that students undergo a job shadowing experience with sponsors, an experience that can develop into an internship.
In order to 'complete the giving back cycle', students and graduates from all governorates take part in social initiatives for community service, she added, noting that work is under way to establish a network for ENF students, graduates and fellows to enable the experienced to guide the fresh joiners.
Meanwhile, she said a recent impact study underlined the need for the foundation to find more partners in order to allow more students to receive this 'quality' education.
Speaking from the perspective of ENF's partners, Raja'ie Noursi, deputy general manager of Delta Insurance, said investing in education and in the future of the young generation is the best type of investment.
He added that the corporation will start by training one student, and will gradually increase the number of students over the coming years.
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