Local Scholarship Program FY2017 Q3 Progress Report

The program is implemented by the Institute of International Education (IIE) in partnership with the American University in Cairo (AUC) and other local organizations. The program's start-up phase began in May 2015, following the signing of the agreement between USAID and IIE. The outreach, recruitment, and selection phase of Cohort 1 took place after USAID approved all outreach documents. Cohort 1 students concluded their first academic year at their universities, with 65 students placed in various private universities across Egypt. The breakdown of Cohort 1 students by governorate and gender is as follows: 34 females and 31 males, with 2 students with disabilities. Cohort 1 students were placed in various fields of study, including communication and mass media, economics, and nursing. The majority of Cohort 1 students were placed in the American University in Cairo (AUC) and the British University in Egypt (BUE). The program also provided academic and personal support to Cohort 1 students, including service learning projects and mentorship sessions. In November 2016, 65 LSP Cohort 2 students started their Bridge Year Program (BYP) at the American University in Cairo. Cohort 2 students were also provided with academic and personal support, including a gender-related issues meeting and a gender forum. The program also conducted mentorship sessions for Cohort 2 students. During FY2017, Q3 (April 1 – June 30), the program continued to implement its activities, including the recruitment and selection of Cohort 3 students. The outreach and recruitment efforts for Cohort 3 students included advertisements in Al Ahram newspaper, announcements, and outreach materials available online. AFS-Egypt, the program's partner NGO, continued the outreach and selection process of LSP Cohort 3 students. The program's leadership activities included the completion of service learning projects by Cohort 1 students, a gender-related issues meeting for Cohort 1 female students, and a gender forum conducted for Cohort 1 and 2 students. The program also conducted mentorship sessions for Cohort 1 students. The program's monitoring and evaluation activities included the tracking of Cohort 1 and 2 students' academic performance and personal support. The program also conducted midterm evaluations to assess the effectiveness of its activities and make recommendations for improvement. Overall, the Local Scholarship Program (LSP) – Private Universities has made significant progress in providing scholarships to students from underprivileged backgrounds in Egypt. The program's activities have focused on academic and personal support, leadership development, and community service. The program's monitoring and evaluation activities have helped to assess the effectiveness of its activities and make recommendations for improvement.