University Scholarship Program V at the American University of Beirut

The project's overarching goal is to increase access to quality education and equip scholars with technical, soft, and leadership skills to excel in the labor market. The HES award consists of two components: the University Scholarship Program (USP VIII) and Refugee Scholarship Support (RSS). USP VIII aims to enable 40 meritorious and financially disadvantaged Lebanese public and private school graduates to access quality higher education, increasing their job readiness and potential in supporting Lebanon's democratic and economic development. The program targets students who are Lebanese citizens, attending public or private high schools for the last three years, and earning a cumulative combined average of 13.5/20 in their first two years of secondary schooling. Applicants must also graduate from their respective schools in the summer of 2019 and come from grade 12 private high schools with a tuition fee less than L.L. 5,000,000. The Refugee Scholarship Support (RSS) component offers scholarships to non-Lebanese refugees with a valid and legal Lebanese residency permit, attending public or private high schools for the last three years, and earning a cumulative combined average of 13.5/20 in their first two years of secondary schooling. Applicants must also graduate from their respective schools in the summer of 2019 and come from grade 12 private high schools with a tuition fee less than L.L. 5,000,000. During the reporting period from April 1st, 2019, to June 30th, 2019, AUB Office of Admission followed up on incomplete applications, verified applicants' data, conducted due diligence, and presented eligible USP VIII and RSS lists to the HES Steering Committee for shortlisting purposes. Eligible applicants were then shortlisted and invited to AUB campus to attend HES Open Days, where they sat for the EEE Exam and were interviewed for leadership and financial purposes. The results of the EEE Exam and interviews were compiled, awaiting the Lebanese Official Exam results to be out in July 2019. A total of 703 USP VIII applications and 164 RSS applications were received by AUB Office of Admissions. After verifying the applications and rejecting those with incomplete documents and those not meeting the eligibility criteria, the total number of eligible USP VIII applications ended up to be 676, and the total number of eligible RSS applications ended up to be 160. The applications were distributed as follows: USP VIII had 58 applications from private high schools, 426 from public high schools, 184 from Palestinian refugees, 75 from Syrian refugees, and 33 from other nationalities. RSS had 93 applications from private high schools, 610 from public high schools, 112 from Palestinian refugees, 50 from Syrian refugees, and 2 from other nationalities. Internal control procedures were installed to ensure that eligibility criteria were met for both components of the HES award. The procedures included file verification, data entry, and verification of financial information. Inconsistencies, such as differences between documented parent's job and the job statement provided by the employer or discrepancies between the income documented in the application and the income listed in the 'Income statement', were verified for accuracy. An excel file was generated inclusive of all data, and eligibility criteria were met for both components of the HES award.