IIE Launches Emergency Student Fund for U.S.-Based Students From Syria

The Emergency Student Fund (ESF) of the Institute of International Education (IIE) is issuing a call for nominations from U.S. colleges and universities who have Syrian students on campus with urgent financial need due to the conflict in Syria. 

IIE’s Syria-ESF will provide emergency grants ranging from $5,000 to $10,000 each to Syrian students nominated by their U.S. host colleges and universities who are unable to continue or complete their degree program in the U.S. due to serious financial difficulties precipitated by the situation in their home country. 

Accredited U. S. campuses are invited to nominate up to five Syrian students at their institutions for whom help is needed to complete the spring semester 2015. International Student Advisers or other campus officials should complete the Syria-ESF nomination form and e-mail it to ESF@iie.org by November 21, 2014, 5:00 PM EST. Awards will be announced by December 19, 2014. Applications directly from students will NOT be accepted. U.S. host campuses nominating students for Syria-ESF awards are expected to provide some emergency assistance to the nominated students, through tuition waivers, full or partial scholarships, housing, stipends, loans, work study, or other forms of support.

IIE’s Emergency Student Fund provides grants to post-secondary students matriculated at accredited educational institutions outside their home countries whose sources of support have been impacted by natural disaster or other crises. Since 2010, IIE’s ESF has provided over $1.5 million in emergency grants to over 450 students from Japan, Haiti, Libya, Thailand, the Philippines, Syria, and Iran whose home sources of financial support were impacted by crisis or natural disaster.