Updated January 2008
$8,500 in annual SAJA scholarships for
high school, college and graduate students in 2008 (an increase of $3,500 from prior years)
Deadline: 11:59 p.m. (Pacific time), Friday, February 15, 2008
Questions? Contact SAJA Board Members and Student Scholarships Coordinators Monika Mathur (monikamathur@gmail.com) and Aseem Chhabra (chhabs@aol.com)
Become a sponsor!
- Each year, the South Asian Journalists Association
and SAJA Group Inc award five scholarships worth $8,500 total:
One $1,000 scholarship to a high school senior about to enter college;
One $1,500 scholarship to an undergraduate college student (four-year or community college);
Two $2,000 scholarships each to graduate-level students;
NEW! The CNN-SAJA Scholarship for Broadcast Journalism ($2,000, for an undergraduate or graduate student with a demonstrated interest in broadcast journalism)
Applicants with financial hardship may be given special consideration. Recipients are expected to give back to SAJA by volunteering at the annual convention or at other events during the year. They also must provide an update of their journalist endeavors and achievements at the conclusion of the academic year.
ELIGIBILITY
Applicants must be:
a) of South Asian descent (includes Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka; Indo-Caribbeans are also eligible) OR demonstrate an interest in South Asia or the diaspora
b) serious about pursuing journalism as a career and provide evidence they plan to through courses, internships or freelancing c) one of the following: a high school senior about to enroll in an accredited college or university in North America; a current student in an accredited college or university (two-year or four-year) in North America; or a student enrolled or about to enter a graduate-level program in North America.
Note: College or graduate students graduating in May/June 2008 are eligible. Immediate relatives of SAJA Board members and judges are INELIGIBLE to apply. EVALUATION PROCEDURE:
A committee of judges appointed by the
Board of SAJA will review the applications and evaluate them on a number of subjective and objective criteria, including interest in journalism, writing skills, reasons for entering journalism, financial need and participation and enthusiasm in SAJA. DEADLINE:
Applications must be submitted using the online form below by 11:59 p.m. (Pacific time), Friday, February 15, 2008. Applicants may be interviewed
by phone or in person by a member of the scholarship committee. Winners
will be notified in early March and will be honored at the convention.
HOW TO APPLY:
Please fill out the online application form
APPLICATION DEADLINE: 11:59 p.m. (Pacific time), Friday, February 15, 2008 |
Peter Bhatia,
executive editor of The Oregonian and vice president of
the American Society of Newspaper Editors, presents the
2002 SAJA Scholarship to Aman Batheja of NYU.
PHOTO: Paresh Gandhi/India Abroad
- The SAJA Scholarships are made possible, in
part, through the generous contributions
of the Arun I. and Asmita Bhatia Foundation; Hansa and Ramesh Butani of Darshan TV; and CNN.
- COMMENTS ABOUT THE SCHOLARSHIPS:
Jigar Mehta, New York Times Video Journalist, 2004 scholarship winner:
"Winning the SAJA scholarship was my introduction to SAJA and the connections I've made through SAJA are so valuable that I have invested in a lifetime membership. Conversations I have with SAJA members at different events reinforce my commitment to journalism. I've come to appreciate this community of like minded professionals."
Julie Patel, 2002 winner: "Whether
they're in financial need or not, a lot of students
need to have their goals of being a journalist legitimized
within the community. SAJA does that. This scholarship
gives me inspiration and makes me believe that I will
be able to do what I love. That's worth more than anything."
Balakoteswara Pulipaka, 2005 scholarship winner:
"Frankly, the SAJA scholarship means a tremendous lot to me. For one, the
scholarship amount is extremely useful to pay my costs at the university.
And more importantly, for me, it is a great recognition for me. To me, the
scholarship means that there are people out here who care for others who have
followed them to pursue journalism in the U.S."
Aneesh Raman, CNN Middle East Correspondent, SAJA student award winner:
"SAJA and the student award I got played a big part in my desire to pursue journalism. At the time there were few South Asians doing television news but SAJA helped reinforce that reporting was a viable career choice. Now there are many of us and SAJA is instrumental in keeping the list growing. This is not just a scholarship but recognition among a group of South Asians with shared interests. It will open doors and it will be something you are connected to for a long while to come."
Former SAJA President S. Mitra Kalita: "A large part of
our mission is to raise the numbers of desi journalists
toiling in the nation's newsrooms. We've come a
long way, but we still have so far to go. These
scholarships help ensure the next generation of
South Asian journalists continues to strive and
thrive."
- 2007 SAJA Scholarships Winners
CNN-SAJA BROADCAST:
Anuradha Herath, University of Louisiana at Lafayette
GRADUATE:
Sonia Narang, UC-Berkeley
Bilal Qureshi, Columbia University
COLLEGE:
Anup Kaphle, Columbia University
HIGH SCHOOL:
Parija Sharedalal, Long Island City High School and Stony Brook University
- 2006 SAJA Scholarships Winners
GRADUATE:
Sumit Dayal, International Center of Photography (New York City)
Rubina Madan, Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism
COLLEGE:
Sonia Moghe, Texas A&M University
HIGH SCHOOL:
Manisha Priyadarshan, Methacton High School (Norrisville, Pa) and Temple University
- 2005 SAJA Scholarships Winners
GRADUATE:
Shefali Anand, New York University/New Delhi,
India
Balakoteswara Pulipaka, Indiana University/Hyderabad,
India
COLLEGE:
Amer Nabil, Marist College/Manchester, Connecticut
HIGH SCHOOL:
Sadia Latifi, Columbia College/Springfield,
Virginia
- 2004 SAJA Scholarships Winners
GRADUATE SCHOOL:
Jigar Mehta, University of California at Berkeley
Sarita Tukaram, University of California at Berkeley
COLLEGE:
Unnati Gandhi, Ryerson University, Canada
HIGH SCHOOL:
Abha Bhattarai, Medill School of Journalism, Northwestern
University
- 2003 SAJA Scholarship Winners
GRADUATE SCHOOL:
Sasha Khokha, of Oakland, Calif.
University of California at Berkeley - $1,000
COLLEGE:
Sharbari Bose, of Wayne, NJ
New York University - $500
HIGH SCHOOL:
Deepa Seetharaman, Coral Springs, FL.
Northwestern University - $500
- 2002 SAJA Scholarship Winners
GRADUATE SCHOOL:
Julie V. Patel of Palatine, Ill.,
Stanford University- $1,000
COLLEGE:
Aman Batheja of Cedarhurst, N.Y., New York University-
$500
HIGH SCHOOL:
Askari Mohammed of Houston, TX, going to Univ. of
Texas-Austin - $500
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