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Palestinian Scholars Program

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"Among this exceptional cohort are two students from Gaza and one from the West Bank, recruited through the Second Chance initiative. This program supports high-achieving, low-income international students, including refugees, who seek access to higher education but lack financial aid. GU-Q's collaboration with Second Chance underscores its unwavering commitment to access and equity in the face of global challenges."

About the Palestinian Scholars Program at Second Chance (PSP@SC)

Second Chance stands unwavering in our vision to break down barriers for high-achieving, low-income students by helping them access higher education with a scholarship. Our commitment to students transcends geopolitical complexities, challenges, and borders, and our team has a successful track record of working on unprecedented cases.

Together with Georgetown University in Qatar (GU-Q), we at Second Chance will collaborate on a shared mission to bring talented students to the GU-Q campus. For those unfamiliar with GU-Q, Georgetown's Qatar campus is dedicated to promoting intellectual, ethical, and spiritual understanding through serious and sustained discourse among people of different faiths, cultures, and beliefs. Students at GU-Q aspire to careers in foreign service, diplomacy, and myriad sectors that cross international boundaries.

Last year, three outstanding Palestinian students—two from Gaza and one from the West Bank—were awarded scholarships to study at Georgetown University in Qatar (GU-Q), covering tuition and indirect costs. GU-Q and Second Chance are offering more students the same opportunity. Second Chance will work to find, identify, mentor, guide, and support Palestinian students in their application to GU-Q. We would love your help in identifying and supporting these students.

We would love to spread the message of this opportunity far and wide for maximum impact and to reach as many potential nominators of Palestinian students as possible. By working hand in hand, we can make a profound difference in the lives of these students at this critical time.

Program Details and How to Apply

Information for Educators, Supporters, and Student Applicants

The Palestinian Scholars Program at Second Chance (PSP@SC) is now open for applications! The deadline to apply is Thursday, May 1, 2025.

The program is exclusively for students interested in pursuing GU-Q's Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service Degree, which offers the following majors: 

  •  Culture & Politics

  •  International History

  •  International Politics

  •  International Economics 

(Please Note: All other academic programs and majors, including STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) fields or Masters/Post Graduate programs, are NOT offered in this program.)

This program is designed for students who meet the following eligibility requirements:

  • Palestinian citizenship (Residing in West Bank, Gaza, East Jerusalem or displaced in the last 5 years or residing in refugee camps)

  • Strong academic record

  • Low-income or under-resourced background

  • Demonstrating English language proficiency (TOEFL 100+ iBT / 600+ PBT, IELTS 7+, Duolingo DET 120+)

  • Providing 2 Letters of Recommendation during the application process.

Information for Educators & Supporters

Are you a school counselor working with any remarkable, high-achieving, low-income Palestinian students who don’t have a viable financial aid offer of admission to universities? Are you a university Admissions Officer who has a Palestinian student on a waitlist whom you wished you could have admitted but didn’t because of limited funding or visa vulnerabilities? Are you a member of an NGO or other organization working with Palestinian youth aspiring to attend university?

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If you answered "Yes!" to any of the questions above, we'd love to hear from you! We've put together some helpful resources below to help you in identifying which criteria of Palestinian students can benefit from this program and how they can apply:

 

Read our Eligibility Criteria Document & Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) - To Learn More About Which Students You Can Recommend

 

Watch the Recording of Our Information Webinar - If You'd Like to Hear More About PSP@SC and How Our Program Works

Information for Student Applicants

Are you a Palestinian student interested in applying to the Palestinian Scholars Program at Second Chance for the 2025 year? Please follow these two steps:

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  • Step 1: Review the eligibility requirements to apply to the program by clicking here.

  • Step 2: If you can confirm that you meet all the eligibility requirements, click here to begin and submit your application!

Contact and Support

For any questions about the PSP@SC Program for 2025, support with the application process or if you're an individual or organization who wishes to partner with us in this mission, please get in touch with moustafa@secondchance.global

 

For over five years, Second Chance has been working with High Achieving Low Income (HALI) students around the world to help them access higher education via scholarships. We seek to honor the potential of exceptional, deserving students around the world who face the barrier of being unable to attend university but demonstrate outstanding potential. We are very proud of our work in supporting them and ask you to join us in the collective effort to remove financial barriers to students seeking access to university.

 

Would you like to support us? Visit our donation page to make an active difference in the lives of these students today.

Copyright © 2025 Second Chance at Higher Ed, Inc.

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