Stony Brook University (SBU) is pleased to announce the creation of the Arthur Grollman-Ugen Gombo Scholarship, designated for a Tibetan student to pursue a Master of Public Health (MPH) degree through the SBU Program in Public Health. As previous Tibetan students in the MPH Program have made outstanding contributions to their community and to global health upon their graduation, this new scholarship has been developed to highlight and address the public health needs of the Tibetan community. Recipients of this scholarship are expected to serve the Tibetan community in the future, either academically via research and scholarly contributions or professionally, through practical work in the field, while contributing also to global public health.
In 1990, Arthur P. Grollman, M.D., Distinguished Professor at Stony Brook University, initiated a scholarship program for Tibetan students at SBU in conjunction with a visit of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to Stony Brook University, where His Holiness gave a Presidential lecture and received an honorary SUNY degree. Since its conception, this program has been facilitated through the efforts of Ugen Gombo, Ph.D., the first Tibetan to receive a Ph.D. degree – in Anthropology – in the United States. Drs. Grollman and Gombo directed the Tibetan scholarship program for more than 25 years. This new Grollman-Gombo Scholarship, funded by the generosity of Drs. Marsha and Henry Laufer, will cover the full cost of the Master’s program, including tuition and living expenses, leading to a Tibetan student obtaining an MPH degree at Stony Brook University. Applications will be accepted from Tibetan students worldwide who fulfill the requirements listed below.
Application Requirements
1. All Applicants must:
• Be a Tibetan individual holding an updated Green Book issued by the Central Tibetan Administration, Dharamsala, India.
• Apply to the Master of Public Health program at Stony Brook University starting in the Fall of 2019.
• Submit a resume.
• Submit official GRE (verbal, quantitative, and analytical) scores along with the application package. Candidates taking the GRE should notify the Educational Testing Service (ETS) to forward their scores to Stony Brook University [The institution code for SBU is 2548]. All candidates must have taken the GRE within the last two years.
• Arrange for three letters of recommendation from persons who can speak to the applicant’s capacity to complete a course of graduate study, provide leadership in public health, and address the public health needs of the Tibetan community. If the applicant is a student or has graduated within the last two years, one letter should be from a college/university faculty member familiar with the applicant’s work.
• Write a personal essay of 1,000 words or less describing the applicant’s background and experience, and how training in public health will prepare him/her for a leadership role in addressing the public health needs of the Tibetan community. [The essay should be written in 12-point font and have a one-inch margin on all sides].
• A personal interview, if requested by the Selection Committee, will be required.
2. Applicants from the United States and Canada must fulfill the following requirements in addition to the requirements above for All Applicants
• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university with a 3.0 GPA or better.
• Official transcripts from all post-secondary schools (college/university).
3. Applicants from outside the U.S. and Canada must fulfill the following requirements in addition to the requirements outlined for All Applicants
• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university. If the Bachelor’s degree is from a three-year program, an additional year of academic work after receiving the Bachelor’s degree is required. The additional year may consist of credentials from the 1st year of a Master’s degree program or credentials from a recognized academic program.
• Official academic transcripts or college/university academic records, i.e. degree(s) and mark-sheets. [Mark-sheets are for students from India, Nepal, and Bhutan where the university/college usually issues to individual students annual mark-sheets that reflect their examination scores].
• International students should submit TOEFL iBT (internet based test) or IELTS exam scores taken within the last two years for candidates trained in non-English speaking schools and who do not reside in an English speaking country. This applies to Tibetan students from India, Nepal or Bhutan. TOEFL or IELTS is NOT a requirement for this scholarship application but the selected candidate will be required to submit his/her TOEFL or IELTS score before final approval by the university admissions committee. Therefore, candidates should take the TOEFL iBT/IELTS as soon as possible.
• Candidate will be required to apply for a student visa from the respective U.S. Embassy. [Selection of a candidate does not guarantee approval of visa application by the U.S. Embassy. For more information about international student services, see: http://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/visa/].
• International students should request a course-by-course educational credential evaluation by the World Education Services (http://www.wes.org). This evaluation is NOT a requirement for this scholarship application but the selected candidate will be required to have his/her credentials evaluated by WES before final approval by the university admissions committee. Therefore, candidates should start the process of credential evaluation by WES as soon as possible. This evaluation provides a U.S. course equivalent for semester hours earned, course content, and corresponding letter grade for all courses listed on the applicant’s transcript. Serving the Community, the Nation, the World Stony Brook, NY 11794-8338 Tel: (631) 444-9396 Fax: (631) 444-3480
How to Apply
Your application, prepared as a single PDF file, should be submitted by email to [email protected] by 5:00 PM on March 30, 2019. Candidates should apply as soon as their applications are complete and ready.
Documents must be organized in the following order
1. A cover page that includes your full legal name, mailing address, email address, and phone number.
2. Copy of Green book: first page and the page reflecting latest update.
3. Copies of official academic transcripts OR degree and mark sheets of college and university as described above under application requirements.
4. Copy of GRE scores.
5. Letters of Recommendation.
6. Personal essay.
7. Resume.
8. Copy of TOEFL iBT/IELTS scores for international students, if available.
9. WES Credential Evaluation for international students, if available.
Upon receipt of the application, the Program will inform the applicant as to whether the application is complete and under consideration and, subsequently, when a decision has been made.
For further information, applicants can contact Scholarship Program Coordinator, Ms. Cinthia Alvarez-Buonaiuto at [email protected].