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UAE students invited to apply for $100,000 Global Student Prize

by Tabitha BardaFebruary 7, 2022

The Global Student Prize – Making a Difference

Applications have just been opened for UAE students who would like to bid for the Global Student Prize, which awards $100,000 (Dh367,000) to an exceptional student from around the world who is able to show they are making a real difference in their community.

Launched in 2021 in partnership with Chegg.org – the research arm of American education company Chegg.com – the $100,000 Global Student Prize is a companion award to the Varkey Foundation’s $1 million Global Teacher Prize. The Varkey Foundation is a UAE-based global charitable foundation focused on improving the standards of education for underprivileged children, created by the family behind GEMs Education.

The Global Student Prize aims to highlight the efforts of extraordinary students throughout the world that are making a real impact on learning, the lives of their peers and on society beyond. The prize is open to all students who are at least 16 years old and enrolled in an academic institution or training and skills program. Part-time students as well as students enrolled in online courses are also eligible for the prize.

Dubai-based student Lamya Butt was a 2021 top-ten finalist for the Global Student Award. She caught the judges’ attention as the Founder and CEO of a youth initiative called Resilient Together, which works with international philanthropic organizations to provide ICT devices for 20,000 UAE students forced into distance learning by COVID.

The Prize is fundamentally about recognising students who have made a difference in the world and to give all students a voice in their, and our, collective future:

“Students throughout the world during the pandemic have shown great strength, focus and determination to keep learning and keep fighting for their future.

They deserve huge praise and recognition for never giving up. These students will now be charged with helping to solve some of the greatest challenges in history. The Global Student Prize has been launched to shine a light on their stories and listen to their voices.

After all, it is their dreams, their insights and their creativity that will help to build the future.”

Lila Thomas. Mother. Director of Social Impact. Head. Chegg.org

How will applicants be assessed?

Students applying for the Global Student Prize will be assessed on their academic achievement, impact on their peers, how they make a difference in their community and beyond, how they overcome the odds to achieve, how they demonstrate creativity and innovation, and how they operate as global citizens.

The winner will be chosen from the top 10 finalists by the Global Student Prize Academy and the Global Teacher Prize Academy, made up of prominent individuals. The winners are due to be announced at an awards ceremony in Paris in November.

Applications are open to, and positively welcomed from, all students from all schools in the UAE – you do not have to be studying at a GEMS school.

Why apply for the Global Student Prize?

Applying for the Global Student Prize comes with many other opportunities aside from the chance to win the $100,000. According to Chegg.org there is also the chance to gain:

• National and international recognition of your achievements – as a top 50 shortlisted candidate, top 10 finalist or the overall winner.
• The chance to become engaged in national and international discussions on policy and campaigns affecting students and student education. This includes sharing a platform with the winner of the Global Teacher Prize.
• Membership of the Chegg Changemaker community for the top 50 finalists –a global community of students working together to make life better for their peers and the world they will inherit.
• The potential to win the Global Student Prize and receive a prize of US$100,000 as well as attend the winning ceremony.

The SchoolsCompared Verdict? Celebrate the achievements of our young people.

Applications for the Global Student Prize close on Sunday 17 April 2022. Read more about the eligibility criteria or apply or nominate a student. Our view is that this is an initiative that deserves credit – and an application whatever the impacts you have made, whether big or small. Sometimes the smallest things that we do in our lives have such enormous impacts – and often we cannot perceive them. That is the story of the landmark Capra film “It’s a Wonderful Life”, but equally we can all be inspired by the call to action in “Field of Dreams” that “If you build it, they will come.” The stories of our young people, and the ways through the pandemic that they have in so many ways made a better life, made a difference, have a vehicle here to be told – and shared.

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