Iranian Students Benefit from the Generosity of Our Community
UPDATE Iranian Student Fund
Dear Friend,
As you may be aware, since February 2013, the Public Affairs Alliance of Iranians (PAAIA), in partnership with the Institute of International Education (IIE) has been collecting funds for Iranian students on F-1 visas who are in dire financial need.
The generosity that our community has shown towards these young students has been heart-warming. PAAIA has received over $50,000 in donations from the community. This amount has been matched by IIE, which opened the nomination process for the students in early April. Since then, IIE has received 318 applications from universities and colleges nominating Iranian students who are unable to pay for their tuition. We are proud to report that, through the joint effort with IIE, $102,000 will be awarded to 51 students, five of whose profiles you can view here.
This is an amazing response by our community; however, there are still over 250 Iranian students who would benefit from our support. As such, PAAIA has extended the period during which it will accept donations for the students to May 15, 2013. Please donate to this Fund online or by sending a check to the address below.
This is the time for our community to come together to make a difference in the lives of our younger generation. Every Dollar Counts!!
In the meantime, allow us to share the heartfelt thanks of a student recipient of one such grant.
Dear generous members of IIE and PAAIA,
My name is Ali Samadian. I am a graduate international student in the Petroleum Engineering Department at Texas Tech University.
I am writing this letter to express my deepest appreciation to you for this benevolent $2000 scholarship which will help me finish my degree by August. I was financially in trouble and I was so worried that it was also affecting my performance at school. But now that I have your generous support I feel relieved and I can focus on my education as effectively as possible.
According to my original degree plan I would have to take summer classes to graduate, but due to the unexpected critical situation that happened to me, I would not be able to even stay in the US. Now I will be able to graduate by the end of the summer semester and it would not have been possible without such a great consideration from you. I may not be able to do anything in return which would be as valuable as this cooperation by you. The only thing I can do is to study and to work as hard as I can to make your help fruitful.
My Master’s topic relates to Reservoir Stimulation by Hydraulic Fracturing in Well Completion. My Master’s supervisor is Dr. Mohamed Soliman. He is a prestigious professor and is very resourceful and knowledgeable in this area. He also used to be the Chair of the Department. I have learned a lot from him so far and I am going to try my best to do a high-quality project with him.
After my master’s graduation, as I already have admission to the PhD Petroleum Engineering program here at Texas Tech, I am going to take and hopefully pass the PhD qualifying exam. If possible, I want to continue my research and studies at the PhD level in the same area with Dr. Soliman. The other possibility is that as the petroleum engineering field is an industrial field, I can find a way to apply the specific knowledge I have gained at school in the fracturing industry. I will gain a lot of experience in this field as well.
Again I just want to say thank you for your generosity and for giving me the opportunity to finish my Master’s degree according to my original degree plan.
With Respect,
Ali Samadian
Public Affairs Alliance of Iraninan Americans 1614 20th Street NW – Washington DC 20009 (202) 828-8370 www.paaia.org
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