Asha’s high school graduation

Asha is an active EDS student, who lives in the Shonali jute mill area (Khulna, Bangladesh) with her family. Asha likes to study, but her family is poor so she never thought she would get a higher education. Some years ago she joined the EDS and in May 2011 she completed high school with an A+ (GPA 5) on the final exam (HSC exam). Asha’s parents are very interested in their children’s education, so they were really proud of their daughter.

In Bangladesh, only students with good grades from high school can sit for the entry exams at the universities. The entry exams for the universities are highly competitive and expensive, so only the very best students will ever get the chance to enter. Without reading day and night for months a student does not have any chance to pass the entry exam. The EDS therefore created groups of high school graduates who study together for the entry exams. Asha started reading and preparing herself for the entry exam, but in September she stopped coming to the EDS study group. She had to start working to earn money for her family. When Hafiz heard that, he offered to pay Asha what she would have earned from the job, so that she could quit the job and concentrate on her studies. Asha wished to continue her studies and quit the job.

Asha’s father gets ill

Then Asha’s father got severely ill and a tumor started growing on his neck. All were afraid it would be cancer. Asha was very sad because her and her father’s income sustained the entire family. If her father would get ill or die she would not be able to continue her studies. She was also concerned about how they would be able to pay for her father’s treatment, as private clinics are expensive. There are government hospitals, but as these are normally overloaded with patients they have low capacity. Asha contacted Hafiz and cried as she didn’t know what to do. Hafiz asked a friend who is a doctor in the Government hospital in Khulna for help. The doctor agreed to help out, and created a team of volunteer doctors who examined Asha’s father and later operated him for free. Prior to the operation the doctors were worried for Asha’s father and unsure whether the operation would succeed, but fortunately it went well and the doctors were relieved. Asha’s father still has a long recovery time in front of him, and therefore Asha is now the only earning member of her family (she gets 1000 Taka = 12 USD from the EDS monthly for her family). Despite economic problems, Asha continues to teach about 50 poor EDS children in her area for free and studies for the university entry exam. Asha wants to get a higher education and work to improve the livelihood of poor people in Bangladesh. Due to her difficult economic situation, she is searching for a scholarship for her studies.

Will the Asian University for Women give Asha a scholarship?

In Chittagong (east in Bangladesh) there is a fairly new, private university called the Asian University for Women (AUW, http/www.asian-university.org). The university seeks to develop Asian women to become honest community leaders who will develop their communities. Thus they offer scholarships to poor students with good academic records, who are committed to make a positive change for their country. When Trine Lund read this she became excited and suggested to Hafiz that Asha should apply. If Asha could study at the AUW she would not only get a high quality education, but also learn from fellow students from all over South-Asia, build a network with other women who volunteers to develop their communities and learn good leadership skills, in line with the EDS values. Trine contacted the AUW for more information, while Hafiz informed Asha about the AUW. Asha is now hopeful that she will get a scholarship at the AUW and fulfill her dream. The EDS also wishes that Asha will get a scholarship as she will then inspire poor, young girls in the EDS to get a higher education and to work to improve the livelihood of poor people.