Frequently Asked Questions
The Onsi Sawiris Scholarship Program is a fully funded scholarship program for undergraduate and graduate students.
The Onsi Sawiris Scholarships is awarded to students based on character, merit and need as demonstrated through academic excellence, extracurricular activities, and entrepreneurial initiative.
The scholarships include full tuition, a living allowance, travel and health insurance.
Full tuition coverage including:
• Travel expenses
• Living allowance
• Books & computer
• Health Insurance & other benefits
Below are the cases of ineligibility:
• Candidates who do not fulfill the scholarship requirements mentioned on this website.
• For graduate applicants, candidates who already hold a master's degree from a foreign university or who have an Egyptian Master’s degree in the same field they are aiming to apply for under the scholarship.
• Living outside Egypt is one of the ineligibility factors; Preference is given to applicants who have not resided outside of Egypt and/or have not lived more than 2 years abroad.
Applicants must submit the following:
• A completed Onsi Sawiris Scholarship Program online application form: Onsi Sawiris Scholarship Undergraduate application
• Most recent Resume.
• Copy of test scores (SAT I or ACT) & TOEFL iBT® or IELTS.
• Copy of latest transcripts (For grades 9, 10 & 11).
• If available, copy of grade 12 certificate or Thanaweyya Amma certificate.
• Two recommendation letters from individuals able to evaluate the applicant’s academic performance.
• Proof of extracurricular activities.
• IGCSE students must submit 3 A-Level subjects with a cumulative score equivalent to at least 90% or 4.0 GPA.
• French Baccalaureate students are required to score at least 14.
• German system students must score at least 1.6GPA or higher on a 5.0 scale.
• IB students are required to score 38-40 as a minimum.
Note: this is the average equivalency of a 3.5 GPA which is the minimum requirement on a 4.0 GPA scale. Applicants are encouraged to refer to their school counselors for more detailed information on how to equate your grades to a 4.0 GPA scale.
Both students completing their grade 11 by the time of application deadline and students completing their grade 12 by the application deadline are eligible to apply for the undergraduate scholarship program, provided that they start their first year of bachelor studies as freshmen in August/September 2025.
Applicants must submit the following:
• A completed Onsi Sawiris Scholarship program application form: Onsi Sawiris Scholarship Graduate application
• Most recent Resume.
• Copy of university transcripts for the bachelor’s degree.
• Copy of graduation certificate for the bachelor’s degree.
• Copy of TOEFL iBT® or IELTS score report.
• For Master of Engineering program, copy of GRE test score report.
• For Master of Business Administration program, copy of GMAT (preferred) or GRE test score report.
• Two recommendation letters from individuals able to evaluate the applicant’s job and/or academic performance.
• Proof of extracurricular activities.
• Proof of military service completion or exemption for male applicants only.
Candidates who already have one master’s degree in the field of study they're applying for will not be considered. Candidates with a master’s degree in a technical field different from the one that they’re applying for will be considered. Also, candidates who already hold a master's degree from a foreign university will not be considered.
In this case, and since the GPA scale differs from one university to another, written grades are considered, and the total graduation grade should be no less than "Very Good".
All types of extracurricular activities are taken into consideration. These activities could be cultural activities, educational activities, sports, or volunteering work such as school clubs, student activities, courses, competitions, awards, internships, etc.
Students are encouraged to include all activities or courses in their scholarship applications and to upload proofing documents (e.g. certificate, official letter, etc).
For undergraduate scholarship, two reference letters are required.
As for graduate scholarship, one academic reference letter and one professional reference letter from a place of work (current or former) are required.
Recommendation letters should be recent and addressed to the Onsi Sawiris Scholarship Program.
Yes, there is. For the undergraduate scholarship, applicants should not exceed 19 years old. For the graduate scholarship, applicants should not exceed 35 years old.
Meeting the eligibility criteria is the first step on which your application will be shortlisted. If you do not meet the minimum requirements, it is recommended that you work on improving the part that is lacking to meet and exceed the scholarship requirements.
Orascom Construction seeks to promote excellence and achievement. Orascom Construction launched the Onsi Sawiris Program in the year 2000 to invest company resources in educational programs to improve the communities in which it works.
Through the Onsi Sawiris Scholarship program, Orascom Construction provides full tuition scholarships for Egyptian students seeking to pursue their degrees at prestigious universities in the United States, with the aim of bolstering Egypt‘s economic competitiveness.
The application deadline is July 31st, 2024. Kindly note that no late submissions are accepted after the application deadline and there are no exceptions to that rule.
No submissions after the deadline are accepted. Applicants are responsible for submitting their documents no later than the announced application deadline, July 31st, 2024. Undergraduate applicants who have not received their final certificate/transcript from their schools before the application deadline could submit predicted scores provided by their schools and should mention on their application the date on which their official transcripts are expected to be released. Such cases would be further reviewed and assessed by the scholarship screening team.
Shortlisted applicants will receive an email informing them of their status and detailing the next steps. Due to the high volume of applications, only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
Due to the high volume of applications, only shortlisted candidates are contacted.
The application cycle takes about a year from the scholarship application deadline, i.e. students applying for the round where the scholarship deadline is July 31st, 2024 are expected to commence their studies in the U.S. in August/September 2025. Check the schedule of events the schedule of events section on the website for more detailed information.
No, all scholars must return to Egypt and stay for 2 years after completing their degree in the U.S..
Applicants who have already been accepted by one of the five universities and within the approved programs that fall under the scholarship must go through the scholarship application process. They must meet the scholarship criteria, submit the scholarship application and required documents no later than the announced deadline and attend interviews (if shortlisted). The applicant could receive a funding opportunity if shortlisted and accepted after passing the application process.
The Onsi Sawiris Graduate Scholarship Program is only granted to the list of endorsed universities provided below:
· University of Chicago
· University of Pennsylvania
· Harvard University
· Massachusetts Institute of Technology
· Stanford University
The Onsi Sawiris Undergraduate Scholarship Program is only granted to the list of endorsed universities provided below:
· University of Chicago
· University of Pennsylvania
· Harvard University
· Massachusetts Institute of Technology
· Stanford University
Contact Information
Amideast Egypt
Website: www.amideast.org/egypt
E-Mail: OSSP@amideast.org
Tel.: (202) 19263
Address: 38 Mohie Eldin Abo Elezz Street
Dokki, Giza
Egypt
The Onsi Sawiris Scholarship Program is only granted to the list of endorsed universities provided in the "Approved Universities".
Selection as a nominee for the Onsi Sawiris scholarship Program does not guarantee university acceptance. Nominees will be supported in applying to the endorsed U.S. universities only. If nominated for the scholarship, the Onsi Sawiris Scholarship Program award will be made once university acceptance is obtained.