Scholarship : The Society for Australian-German Student Exchange

Scholarships to Germany

The Exchange

Each year, the New South Wales and Victorian branches of the Society each offer approximately 10 scholarships to students in Year 11 (and Year 12 in Victoria) who are studying German. A scholarship may also be offered in Western Australia. Students leave Australia at the end of November to spend just over two months living with a German family and attending a German school, returning around the end of January. During their stay in Germany, the students attend a camp run by GASS Germany, as well as a group trip to Berlin which includes a reception at either the Australian or New Zealand Embassy before returning home.

A Group Leader accompanies the students to Germany and stays in Germany as their first point of contact for any queries or problems. The Group Leader is appointed by SAGSE and is an experienced past scholarship student.

Upon arrival in Germany, students are met by their host families and representatives of the German arm of the Society, GDANSA e.V. The students often stay with German scholarship winners, who travel to Australia the following June. However, no Australian scholarship winner is obliged to host a German student.

Hosting a Student

Applicants who have previously hosted a German student through our hosting program are advantaged in the selection process

Scholarship Benefits

Scholarship winners receive fully-paid return airfares from their home town to their destination in Germany. Students do not pay board to their host families and are not required to host a German student on their return. Students should be aware that accepting a scholarship may involve missing some part of the school year in Australia

Estimated Additional Personal Expenses

When applying for a scholarship consideration should be given that there will be some additional expenses. These include the GASS Germany Winter Camp (approximate cost $150) and Health and Travel Insurance (approximate cost $250).

Each student will require his or her own spending money whilst in Germany (approximately 2-3 months).

Eligibility and Selection Criteria

To be eligible for a scholarship, students must be in Year 11 or Year 12 (Year 12 applies for
Victoria only) and have studied German for two years. Students are ineligible to apply if they are German citizens, have lived in a German-speaking country.

Although academic achievement and ability in German are important, the selection committee places at least as much importance on factors such as maturity, adaptability, ability to mix with people, initiative, general knowledge (particularly about Australia) and interest in Germany, its people, culture and history.

How to Apply

Complete the application form (photocopies are accepted) and request the school principal to complete the confidential report on the last page. Applications should then be sent by the school to:

In NSW:
Dirk Haarhaus
Chair of the Selection Committee
c/- a.hartrodt australia pty. ptd.
PO Box 349
Mascot NSW 1460

In Victoria:
Evelyn Voshege
Selection Committee
The Society for Australian-German Student Exchange
18 Russell Street,
Camberwell VIC 3124

Applications close on May 15 in NSW and May 25 in Victoria each year and no applications will be accepted after that date. The same application form may be used in any year.

Applicants will be informed within a month of their application if they have been short-listed for an interview. Applicants who have not been informed of an interview within two months should assume that they have been unsuccessful.

Interviews are conducted in mid July in Victoria and early August in NSW by a panel made up of representatives from the Society, the respective Department of Education in NSW, government or non-government schools, industry and former exchange students and last about 15 minutes each. A short section of the interview is conducted in German. Interviewees will usually find out about the result of their interview some time in August in Victoria and in September in NSW.

Inquiries

In NSW:
Dirk Haarhaus (Chair of NSW Selection Committee)
SAGSE@hartrodt.com.au

In Victoria:
Evelyn Voshege (Chair of Victorian Selection Committee)
evelyn.voshege@billanook.vic.edu.au

Application forms will be publicised in the German-teaching community.
Students can obtain an application form from any of the following sources:

• Ask your German teacher or Head Teacher of LOTE
• Download the form online

source http://www.sagse.org.au

5 steps to landing that scholarship

(1) Apply to everything you can. "You can't win if you don't apply," says Kantrowitz. "If your odds of winning an individual scholarship are pretty small, the more you apply to for which you qualify, the greater chance you have of winning.

"It usually doesn't take a lot of effort to apply to multiple scholarships; you can reuse essays. You'll find there's an awful lot of overlap in scholarship programs in terms of the questions they ask. The first time you write an essay, it takes a lot of effort, but the next time you can just polish, tweak and slant it to that application."

So don't let fear or procrastination get the better of you -- send that application in.

(2) Apply only for scholarships you're qualified for. Don't send out applications for ones where you don't meet the basic criteria.

"Most of these awards receive far more qualified applicants than they have awards available," says Kantrowitz, so save yourself some time by reviewing the minimum requirements and making sure you are eligible.

(3) In essays, always include concrete examples. "If you write something very abstract, like 'I'm a leader,' they're not going to take your word for it. They want to see a way in which you demonstrated your leadership ability."

(4) Dress for success. "You wouldn't believe how many students go to an interview in T-shirts and jeans," says Kantrowitz. Wear a suit or other business attire instead.

(5) Make sure you get good letters of recommendation. If you ask a teacher or an adult you know to write a letter of recommendation, "many will write it even if they don't think you're the best person." So when you make the request, ask if they can write you a good letter.

"They will probably give you an honest answer," says Kantrowitz. And make sure the person writing the letter can write well and is able to discuss what is relevant to the scholarship for which you are applying.

This article was reported and written by Marshall Loeb for MarketWatch.