Two incoming first-year students at the University of Waterloo are recipients of Schulich Leader Scholarships.
Two incoming first-year students at the University of Waterloo are recipients of Schulich Leader Scholarships worth $80,000 and $60,000 each.
Amanda Rampertab from Oakville, Ontario won the award worth $80,000 for a student pursuing a degree in an engineering program. A graduate of Holy Trinity Catholic Secondary School, Rampertab enters mechatronics engineering this fall. She was selected on the basis of her outstanding admission average of 95.2 percent, and her demonstrated leadership in school life and within the community.
“I selected Waterloo because of its awesome co-op program,” said Rampertab, whose brother is also an engineering student at Waterloo. “I became interested in engineering after participating in robotics challenges in high school, but chose Waterloo engineering when I saw the great co-op jobs my brother and his friends had. I appreciate the options and opportunities this scholarship provides to me.”
Emily Pass, from Charlottetown Rural High School in Charlottetown, PEI won an award worth $60,000 for students pursuing a degree in a science, technology or mathematics program. She enrolled in physics and astronomy, with a co-op option. She is receiving the scholarship based on her outstanding admission average of 98.5 percent, her demonstrated leadership in school life and her strong interest and talent in entrepreneurship.
“I was in Junior Achievement and helped to found a decal-making business, so Waterloo's reputation for innovation and entrepreneurship definitely gave the school an even greater appeal in my eyes,” said Pass. “Winning this scholarship means the freedom to explore and learn and be where I choose to be–an opportunity for which I am incredibly grateful.”
Seymour Schulich, Canadian business leader and philanthropist, created the scholarship program three years ago, which encourages high school graduates to embrace science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines in their future careers. Scholarship winners are known as Schulich Leaders and this year there were 40 selected from 1,147 nominees.
“Fostering leadership in STEM fields is vital to Canada’s economic prosperity,” said Seymour Schulich. “A scholarship of this size will motivate high school students from across the country to pursue their dream and in the process help to ensure our country’s competitive position. This scholarship, now in its third year, has positively impacted 120 students from across the country in 10 provinces distributing more than $7.6 million to Canadian Schulich Leaders since 2012.”
Open to every high school, secondary school and CEGEP across Canada, Schulich Leader Scholarships recognize Canadian students who plan to study one of the STEM disciplines during their undergraduate years at university. These students demonstrate two of the following attributes: academic excellence, outstanding community, business or entrepreneurial leadership or financial need.
Created in 2011 by entrepreneur and philanthropist Seymour Schulich, Schulich Leader Scholarships are 40 undergraduate scholarships awarded annually to students pursuing undergraduate studies in STEM subjects: Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. This $100 million scholarship program is the largest undergraduate STEM scholarship opportunity in Canada and the second-largest endowment to Canadian academia in history. A sister program in Israel distributes 35 awards at five participating universities with over $1 million worth of scholarships annually. Schulich Leader Scholarships are administered and represented by UJA Federation of Greater Toronto.
In just half a century, the University of Waterloo, located at the heart of Canada’s technology hub, has become one of Canada’s leading comprehensive universities with 35,000 full- and part-time students in undergraduate and graduate programs. Waterloo, as home to the world's largest post-secondary co-operative education program, embraces its connections to the world and encourages enterprising partnerships in learning, research and discovery. In the next decade, the university is committed to building a better future for Canada and the world by championing innovation and collaboration to create solutions relevant to the needs of today and tomorrow. For more information about Waterloo, please visit www.uwaterloo.ca.
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Pamela Smyth
University of Waterloo
519-888-4777
psmyth@uwaterloo.ca
www.uwaterloo.ca/news
Laura Mandell
laura@brown-cohen.com
416-484-1132 ext. 7
Wendy Kauffman
wendy@brown-cohen.com
416-484-1132 ext. 3
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