The Haas School of Business at the University of California at Berkeley set a new record this year, awarding scholarships to a full half of its entering full-time MBA class, the school announced earlier this month. In all, Haas will provide almost $6 million in scholarship aid to students across its three MBA programs, with an average award of $26,000 for students in the full-time MBA program.
“It’s a real tipping point, and we plan to continue the trend of providing the highest level of financial support possible to help our students achieve their academic goals,” Daniel Roddick, Haas director of financial aid, said in a statement. Haas set another record as well this year in terms of female enrollment. An unprecedented 43 percent of the class of 241 entering students are women. Awards of scholarship aid are reflective of the growing percentage of women in the class, with 41 percent of scholarships for the class of 2016 going to female recipients.
Haas students can apply for dozens of scholarships offered through Haas, UC Berkeley and many outside organizations. Awards to full-time MBA students range from $10,000 to $110,000 for two years of coursework, and different scholarships are awarded based on need, merit, career area or commitment to diversity.
The largest scholarship, the Dean’s Fellowship, is a $110,000 award bestowed upon the entering MBA students deemed to have the greatest career potential as a “path-bending leader.” Two students in the Haas Class of 2016 received the Dean’s Fellowship this year.
The first, Ben Raphael, served for nine years in the Army in both Iraq and Afghanistan and hopes to use his MBA degree to create global economic opportunities. “I’m passionate about developing and employing unconventional solutions to complex problems,” he said in a statement. One such example involved using pomegranates to quell violence in a war-torn Afghan province. “Through business, I want to make the world a better place for children like my two young daughters.”
The second, Zara Khan, divided her time growing up between the United States and rural Pakistan and plans to use her MBA degree to continue work in international development to fight poverty. “In my village in Pakistan, farmers are still struggling to feed their families and make ends meet,” Khan said in a statement. “The economy is shrinking, schools and hospitals are starved for resources, and there is little hope that the children will live a better life. I can change this in my lifetime, but it will take more than just money.”
Learn more about the dozens of scholarships available to Haas MBA students.
