What would you do if you had some extra cash? For many Canadian high school and post-secondary students, the answer is simple, if a little unconventional; they’d pay for their education. Each year, more than $15 million dollars in post-secondary scholarships are left unclaimed in Canada. FundQi, an online platform that offers students the best chances of being awarded scholarship money, and which has helped students win over $1 million dollars in scholarship funds, is trying to make sure no scholarship goes unclaimed during these uncertain times for students.
For Zuberi Attard, the mission to help students afford a post-secondary education is a personal one. As Black marginalized at-risk youth who overcame a period of homelessness, Zuberi knows the important role scholarships can play. “I always knew that I wanted to go to university, but a university education seemed like a dream rather than a plan. What changed my life forever was winning $50,000 in scholarships so that I could continue my studies. Once I graduated, I knew I had to do everything I could to help others not only afford their education, but to realize that their dreams are within their reach. Education changed my life and it’s my goal for every student to realize it can change theirs and that they can afford to go to post-secondary.
FundQi was founded in 2015 and offers students practical advice above all else. Students who sign up on the website will be matched with the scholarships which best match their personal and academic profile. Scholarships that tend to go unclaimed, generally due to very specific requirements, but which match the student’s profile, are automatically pushed to the top of the scholarship suggestions thanks to the proprietary algorithms employed by the site. FundQi also provides students with access to winning scholarship templates and application editing as well as tips that lead to their applications ranking higher with awards committees. FundQi’s database doesn’t stop with scholarships. Students will also have access to hundreds of start-up grants, bursaries, and internships. The educational dollars offered benefit a wide variety of students based on financial need, minority status, geographic location, GPA, previous volunteer experience or project-specific scholarships for things such as creating the best essay or video submission.
In December 2020, Zuberi was awarded the Rotman Family Entrepreneur of the Year award.
“There is a lot of discussion these days about helping marginalized students, women and those from academically and ethno-culturally diverse backgrounds to be supported and educated so that they can make the most of their skills and talent. FundQi is helping students of all backgrounds and academic records to be able to go to school. There is no reason for a student who qualifies to get into a post-secondary program to not be able to afford to go. Especially, during these times when jobs and government funding are hard to come by with the cut Canada Student Service Grant. We want to work with post-secondary institutions to ensure students have access to our tools and claim all of the scholarship funds available to them.” – Zuberi Attard, FundQi
On top of scholarship matching, FundQi has many video lessons showing students how to maximize their chances of success with scholarships. The videos can be accessed for free here.
For more information, or to arrange an interview, please contact the FundQi PR department:
Or reach out on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, to TikTok.
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