The Foundation of the St Andrew's Society of Philadelphia

Promoted understanding between the United States and Scotland by awarding scholarships to carefully selected students in the Philadelphia region to study in Scotland, and to carefully selected students in Scotland to study in the United States. Each year, the Foundation contacts 30 colleges and universities in the region surrounding the Philadelphia area, and delivers the Foundations application for scholarship for attendance abroad at one of four Scottish universities. The candidate must rank academically in the top 25% of his/her class, be nominated by their school Dean or foreign study head, be involved in his/her school community, and willing to spend an entire academic year abroad at a Scottish educational institution. Each applicant must provide a personal essay, letters of recommendation, and transcript in support of his/her candidacy to the Scholarship Committee. Nominees will be invited to be interviewed by the Foundations scholarship committee. Nominees are questioned to discover which applicants will represent the Foundation and experience the culture, history, and character of Scotland at their chosen university should they be awarded a scholarship. Committee members independently rank each candidate using a scoring rubric, from which the winning candidates are selected for awards. Based on their ranking by the committee, the top scorer receives first choice for a Scottish university, etc. Personnel at the Scottish universities execute a similar vetting process, and select award winners to attend colleges in the Philadelphia area.