Sawiris Scholars program celebrates 15th year providing opportunities to Egyptian students

The first class of Sawiris Scholars arrived in Hyde Park in February 2008, 15 years ago this month. Their exchange program was originally designed to provide an opportunity for up to four undergraduate students every year from one or two Egyptian universities to spend an academic year at UChicago, taking a full course load and immersing themselves in the distinctive culture and academic rigor of the College.

Since then, the program has expanded with 110 students coming from four Egyptian universities. 14 of them have eventually transferred into UChicago to get their undergraduate degrees. 

The vision of Egyptian businessman and University Trustee Nassef Sawiris, AB‘82, was to expose bright Egyptian students to the world-class education that UChicago offers so they can make a positive impact and contribute to the development of their home country. He was honored by the College in an event held in Cairo, Egypt, on Dec. 1, 2022, to celebrate the program’s success. 

The NNS Foundation, which was founded by Sawiris and currently funds the program, provides full coverage for tuition, airfare, housing, health insurance and a living stipend. Through personal funds and the NNS Foundation, Sawiris has contributed over $50 million to the College, the bulk of which has been designated to support the Sawiris Scholars Program. 

“It’s a true pleasure to witness the program’s unceasing achievements thrive since its launch,” Sawiris said. “Our efforts contribute to creating future leaders capable of achieving economic development and advancing society.”

John W. Boyer, dean of the College and the keynote speaker at the anniversary event, said the Sawiris Scholars program is not only vital for bringing global perspectives to campus, but also providing an opportunity for high achieving Egyptian students to study at one of the world’s top universities.  

“The exchange year at the College has been a truly transformative experience to the Egyptian Scholars,” said Dina Rashed, associate dean of the College for academic affairs, who has run the program since 2016. Most Sawiris Program alums land prominent jobs in Egypt’s public and private sectors after their graduation, Rashed added. 

"We are honored to celebrate the ambitions and aspirations of Egyptian students, and pleased to build effective partnerships with Egyptian entities, to foster human ingenuity and critical thinking,” Boyer said.

Third-years Noor Awad and Noureen Ramadan, and fourth-year Ebrahim Salama are among 12 Sawiris Scholars currently studying in the College. Below, read about their respective journeys to UChicago, what they have been learning here and what they plan to do once the year is over. 

Where did you grow up and what are your academic interests?

Noor Awad: I was born in a small governorate in Egypt called Port Said, but I grew up in Saudi Arabia and spent most of my life there before moving back to Egypt in high school. 

My mom has a degree in economics, and she taught me about it. I loved it because it combined two things I liked: math and psychology, or human behavior. I got into Cairo University to study economics, and now I'm here studying economics at one of the best places to be learning it.

Noureen Ramadan: I was in an all girls school for middle school and high school in Alexandria, Egypt. I always looked forward to my math classes, and I was really good at them. I eventually became interested in business and economics classes, which I’ve been studying at Alexandria University and am now studying here. 

Ebrahim Salama: I'm originally from Cairo. My major back in my home institution, Ain Shams University, is financial markets and institutions. At UChicago, I'm majoring in business economics. My aspiration is to chase a career in investments. I truly believe in the role of financial markets in propelling economic efficiency, and the transformation of capital between two parties.

What interested you in the Sawiris Scholars program?

Salama: I knew about this scholarship before even enrolling at my home university. This was actually one of the things that propelled me to apply there. To attend the University of Chicago, one of the top universities in the world, seemed far-fetched at the beginning. But I was ready to apply for this opportunity by my third year there. 

Awad: We had posters all over our campus, specifically in the economics building. This is where most of my lectures were being held, so whenever I would see the pictures of students at UChicago, I thought, ‘what are they doing there?’ I researched and found out that a lot of the Nobel Prize winners in economics come from UChicago. So I applied for the scholarship, and here I am.

What did you expect? Had you spent any time in America before coming over?

Ramadan: I had not been here before. Honestly, I expected I knew it was going to be a lot of work, but I thought it would really be extremely beneficial to me and that l’d never come across another opportunity like this one, which is exactly what happened. 

Salama: It was my first time in the United States, I'd just dreamed about it. Chicago is a beautiful city. I love the city and I love the University much more, to be honest. Before I came here, it was just a place I could see on the internet. Now I’m here.

Awad: I'd never been to America before, and when I got the acceptance email, I was extremely excited, but also extremely nervous. My intention was to just absorb as much knowledge and information as I could in order to help give back to my community somehow. If I couldn’t keep up, I’d be disappointing myself somehow. It didn't work that way, though. It worked out incredibly, honestly.

How has it been going for you so far? 

Salama: I don't know if I’ll be able to put that into words. It's magnificent. It’s the whole UChicago experience, which is not just the academics. It's about the brilliant people that you interact with on a daily basis, and a cohort of students from all over the world. 

A handful of the faculty are just casually Nobel laureates that you can say hi to, it's great. And then there’s the resources we have at our disposal like the Career Advancement office, which connected me with employers in San Francisco on a finance career trek. Just the name “UChicago” opens doors. 

Ramadan: It’s been amazing, I've even picked up a new hobby in film photography. I go to process it and it's like a fun little errand for me to do. I like to document some of my favorite memories. So whenever my friends and I are doing something together, I always tell everyone to pose for me and take a photo.

What are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced and adjustments you’ve made?

Salama: After three years I had really adjusted to the pace of my university and it was completely fine. And when I got to UChicago it was so difficult, it was a bit of a surprise. 

But one of the things I realized is that it's not about exerting maximum effort. You need to first develop your own capacity for work. If you utilize your time and effort efficiently, you’ll teach yourself to catch up with the pace here.

Awad: In one of my economics classes, even though we were reviewing concepts I was familiar with, I struggled at first to keep up. I spoke to the professor and he told me to think about improving step by step rather than all at once. That helped me and by the end of the quarter I did really well. I’m proud of myself for that. It changed everything I thought I knew about economics. 

What's next for you after this school year is over? 

Awad: In the future, I want to get my Ph.D. I am trying to explore development economics. In Egypt, we have a not so stable economy currently. I just want to do a lot of research, work really hard, and somehow try to help my community get back up on its feet.

Salama: I believe I'll be going back to Egypt. I have to finish a couple of courses there, but I’ve completely changed my career approach. So hopefully in one or two years, I’ll come back to UChicago for my MBA.

Ramadan: I'm planning to try to study here again. I’d also like to have a master's degree, maybe in German, and look for an internship in America.

Would you recommend the program to future students?

Salama: Absolutely. It’s something completely different and a trillion times better than what you could imagine. From the moment I touched down here in Chicago, it has been completely different, in a good way. You'll never understand that unless you really experience it.

Ramadan: Yes, it’s a great opportunity. UChicago is amazing, and it’s the best place for economics. Coming here is something that opens up your eyes to how big the world actually is.

Awad: 110%. UChicago economics is just that missing piece of the puzzle. The way they teach it here is just entirely different. If you want to have the intuition behind the concepts, you really need to come here. It’s the diverse community here, which really makes a difference. And there are a lot of opportunities to engage with it.