Scholarship Description
Call for SEVEN Fund Student Essay Competition
The SEVEN Fund has announced its Student Essay Competition. The
competition will award one (1) undergraduate student prize of
US$10,000 and one (1) graduate student prize of US$20,000. The
submission deadline is December 7, 2008 at midnight Eastern Standard
Time (EST). Winners will be announced on February 7.
Essay Question
Great leaders require great followers. They create a vision imbued
with moral purpose, tension, insight; and they open hearts and minds
to that vision by embodying the personal values consistent with that
vision, and by being eloquent.
Please review the videos called, “The Entrepreneur President, Paul
Kagame of Rwanda,” Parts One and Two (available at www.sevenfund.org/essayresources).
For purposes of this essay, assume the role of policy advisor to
President Kagame, and consider these videos your personal briefing on
his top priorities. In response, write a 2000 word essay with policy
recommendations that put President Kagame’s vision into practice. The
essay should use the first person, and be persuasive. The introductory
sentence might even begin, “Your Excellency, I understand your vision
and here are my policy recommendations.”
As further background to inform this essay on policy you may review
Michael Fairbanks’ chapter in the book Culture Matters , called
“Changing the Mind of a Nation”(also available at www.sevenfund.org/essayresources),
though that is not necessary. The essay need not be comprehensive, but
should focus on key policies. Your recommendations should not be
purely ideological nor a regurgitation of conventional wisdom. Rather,
we encourage you to formulate an original, practical and integrated
set of policies for Rwanda that focus on Enterprise Solutions to
Poverty. The essay should address specific policy recommendations in
some or all of the following areas :
- Monetary policy
- Fiscal Policy
- Direct Foreign Investment policy
- Trade policy
- Sectoral Policy
- Wage Policy
The winners will be announced on February 7. We intend to
personally present the winning paper(s) to His Excellency, President
Paul Kagame, and his cabinet for their review. The winning essays may
be published in selected magazines and publications. SEVEN intends to
publish a selection of all submitted essays on its website and in an
essay book. By entering the essay competition, students are understood
to give their permission for their essay to be used in that fashion.
SEVEN intends to run a version of this competition annually.
SEVEN (The Social Equity Venture Fund) is an independent nonprofit
organization supported by a grant from the John Templeton Foundation.
We provide monetary, organizational, and intellectual support for the
research of enterprise based solutions to poverty, in accord with the
SEVEN Fund Bylaws. The SEVEN Board provides the leadership, and a
variety of qualified jurors make funding decisions.
The Fund’s activities are enhanced by the active participation of its
SEVEN Fund Members. SEVEN Fund Membership consists of all researchers
funded by the Fund, as well as researchers with membership granted by
the SEVEN principals via invitation or application.
The aim of SEVEN Fund programs is to challenge the prevailing mindset
in the fight against poverty. We want to stimulate discussion around
the questions of whether wealth-creation may be the most effective
solution to alleviate poverty. We invest our efforts and resources to
discuss, find, research, and document examples where entrepreneurial
success is shown to have led to poverty alleviation. In the process,
we support entrepreneurs in developing countries with case studies,
mentorship programs and publicity and services that help them succeed
at what they do.
Questions & Answers
What is the essay question?
The question for both the undergraduate and the graduate student essay
competition is: “View the videos ‘The Entrepreneur President, Paul
Kagame of Rwanda’ and write a 2000 word policy paper that puts
President Kagame’s vision into practice.”
How do I submit my essay?
- Submit your essay electronically in a MS Word or PDF format only
using the submission form on SEVEN’s website. All information
requested, including contact information, abstract, and essay should
be included in a single document.
- For undergraduate student competition: www.sevenfund.org/ugessaysubmission
- For graduate student competition:
www.sevenfund.org/geessaysubmission
Website Address
http://www.sevenfund.org