Help Cover Living Costs for My Full Scholarship!

Note: Eman Pirzada is organizing this fundraiser on behalf of Malaika Ali, for whom GoFundMe is not available in Pakistan.

All costs are in USD, the fundraiser receives donations in CAD.

Hello!

I'm Malaika Ali, an aspiring fiction writer from Pakistan. I'm thrilled to announce that I've been accepted to the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) for a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing with a 100% merit award. SAIC is ranked as one of the top 10 postgraduate art and design institutions in the world and has long been a dream school of mine. While my merit award covers my entire tuition fee, valued at approximately $115,600, external costs still pose a challenge for me. If I am unable to cover these, it will be impossible for me to attend this program.

I am starting this fundraiser to help me cover living costs for 1 school year as I navigate through this incredible transition!

I can’t pinpoint the exact moment I realized my love for writing, but I know that the seeds of storytelling were planted in me at a young age. Since then, no matter what phase of life I am in, I’ve been on a quest to devour and expel words. When I was a little girl, I would ask my father nearly every night to tell me the story he carefully concocted just for me about the seagull and the fish. Every night the hungry seagull would fly circuitously over the ocean in hopes of catching a fish. The fish would then offer to bring a pearl hidden inside an oyster shell from the depths of the ocean in exchange for its life, and the two would become friends. But somehow, every single night that I heard my father dramatically narrate his story, my mind would surprise me with something new. Sometimes I saw fireworks in the sky that the seagull circled, akin to the ones I saw the night before on Independence Day. Sometimes I would see iridescent bubbles brewing on the surface of the ocean that housed the fish, inspired by the new bubble gun my mother bought me that day. My reality would dance on the roof of these fantasies until it seeped through the fissures, weaving itself with the magic that lived inside. As I grew older, I came to see that the world around me was perpetually pleading for magic, and thus my need to write stories was born.

Somewhere along the way, to formally study creative writing became a dream that I did not think was achievable. This year I applied to writing schools as a distant goal, only to find that I got accepted to two of the three programs I applied to, one with 100% merit.

After finishing my undergraduate degree, I didn’t have the liberty to pursue writing professionally due to my family’s persistent struggle to make ends meet, so I resorted to corporate jobs. Making the decision to pursue a degree in writing is possibly the first time I have reached a hand towards my passions and abandoned the idea of what those around me deem beneficial for me.

The scarce savings I’ve managed to accumulate through my time working were spent on multiple application fees and standardized tests. My father is retired, and my sister, mother, and I are the main sources of income for our daily expenses. For me to relocate without your support, especially considering my financial situation and the devaluation of currency in my home country, is impossible. To give you a better picture of my financial situation, even my initial deposit, which was a mere 500 USD, was an amount I had to borrow from friends. The costs that I am now unable to meet are listed below (university’s quote is also attached by the end for reference) inclusive of health insurance, living costs, tech and UPASS, books and supplies, and transportation.

Cost breakdown:

Note: all costs are in USD, the fundraiser receives donations in CAD.

Tech & Upass Fees — $980

Living Expenses — $10,380

Personal Expenses — $1,420

Transportation — $1020

Books & Supplies — $550

Medical Insurance — $3,650

Travel Costs — $1,500

Total — 19,500 USD ≃ 27,000 CAD

I’ve never put out my vulnerabilities as much as I have now or reached out for support like this before, but I have no other option, and it would be regrettable if I am unable to attend this program even after receiving full merit. Even if contributing is not an option for you, please help me by circulating my story.

A graduate degree in Creative Writing will set me on a path towards my passions by providing me with an environment that enables creative growth, enhances my writing skills, and allows for practical experience. I now hold the belief that if I chase my dreams, if I let myself be seen, if I wear myself inside out and if I reach for a helping hand—I will reach my goals and I will be heard. I will be able to empower others by producing an amalgam of a blanket of words unique to the threads of my skin and the worlds that reside in my mind, worlds that don't restrict the seagull to wings, nor the fish to fins.

Thank you for taking the time to read my story and for helping me take a step towards my dreams!

If you are in Pakistan and having trouble donating through GoFundMe, you can use the details below to make a direct transfer to my Pakistani bank account:

Malaika Ali

UBL

1481290787742