Help Martha Attend Graduate School
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Hi everyone,
Thank you for taking the time to read my story! My name is Martha, and I'm a first-generation college student hoping to attend a prestigious graduate program at the University of Helsinki in Finland.
As a queer Hispanic woman from a low-income family, I recognize the great value of attaining higher education and have had to work hard to earn my place. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to study in an undergraduate program, and strive to be the first in my family to continue my education at the graduate level.
I'm graduating next month from Marymount Manhattan College (MMC) with a BA in Urban and Environmental Sustainability, and I've received an offer from the University of Helsinki - one of the top research universities in the world - to continue my studies in their M.Ss Global Sustainability program.
I was able to earn a place in MMC's College Honors Program, and expect to graduate with highest honors and a 3.94 GPA. Furthermore, I am a member of the Alpha Chi national college honor society, open to the top 10% of students nationwide. I have been involved both on- and off-campus with sustainability actions that I will detail further below! Without any financial support from my family, I have had to work a full-time job since freshman year to support myself, including paying thousands of dollars per semester for out-of-pocket tuition, rent, utilities, and transportation while living in NYC.
Although my years of hard work have finally led to an offer of admission at a top university, I am faced with the harsh reality of my situation - I cannot afford tuition. The opportunity to continue my studies at the graduate level - especially in such a distinguished program - is honestly beyond anything I dreamed for myself, and I do not want to lose this chance.
Anything you can contribute would help - even a share on social media to help get the word out!
What I'll do with my degree
A big part of why I need help is that I do not plan to use my Global Sustainability degree to get a comfortable office job helping big businesses excuse their exploitative practices.
I believe that the key to mitigating the effects of climate change begins in frontline communities, with the people who are most affected. Indigenous people, communities of color, refugees, low-income neighborhoods, and Least Developed Countries (LDCs) are already experiencing the effects of climate change. I hope to work with these communities to help formulate and implement community-led and community-sustained practices to help protect the most at-risk people from the climate crisis.
I am eager to work with non-profit organizations, rather than the type of corporations that could provide me with a high-paying job. My priority is to help the individuals who are suffering the most in this crisis, but our economic system doesn't support these types of endeavors.
What I have already done
While attending Marymount Manhattan College as a full-time student and working a full-time job to support myself, I have already begun to work in the field of international environmental justice.
Through my unpaid internship with the UN-affiliated NGO Scalabrini International Migration Network, I was able to support an organization that serves refugees, migrants, and seafarers globally, many of whom were displaced due to conflict or climate change.
I've been involved on campus in my school's Environmental Sustainability SPIN Team taskforce as one of two student members, actively working with faculty to implement campus-wide sustainability initiatives.
I have spent the past year working on a research project examining the impact of public transportation on access and distribution of urban green space in New York City. The abstract for the Manhattan portion of this research has been peer-reviewed and accepted by the Ecological Society of America for presentation at their 2021 conference. I have already expanded research into Brooklyn and Queens, and hope to use the next month to complete the analysis of all five boroughs.
Cost of attendance
The cost of tuition at the University of Helsinki is approximately $30,000 USD total for two years. On top of my $19,000 student loan from undergrad, I hope to avoid going even further into debt!
I will also need to secure housing and food while abroad, and it is nearly impossible for non-Finnish speakers to find even part-time work in Helsinki. The expected living cost in the city, according to the University of Helsinki, is between 700 and 1200 euros per month. Although I will work hard to find a job while there, I cannot count on having a steady income to pay my living expenses.
I am actively applying for external grants, but the application period for the upcoming academic year has already passed for most opportunities. I never imagined that I would be accepted into a highly-ranked international master's program, despite my hard work, so I did not begin the grant search early enough! I hope to fund my second-year tuition through scholarships and grants as much as possible.
My goal
I'm setting the goal for this fundraiser at $20,000 to cover most of the first-year expenses. Even if we're not able to meet that goal, anything will help!
Thank you for taking the time to read this! I appreciate anything you can contribute - even $1 will take me a step closer to my goal!
Thank you for taking the time to read my story! My name is Martha, and I'm a first-generation college student hoping to attend a prestigious graduate program at the University of Helsinki in Finland.
As a queer Hispanic woman from a low-income family, I recognize the great value of attaining higher education and have had to work hard to earn my place. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to study in an undergraduate program, and strive to be the first in my family to continue my education at the graduate level.
I'm graduating next month from Marymount Manhattan College (MMC) with a BA in Urban and Environmental Sustainability, and I've received an offer from the University of Helsinki - one of the top research universities in the world - to continue my studies in their M.Ss Global Sustainability program.
I was able to earn a place in MMC's College Honors Program, and expect to graduate with highest honors and a 3.94 GPA. Furthermore, I am a member of the Alpha Chi national college honor society, open to the top 10% of students nationwide. I have been involved both on- and off-campus with sustainability actions that I will detail further below! Without any financial support from my family, I have had to work a full-time job since freshman year to support myself, including paying thousands of dollars per semester for out-of-pocket tuition, rent, utilities, and transportation while living in NYC.
Although my years of hard work have finally led to an offer of admission at a top university, I am faced with the harsh reality of my situation - I cannot afford tuition. The opportunity to continue my studies at the graduate level - especially in such a distinguished program - is honestly beyond anything I dreamed for myself, and I do not want to lose this chance.
Anything you can contribute would help - even a share on social media to help get the word out!
What I'll do with my degree
A big part of why I need help is that I do not plan to use my Global Sustainability degree to get a comfortable office job helping big businesses excuse their exploitative practices.
I believe that the key to mitigating the effects of climate change begins in frontline communities, with the people who are most affected. Indigenous people, communities of color, refugees, low-income neighborhoods, and Least Developed Countries (LDCs) are already experiencing the effects of climate change. I hope to work with these communities to help formulate and implement community-led and community-sustained practices to help protect the most at-risk people from the climate crisis.
I am eager to work with non-profit organizations, rather than the type of corporations that could provide me with a high-paying job. My priority is to help the individuals who are suffering the most in this crisis, but our economic system doesn't support these types of endeavors.
What I have already done
While attending Marymount Manhattan College as a full-time student and working a full-time job to support myself, I have already begun to work in the field of international environmental justice.
Through my unpaid internship with the UN-affiliated NGO Scalabrini International Migration Network, I was able to support an organization that serves refugees, migrants, and seafarers globally, many of whom were displaced due to conflict or climate change.
I've been involved on campus in my school's Environmental Sustainability SPIN Team taskforce as one of two student members, actively working with faculty to implement campus-wide sustainability initiatives.
I have spent the past year working on a research project examining the impact of public transportation on access and distribution of urban green space in New York City. The abstract for the Manhattan portion of this research has been peer-reviewed and accepted by the Ecological Society of America for presentation at their 2021 conference. I have already expanded research into Brooklyn and Queens, and hope to use the next month to complete the analysis of all five boroughs.
Cost of attendance
The cost of tuition at the University of Helsinki is approximately $30,000 USD total for two years. On top of my $19,000 student loan from undergrad, I hope to avoid going even further into debt!
I will also need to secure housing and food while abroad, and it is nearly impossible for non-Finnish speakers to find even part-time work in Helsinki. The expected living cost in the city, according to the University of Helsinki, is between 700 and 1200 euros per month. Although I will work hard to find a job while there, I cannot count on having a steady income to pay my living expenses.
I am actively applying for external grants, but the application period for the upcoming academic year has already passed for most opportunities. I never imagined that I would be accepted into a highly-ranked international master's program, despite my hard work, so I did not begin the grant search early enough! I hope to fund my second-year tuition through scholarships and grants as much as possible.
My goal
I'm setting the goal for this fundraiser at $20,000 to cover most of the first-year expenses. Even if we're not able to meet that goal, anything will help!
Thank you for taking the time to read this! I appreciate anything you can contribute - even $1 will take me a step closer to my goal!
Organizer
Martha Madrid
Organizer
Brooklyn, NY