Fundraiser for Shanil's Tuition Fees

Dear Friends,


I wanted to share that I have become the batch top (1st year) of the Software Engineering Specialization in the Faculty of Mathematics & Informatics of Grodno State University in the 2nd Semester too, by obtaining following marks for my final exams (Spring Semester 2020/21), which was completed yesterday. I was able to increase my GPA compared to last semester, obtaining 90% average. In Belarus uni grading system is designed out of 9, and 10 (A*) will be awarded for exceptional performance. Many Blessings! 

I am Shanil Sahabandu and I have a dream of becoming a Software Engineer. As you already know and supported me, I am accepted to the bachelor’s degree program in Software Engineering at Yanka Kupala State University of Grodno, Belarus.

My father is unable to cover the expenses mainly because my 12-year-old little brother’s medical expenses. He has been diagnosed with right hemiplegic Cerebral Palsy (GMFCS II) and severe expressive aphasia. I decided to ask Bhante Kusala, and Buddhika Bandaranayake uncle living in MI, USA to help me reach out to friends and family who may be willing to help with my tuition fees.
The vital balance I need funding for....

Out of all the university costs, I need:

·         Tuition Fees only for 4 years – 14,000 USD.  "Currently, I’m in need for a part of my tuition fee for the 2nd year (Academic year 2021/22) which is 800 USD. As another generous person is supporting me with the rest of the tuition fees, this is the only requirement for the upcoming Academic year. (See the program details here: https://en.grsu.by/en/international-students-admission-new/fees-and-discounts/tuition-fee/bachelor-s-degree.html#bottom)


I really appreciate any amount you may be able to provide to cover my tuition fees.


The reason to choose Yanka Kupala State University of Grodno, Belarus...

For my Advanced Level results, I am not eligible to choose an undergraduate program in Engineering or Computer Science in a State University in Sri Lanka due to my z-score was below the cut-off z-score required for those programs. This is the main reason I chose to study Software Engineering at Yanka Kupala State University of Grodno, Belarus (4 year degree) which has global recognition and the modules in the syllabus are similar to the degrees of other competitive quality universities in the field of Software Engineering/Computer Science (https://en.grsu.by/en/spec-table/software-engineer.html) have. The tuition fee is also comparatively cheaper than other universities in Europe, USA and Australia. The cheaper living cost in Grodno (80USD for a month) is also another reason I considered studying in YKSUG.

My High School journey, briefly….

I am a student who is an all-rounder balancing academics, sports & extra-curricular activities in my High School, S. Thomas’ College Mount Lavinia. I was privileged to attend and complete my primary education in that great school as I received full scholarships for school fees for 10 years, from grade 5 to Advanced Level classes because of my academic, sports & extracurricular performance I displayed and due to the financial difficulties my family went through. I have achieved and maintained an excellent academic performance throughout my High School, winning prizes and achievements. Along with studies I excelled in the following sports: Cricket, Water Polo and Swimming through which I have achieved many inter-school and national achievements. Apart from that I was a Prefect in school and held offices in many committees of Clubs and Societies, some of the main offices I held was President of the Association of Science & Technology and Secretary of the Art Club.
My vision after becoming a Software Engineer...

Ultimately, I have a vision to develop an Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) Software solution in Sinhala language (using Sinhala Unicode) for differently able children with sensory limitations such as Autism & Cerebral Palsy. This kind of proper sophisticated software has not yet been built for learning to these kinds of kids. Especially, Sri Lanka lacks resources to help their learning process. This vision came to me when I saw for many years, the efforts made by my parents and medical professionals for Special Needs children in Sri Lanka for their rehabilitation.

According to my brother’s rehabilitation needs advised by medical professionals, my parents have devoted their time, sacrificed their comfort, and committed to bring out the best for his life. They struggle in financial stability. In this situation, I know that I’m the only financial deliverer my family has got, as my father is also very strained from all that we had to go through and he can’t find a sustainable financial support by himself. I really love my family and my heart’s desire is to take that responsibility on me and uplift them to a better living through reaching my educational goals.

Thank you very much for reading this and supporting me in anyways you can.

Sincerely,
Shanil