Santander and IE Foundation create a fund for 15,500 digital scholarships for teachers, university students and young professionals
10,000 Santander Scholarships targeted at educators for programs designed to develop essential tools for successful online course delivery, and help ensure academic activity following the global health emergency generated by COVID-19. 5,000 Santander Scholarships designed to boost digital and leadership skills among young people between the ages of 20 and 35. 500 Santander Scholarships for IE High Impact Online Programs (HIOPs) focusing on technology and innovation and aimed at outstanding candidates from around the globe.
Banco Santander, through Santander Universities, and the IE Foundation have launched the Santander IE Education Aid Fund aimed at benefitting 15,500 educators, university students and young professionals worldwide. Scholarship recipients will receive specialized online training in digital transformation to develop essential skills needed to navigate through a new global landscape during and following the COVID-19 pandemic.
This scholarship fund reflects Banco Santander and IE Foundation’s shared commitment to society and strong support for education. Thanks to this agreement 10,000 school teachers and university professors from around the world will benefit from the Santander IE Online Specialization in Digital Education for Instructors. These online courses will strengthen their knowledge and skills in digital education and help ensure continued academic activity in schools and universities.
In addition a further 5,500 Santander Scholarships will be available for university students and young professionals from 14 countries (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Germany, Spain, Mexico, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom, Uruguay and the United States).
Not only will 5,000 young people aged between 20 and 35 be able to develop their digital and leadership skills through the Santander IE Online Scholarships in Digital Strategy, Technology and Leadership, but an additional 500 candidates will also be able to take HIOPs (High Impact Online Programs) on digital transformation with the Santander IE High Impact Online Program Learning Scholarships.
The application process for scholarships begins today and will run until May 18, 2020. Details can be found at Becas Santander (see program-specific dates).
“We do not know what the post-COVID19 education and labor market environment will be like, but what is foreseeable is that digital skills will be more decisive.”
Javier López, Global Director of Social Impact at Santander Universities, explains: “We do not know what the post-COVID19 education and labor market environment will be like, but what is foreseeable is that digital skills will be more decisive. With this initiative we want our teachers to be better prepared to develop their learning skills, in face-to-face as well as digital environments and for young people to take better advantage of online training resources and acquire the necessary skills to successfully face a professional future that will be increasingly digitized.”
“It is our duty to help teachers around the world. They are essential for the continuation of educational activity at this critical time. Young people are also affected by the health emergency and can strongly benefit from programs that allow them to accelerate their learning curve and enhance their skills in digital transformation.”
Geoffroy Gérard, Director General of the IE Foundation adds: “As an institution linked to education, it is our duty to support instructors around the globe. They are essential for the continuation of educational activity at this critical time. Young people are also affected by the health emergency and can strongly benefit from programs that allow them to accelerate their learning curve and enhance their skills in digital transformation.” All scholarship recipients will receive training in English and Spanish and will be taught by IE University faculty.
Recipients of the 10,000 teacher scholarships and the 5,000 university scholarships will participate in an Online Learning Journey, a program designed by IE University experts which offers different levels of expertise through interactive tutorials, videos, interviews, podcasts, etc.
Students selected for the 500 High Impact Digital Transformation Program scholarships will undertake a five-week course in English or Spanish covering areas such as new technologies for business, digital marketing, leadership in times of uncertainty or data science and visualization, all delivered by leading IE faculty in these areas.
Santander Universities, active in 23 countries, is well equipped to expand the impact of this initiative worldwide. Likewise, IE University, a pioneer in Europe in blended learning, has 20 years of experience in online training and is currently ranked 2nd globally in the 2020 Financial Times Online MBA ranking, a position that reflects the high quality of its training programs. Together and in record time, Santander and the IE Foundation have created this scholarship program to quickly respond to the current health emergency.