Category: Scholarship

March 31, 2021

Studying during the pandemia

It’s a fact, COVID-19 is slowing down the studies of many students throughout the world! Here is news from our two students from Sri Lanka who are lucky enough to be able to study thanks to the generous support of SAPIO and WIRE/Unilever. The scholarship gives them an opportunity to face the challenges ahead and, surely, with universities closing down and distant lessons, life is not easy for them!

News from Ayesh:

After my last blog, again university closed down due to Covid-19. At the moment I’m completing my final year first semester which is conducted online.

I learned the basics about research in the previous semester, but I have to do my research in the final year second semester (research subject complete in the last semester of the final year). So sadly, I’m still studying for my research.

As a consequence of Covid-19 (closing of my university and distance studying), I’m still a final year first-semester student and I haven’t graduated yet, but I hope to enter the job market soon and complete my internship.

Again I’m not forgetting the opportunity given to me by the ESOMAR Foundation! Thank you very much.

Ayesh is following a B.Sc. Marketing Management (special) degree program at the Department of Marketing Management Faculty of Management Studies and Commerce, University of Sri Jayewardenepura. His scholarship was granted through a partnership with the global research consultancy Sapio Research.

News from Chamari:

When we consider my academic activities, I have already completed my exams. As a partial requirement for the complete B.Sc. Marketing Management (special )degree, we had to complete a “Research study” and “Internship”.

I have completed my Internship as a Management trainee in a well-reputed Digital Marketing Agency ebirds.lk. As a management trainee, I was able to develop my Digital Marketing practical knowledge, Interpersonal communication skills, Leadership and Time management skills, Research study skills, Analytics and Decision-making skills, and many more related to the administration.

Due to the growth of obesity and overweight in Sri Lanka, I conducted my research study based on the impact of fitness -health-related social media group engagement on healthy food choice and physical fitness, with special reference to fitness inspiration contents. Finally, the Marketing Department announced that they have selected my research study for the Top 25 Research studies. Therefore I have to present my research study at the Undergraduate research symposium of the Department of Marketing Management that will be held on 6th April. I have to arrange a presentation and get ready for that event.

On 16th March I joined Moonstar Groom Designer as e-commerce manager and here my job role is the management of e-commerce website and online marketing including social media marketing.

I love to win. Therefore I always learn something special and do all I can to achieve success. I also help and encourage others to be successful. Nowadays I’m studying more concepts related to digital marketing because I want to be a marketer. I completed few digital marketing-related online courses and I’m constantly learning, because I want to excel in the industry.

Finally, I want to thank very much the ESOMAR Foundation for the kind support I received to complete my higher education. Your scholarship helped me to undertake my academic activities as I so much wanted!

Chamari is following a B.Sc. Marketing Management (special) degree program at the Department of Marketing Management Faculty of Management Studies and Commerce, University of Sri Jayewardenepura. Chamari is the recipient of a scholarship funded through a partnership with global non-profit Women in Research (WIRe) and Unilever.

A note from the ESOMAR Foundation:

We really enjoy following your progress and your personal lives during these years of your study. We are also happy that you can get through your studies in spite of the difficult times, and that the ESOMAR Foundation can contribute to fulfilling your dream!

We wish to thank our sponsors for so generously allowing us to provide these two scholarships:

November 19, 2020

Just One Year

Final year. First semester started almost a year ago in December 2019. I did good for the first part, I have attended every lecture and did my academic activities well. Although the final exam of the first semester was scheduled to be held in March, it was advanced to August due to the Covid-19 situation. During this period I started to learn everything about social media marketing and developed myself watching courses on Youtube. I spent my days studying about social media trends, how to market product through social media, search engine optimisation, content developments, etc. I didn’t waste the time enjoying with my friends, not that I could anyway.. I know that the social aspect is really important as well but I wanted to make the most of this time. Between the 17th and 28th of August I successfully faced the first semester exams.

Although the first semester exams were held in August, the second semester started before that, in June 2020. My department scheduled online lectures for all the students, with no lectures at the university. During this time, I have been assigned to carry out a research study as partial fulfilment of the dissertation of my B. Sc. Marketing Management (Special) degree. The name of my research study is “Impact of social media group engagement on healthy food choice and engagement of physical fitness activities”. I have decided to conduct this research study to address the prevailing problem of Obesity and Overweight in Sri Lanka. Though online lectures my supervisor guides me to carry-out the research study. These days I’m dedicating my full attention to my research studies because I have to submit the research report before the 28th of December.

During my leisure time I study more about social media platforms. Recently I have successfully completed the following courses “The Fundamentals of Digital Marketing” certified by Google Digital Garage and “Google Analytics for Beginners” certified by Google Analytics Academy.

At the beginning of this year I felt that 2020 will not be too good for me as I considered the pandemic will affect me deeply. Now I feel the time has gone very fast and the worst has passed. During this period I learnt new social media trends, new concepts, new subjects and gained a lot of new skills. Now I know that life is a challenge.. with the acquired new skills we are ready to pass any obstacles in the future and find it easier to adhere to changes.

Chamari Jeewanthi is following a B.Sc. Marketing Management (special) degree program at the Department of Marketing Management Faculty of Management Studies and Commerce, University of Sri Jayewardenepura. Chamari is the recipient of a scholarship funded through a partnership with global non-profit Women in Research (WIRe) and Unilever.

Partners & Sponsors

We are always on the lookout for partners and sponsors. If you are an individual or an organisation looking to understand more about how you can support us, please find more information here or contact: info@esomarfoundation.org

October 12, 2020

My life during Covid-19

Time flies so fast and it’s true! I am getting close to my final year in university life. When I talk about this year, I can say it wasn’t the best but also not exceptionally bad. At the end of the march Covid-19 pandemic began, so all the universities and educational institutions closed in Sri Lanka but our studies continued online. Conducting online classes gave us a great support for our lessons.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, we had to limit our work in order to maintain social distancing. All the events, activities and works were postponed. It was pretty hard to stay at home without friends and university studies.

However, now Covid-19 has been controlled in Sri Lanka. After ensuring the safety in universities for studies we held our exams and now everything is continuing as usual.

During those pandemic days, I followed some online courses via the internet to improve my knowledge since I had enough time after my normal university courses. I’ve spent most of my time at home. It was a great opportunity for me to spend good quality time with my parents and relatives after so many years.

These days I am preparing for my next academic exam that will be held in November. If there will not be any Covid-19 issues interfering, the exams will continue as usual. I really hope everything will be ok! I am getting close to the end of my university life, so I hope to collect as many memories from the time I have left as a student through being involved in as many activities as possible.

As I mentioned at the beginning, this year wasn’t the best but some good stuff always occurs. So, let’s see what happens in next few months and hope everything will be okay!

Partners & Sponsors

February 19, 2020

Life is a river

This is the first blog-post from Chamari Jeewanthi Hapuarachchcige, who is following the B.Sc. Marketing Management degree program at the University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Sri Lanka.

Life is a river. Why I’m saying that? Like the river passing through rocks, we also have to face lots of challenges in our lives. In my life, I have faced lots of challenges and probably I will have to face them in the future too. Because our lives are like a river traversing a valley and within this life journey we have to face problems it’s good to say, ESOMAR Foundation helped me face my life challenges well.

With this scholarship and with hard work, I could be able to get high academic results for my last semester with 4 A passes, one B plus pass and one C plus. End of the 3rd year my GPA was 3.25 which was a decline of my academic results compared with the previous year fact which happened due to the first semester results.

Now I am in my final student year at University of Sri Jayawardenepura following my academic studies with the support of my lecture panels and colleagues. I am preparing for the final year first semester examination which will begin in March and aiming to get high grades at all the exams.

Apart from the academic activities, I have actively participated in Vibes of Marketing -2020, event conducted by the Department of Marketing Management. I was a sub coordinator of the finance team where I coordinated 3 fundraising events: Back cover selling at university premise, Raffle draw, and Official vibes T-shirts. During my involvement in these events as coordinator, I had to face lots of challenges but finally we were able to deliver the event successfully. By taking part in these kind of events I am able to gain valuable experience which can eventually help me achieve my life goals.

Finally, I would like to thank again ESOMAR Foundation for offering me a this scholarship and offer great support on my academic activities as well as non-academic activities. Just like the river traversing a valley, I’ll achieve my life goals thanks to this support and my hard work.

Partners & Sponsors

January 30, 2020

Sri Lankan Vibes

That's me! Ayesh Maduranga Jayawardana — That’s me! Ayesh Maduranga Jayawardana

“Time is flying”, earlier I thought that it’s just another word but now I can realize it’s actually true. I am now in the first semester of my third year of university. Last year I achieved some of the goals I have planned. In the first university year, my GPA value was 2.77 but with some hard works and dedication, I was able to achieve a 3.43 GPA at the end of the second year.

At the end of the second year and beginning of the third, I had the opportunity to participate in several events organized by my department. INCEPTION, VIBES are some of them. VIBES is the biggest outdoor concert organized by a university in Sri Lanka.

These days I am trying to improve my communication skills. Striving to achieve this, because it’s very important for my future career. Together with my colleagues, I am planning our annual department trip, it is going to be a very interesting one. Last year it gave us lots of memories and we hope this one will be even more interesting because we know each other better than the previous year.

The third-year first-semester examination will begin in March so I have to prepare for it as well. These days I am giving more attention for studies because there are six subjects this semester for examination and I have to work hard for passing all of them. I would like to especially thank ESOMAR Foundation for offering me this Scholarship so I can freely focus on my studies.

VIBES - the biggest outdoor concert organized by a university in Sri Lanka — VIBES – the biggest outdoor concert organized by a university in Sri Lanka

I am in the middle of my university studies. In these two years left, I hope to develop my academic results and I also hope to participate in and coordinate as many events as I can. They help me become a practical marketer and I can learn so many things from these events. Our panel of lecturers gives immense support for doing all this. I would like to thank the ESOMAR Foundation and Sapio Research for the support offered to my education. It is a great help for my future and I can heavily focus on my main goals thanks to ESOMAR.

Partners & Sponsors

October 8, 2019

New scholarships awarded in Sri Lanka

8 October 2019 – Amsterdam, NL – ESOMAR Foundation recently funded 2 new scholarships benefiting two deserving students entering into a market research-related field of study in Sri Lanka. Both students are enrolled at the University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Sri Lanka.

Chamari Jeewanthi is the recipient of a scholarship funded through a partnership with global non-profit Women in Research (WIRe) and Unilever. Chamari is a third-year student of the B.Sc. Marketing Management degree offered by the Department of Marketing Management Faculty of Management Studies and Commerce, University of Sri Jayewardenepura.

Chamari J. Hapuarachchcig is the elder daughter in a family of five who experienced limited access to familial income support. Chamari’s aspiration is to be a market research analyst and she is keenly aware that, in order to reach her goal, she has to work hard on her education. This scholarship comes at the right moment for her, as she’s entered a period in her education where access to additional financial support will allow for career-making opportunities such as field research, internships, and other university activities.

Upon the announcement of her scholarship being funded, Chamari shared that, “First of all, I would like to say thanks for giving me this kind of opportunity… As a marketing management student, I have to spend a lot of money for my academic as well as non-academic activities… but my parents can’t afford it… I have to do my studies well because my target is to join the market research industry. To achieve this, I should have at least a Bachelor’s degree. That’s why I requested this scholarship, [it will help] me to become a contributing member of our society.”

“We are—more than ever—grateful to WIRe and Unilever for the continuous support of the ESOMAR Foundation scholarship programme” said ESOMAR Foundation President John Kearon.

The second recipient, Ayesh Maduranga Jayawardana, is a young man coming from a family of four with a disadvantaged socio-economic background. Through the scholarship, Ayesh will have the opportunity to pursue his degree and a future career in market research.

“Firstly, I would like to Thank ESOMAR Foundation for this Scholarship. Doing high education is not always easy. As a student, I had to face many challenges and the financial challenge was one of the biggest. With this Scholarship, I can get out of this problem and fully focus on my studies. It will help me obtain a degree with good grades and offer motivation for my goal, which is to become a good ethical marketer for society. I will help fellow students with their studies because I know the value of having support for my own studies.” said Ayesh.

Ayesh is following a B.Sc. Marketing Management (special) degree program at the same Department of Marketing Management Faculty of Management Studies and Commerce, entering his third year. His scholarship was granted through a partnership with the global research consultancy Sapio Research.

“We are proud to be able to give Chamari and Ayesh the opportunity to complete their studies and aspire to bright careers. Our best wishes to them in pursuing their studies!” concluded John Kearon.

How you can support

If you are a market researcher, a national market research association, an NGO involved in research or a university interested in a scholarship in your country please contact us at info@esomarfoundation.org

Partners & Sponsors

We are always on the lookout for partners and sponsors. If you are an organisation looking to understand more on how you can support us, please find more information here or contact: info@esomarfoundation.org

February 10, 2017

The next steps of Nicolin’s studies are about to begin!

This is the eigth blog-post from Nicolin Mamuya, the first ESOMAR Foundation scholarship in South Africa. It’s great to be among the best!

I made it, I am an honours student. Out of 360 applications the top 60 were chosen and I am happy to say that I am one of them! A celebration is in order, at least after everything is settled. We had an orientation on the 26^th of January, which gave us an idea of what to expect as well as guidelines on how to cope with the work. Market Research seems to be the one to watch out for.

Primedia, my previous sponsor, recently invited its alumni for a celebration on the 26^th and the 27^th of January. The 26^th began with picture-taking for the profiles the company is creating for each of us. Then we had a tour around the radio stations and ended the day with a group dinner. It was great! The 27^th focused on advising us about structuring our curriculum vitae, managing money and essentially, remembering to always pay it forward.

The scholarship awarded to Nicolin was sponsored by SSI and in collaboration with SAMRA.

January 16, 2017

“I am happy to announce that I am a Marketing graduate!”

This is the seventh blog-post from Nicolin Mamuya, the first ESOMAR Foundation scholarship in South Africa.
Congratulations Nicolin from all of us at the ESOMAR Foundation!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! It is such a blessing to make it to another year. I wish everyone a joyful and prosperous year.

I haven’t made any resolutions for 2017 because a) I never stick to them and b) there’s so much uncertainty this year. I pray for a good year. I’m still waiting for a response from school about my honours application. I’ll probably get something this week and I received all my results mid-December and I am happy to announce that I am a Marketing graduate. I am truly proud of myself. Everyone keeps asking when the graduation ceremony is but, I’m not even sure of the dates myself. It would be great to have most of my family here however, I am not good at playing the host, a position that my mom would have played if she was still around. I would honestly prefer to just have my mother and one of my aunts but, I would never reject anyone who wishes to attend.

I ended up going to Tanzania on the 21^st of December. It was, according to my cousin, imperative that I go to Tanzania this particular December. I would be lying if I said I enjoyed my stay there. The aunt responsible for my mom expressed that she was under great pressure and that I should relocate to Tanzania to care for my mom soon after I complete my honours degree. I tried suggesting other alternatives such as having someone take care of my mom while I work and send money back home however; there is always the concern of what would happen if the helper wanted to visit her family. Who would remain with my mother? It’s too much for a 20 year old to handle but, I guess this is the cross I have to carry. Hopefully a solution will come up as the year progresses.

The scholarship awarded to Nicolin was sponsored by SSI and in collaboration with SAMRA.

December 7, 2016

“One thing I love about my family is that we always look out for each other”

This is the sixth blog-post from Nicolin Mamuya, the first ESOMAR Foundation scholarship in South Africa.
Happy birthday Nicolin from all of us at the ESOMAR Foundation!

I started with my final exams on the 21st of this month. I must admit, I did not enjoy any of them so far. They were all equally challenging. To add to the already existing frustration, I am told that my honours application has been removed from the system, because my academic record does not appear. I have tried so hard to rectify this, but it seems no one is taking my concern seriously. Nonetheless, I will keep trying. I am really afraid of disappointing my mother and the family members that have gone out of their way to ensure I complete my degree.

Unlike , many African homes I am not the first and only one to go to university in my family, which means the standard has already been set and I will be compared to my cousins. However, one thing I love about my family is that we always look out for each other. If someone does not possess the capacity to take their children to school, another family member will step in to assist. The main idea is to create growth within the family and to ensure poverty does not follow us. I appreciate that.

On another note, I celebrated my 20th birthday on the 25th of November. It was definitely memorable. Some friends of mine cooked dinner for me and we spent the whole night laughing and playing in the rain. It was amazing although, they couldn’t get off my back about the fact that I was still the baby in the friendship. We’ll see who has the last laugh when the effects of old age kick in.

I am actually thinking of remaining in South Africa in December. I want to get a job, preferably in retail. I want to gain work experience. In addition to getting a job, I want to wait for my results to come out and sort out any problems with the honours application process. The last thing I want is for a problem to arise and I’m unable to do anything about it because, I am not in the country. Hopefully my next blog post will come with great news. I’m crossing my fingers.

The scholarship awarded to Nicolin was sponsored by SSI and in collaboration with SAMRA.

If you want to support the ESOMAR Foundation and people like Nicolin in having the opportunity to study and pursuing a career in market research…participate the to ESOMAR Foundation charity prize draw today!