TIRANA, Oct 20 /ATA/ Prime Minister Edi Rama stated on Thursday that under the new excellence scholarship system, 200-400 undergraduate students will be eligible for a minimum monthly pay.
In his remarks during the ceremony held at the Prime Minister’s Office for the awarding of the “Gold Medal” to high schools graduates with straight 10 average, Rama said that, “we have decided to completely change the excellence scholarship system which does not include those with GPA from 9 to 10. We have called them excellent students for the sake of communication. If they are excellent, students with straight 10 average would be UFOs. So I am talking about UFOs right now. You know that there has been a program in place that the Albanian government had designed with good intentions in fact, we have continued it and with that good intention, have continued to fund the studies of Albanian students in the world’s best universities and we have supported 20 students on average every year.”
“The truth is that not even one of them did a great kindness by returning this investment to his country. I understand very well, it is beyond discussion, that studying in the world’s top rated universities is a guarantee of success, because they are very selective along the way, you will receive job offers from large companies and prestigious law firms. That’s what it’s like when you’re on top. After signing an agreement with your country to fund the tuition fees with the taxpayers’ money, pledging that I’m going to study and then come back here, they have not only come back, but they have not taken a moment to send a letter or make themselves available in one way or another, saying it’s impossible for me to come back, because I am working for Steve Jobs, but I’m available anyway. This is too much,” said Rama.
“So we will no longer finance studies abroad, we will finance UFOs here. So for those like you, or others, who meet all those criteria, we will offer a significant financing by not giving a scholarship, but by giving a minimum wage for every student at this level. And of course we will mainly focus on Medicine, on priority programs. And from 20 scholarships per year, under the new system in place we will finance between 200 and 400 depending on the number we have. But those who enter this system will not receive the diploma before 3 years. Which means, you are a doctor, we will finance your studies, you will work as a doctor for 3 years, definitely, here, then you will receive the diploma with all the necessary honors and you are free to stay here or go abroad, no problem,” Rama said.
/sm/
