CHTA Education Foundation (CHTAEF) Scholarship Application process is now open. The interest level last year was very robust, and the foundation received and reviewed over 90 applications.
CHTAEF was established in 1986 as a stand-alone 501 (c) 3 nonprofit, tax-exempt organisation. Its mandate is to improve and elevate the quality and professionalism of the hotel and tourism industry in the Caribbean through education and training. Today is one of the largest charitable programs in the Caribbean hospitality industry, having raised and awarded more than US$2 million in scholarships and grants to applicants who demonstrate a strong commitment to the hotel and tourism industry in the region.
Scholarships are awarded to applicants attending accredited tourism and hospitality institutions around the world, and in partnership with academic institutions like Johnson & Wales University, Monroe College and Florida International University which provide additional scholarship support to eligible CHTAEF scholarship students.
CHTAEF also funds certifications and accreditation programs for established regional industry professionals. In conjunction with Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association, certification programmes are now being refined, redeveloped and funded to support the foundation’s primary objective on continually elevating the industry’s professionalism. These shorter courses provide immediate, tangible results for the industry due to the nature of their tailored and specific coursework. More information about these credentialing programmes will be ongoing.
REQUIREMENTS FOR APPLICATION
- Minimum GPA of 3.0 or equivalent
- Endorsement letter from the National Hotel Association
- Three (3) letters of reference or recommendation, at least one of which must come from a hotel or tourism industry person. If applicable, an endorsement letter from your current employer should be submitted
- Transcripts from most recent academic institution or academic course
- A recent photo of the applicant in jpeg or similar format.
- A 400-words or less statement which includes:
- the applicant’s area of tourism and academic interest,
- outline of financial need,
- outline of how the scholarship will advance the applicant’s career and benefit the hospitality and tourism industry in the applicant’s country
APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS:
- Incomplete applications will not be considered for scholarships.
- All Scholarship Applications must be received by CHTA Education Foundation (CHTAEF) no later than 15 April 2018.
- Completed applications should be emailed to [email protected]
- CHTAEF is a green organization and the Scholarship Application process is paperless. Please complete the application and send it online.
- If you have any questions, please call 305-443-3040.
- Scholarships are awarded for Tuition Only and funds will be sent directly to the University or College directly to pay for or subsidize tuition. No money will be sent to students.
CURRENT SCHOLARSHIP CANDIDATES
- Must submit your official transcripts for the current year of study showing a GPA of 3.0 or higher by 15 April 2018 to [email protected]
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What types of scholarships does CHTAEF offer?
CHTAEF currently provides scholarship awards to worthy Caribbean nationals who demonstrate a strong commitment to the industry and the potential for future success:
All scholarships are for tuition costs only.
CHTAEF Scholarships range on average from $500 to $5,000. Candidates must show how they will fund your entire tuition costs on the application form including other scholarships they expect to receive.
What costs do these scholarships cover?
CHTAEF supports tuition fees only. We support courses with start dates from June 1 of year of application through the fall of the year of the application. We do not pay for past tuition costs or loans.
Candidates will need to demonstrate financial support from other sources for tuition fees, travel, accommodation, educational expenses such as text books. Past scholars have sought support from Scholarship Programmes from the Caribbean Tourism Organisation, Regional Banks & Insurance Companies, National Hotel Associations; from National Education Boards & Governmental Assistance; National Corporations; and from employers through loan schemes (particularly in the case of Professional Development short courses).
It is the applicant’s responsibility to source required funding streams to support their application and to show these sources on our application form. Please use your ingenuity, the internet & your local hotel association to assist you in researching other funding opportunities.
How you can prepare yourself for degree and professional development applications?
CHTAEF is a scholarship organisation – we do not facilitate any courses. We review scholarship applications only from Caribbean nationals to study hospitality and tourism related courses taught by reputable educational institutions worldwide.
Where to study?
CHTAEF has a list of Affiliated Institutions – some offering matching grants. We encourage you to review this list and review their course offerings through their websites. Naturally, we prefer to support these institutions.
CHTAEF will consider supporting non-affiliated institutions that are reputable and the applicant can give detailed course specifics and a website link in their application. It is the applicant’s responsibility to source the necessary information about the course(s) they wish to study and the institution where they wish to study. Check with our mentors on our PROGRAMS page for more assistance.
We encourage applicants to seek courses that require dynamic interactive ‘live’ teaching styles or a combination of live classroom and internet coursework. We will consider online courses but prefer courses where actual engagement with tutors and other students is possible.
How are the scholarship winners chosen?
Please note the CHTAEF Selection Committee reviews EVERY application and we make our decisions based on the merit of the application against the strength of other applications in any given year.
EVERY successful scholarship recipient must RE-APPLY annually for continued support consideration by maintaining at least a 30 GPA and submitting their college transcripts by the submission deadline date.
Every CHTAEF Scholar must return to the Caribbean region and work in Hospitality or Tourism related field for a minimum of 2-years following their degree study
If you are unable or unwilling to comply with these criteria, please do not apply to CHTAEF for scholarship consideration.
When are the scholarship winners announced?
Upon consideration of the application (which must be made using our application form that is available now and must be submitted electronically by 15 April) we advise each applicant by email by early June, not before, of their success and amount of their award or giving our regrets that we are unable to support their application.