Pursuing higher education comes at a cost, but scholarships can be the breakthrough in advancing students to the finish line, and Jasmine Chigbu knows this as she’s experienced it firsthand.

As a first-generation Nigerian American growing up in a middle-class upbringing, Chigbu admits finances may not have been flowing but their overall financial health was in good standing. When she attended Duke University for her undergraduate degree in 2015, her family was able to cover half of the cost of attendance. The remaining funds were covered by scholarships, which Chigbu found through research.

Although Jasmine Chigbu pursued a bachelor’s of international comparative studies, her overarching goal was to become a doctor and first apply to medical school. After her gap year following the completion of her undergraduate degree, she applied to 25 medical schools. Chigbu became stricken after realizing she had been denied from every school.

Chigbu then adopted a new strategy to attend medical school. From her apartment in Durham, NC, the student applied for her master’s to strengthen her application and also began an extensive search for every scholarship that fit her needs.

“I did not want to pay as much money for my graduate program as I did for undergrad. So, I began scouring the internet for hours looking at opportunities for women, Black women, children of immigrants, or people interested in STEM,” Chigbu told AfroTech. “What started on a simple Excel spreadsheet, grew into a massive list of different scholarships for students like me.”

Student Loan Debt Crisis

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