Seven Indian American students awarded Upakar Scholarships

Upakar Scholarships help high achieving Indian American students afford quality college education without the crushing burden of debt

Washington, DC,-based Upakar Foundation has awarded seven undergraduate Indian American students Upakar Scholarships aimed at

helping high achieving students afford a quality college education. Two more students were each awarded the Upakar Textbook Scholarship.

Upakar Scholars receive up to $8,000 each in tuition scholarship over their four years of undergraduate studies. Textbook scholars receive a one-time award of $250 each, according to a foundation press release.  Seven new Upakar Scholars join 17 current Scholars who have been renewed for the 2024-2025 academic year.

For the 2024 scholarships, Upakar collaborated with four generous donors — Neetu Watumull Scholarship Program (three scholarships), The India Development and Relief Fund (IDRF), Shrimati Kaushalya Butail Scholarship, and Shanti S. Gupta Memorial Scholarship (one scholarship each).

This year’s Upakar Scholars from the Neetu Watumull Scholarship Program are Pari Patel of South Plainfield, New Jersey, attending Rutgers University; Ravneek Singh of San Antonio, Texas, attending Texas A&M University; and Shivam Vachhani of Corona, California, attending University of California Riverside.

READ: Abhi Nimmagadda wins $35,000 Beinecke Scholarship for South Asian Studies (June 13, 2024)

The Upakar IDRF Scholarship went to Safiya Ahmed of New Braunfels Texas, attending University of Texas at San Antonio.

Upakar Shrimati Kaushalya Butail Scholarship was awarded to Gauri Thoduvayilnelliot of Cincinnati, Ohio, attending University of Cincinnati.

Upakar Shanti S. Gupta Memorial Scholarship was won by Guniet Dhillonof Seattle, WA, attending University of Washington.

Alina Roy of Duluth Georgia, attending University of North Georgia, won the Upakar Scholarship.

Upakar Textbook Scholarships were awarded to Pia Saha of Sugar Land, Texas and Chiraag Sharma of Fort Worth, Texas.

Upakar President Jyotsna Gupta Jalil said,“Upakar is committed to helping our Scholars complete their undergraduate degrees and pursue their career goals.  The longer term disruptions caused by Covid continue to be felt by high school students and their families.  We will support Upakar Scholars who need some flexibility during their undergraduate studies in order to earn their college degrees.”

READ: Two Indian Americans bag Gates Cambridge Scholarship (February 29, 2024)

Upakar was founded in 1997 in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area to provide highly qualified college-bound Indian American students with need-based tuition assistance so that they could graduate without a crushing burden of college debt, according to the release.

According to a 2024 analysis by the Pew Research Center, cited by Upakar, about 6% of Indians in the US live in poverty. US Census Bureau data for 2023 set the average poverty threshold for a family of four at $31,200. Since its inception, Upakar has awarded more than $1 million in scholarships.

In order to qualify for an Upakar Scholarship, students must meet the criteria of being born in India or who have at least one Indian-born parent. The scholar must be a US citizen or permanent resident. Financial need is determined by the family’s adjusted gross income. Scholars must have attained a raw high school GPA above 3.6. Finally, as long as a scholar’s GPA exceeds3.3 in college, Upakar will renew the $2,000 annual scholarship for up to four years.

Upakar Community College Scholarships provide $500 per year for up to two years; and if the Scholar transfers to a 4-year program, Upakar will increase its commitment to $2,000 annually until the Scholar has received a total of four years of scholarship support.  Upakar Textbook Scholarships are one-time awards of $250.

Upakar scholarship applications for 2025 will be available in February 2025. The submission deadline will be April 30, 2025.