A Bangladeshi Students Shares His Success Story of How He Won the Lester B. Pearson Scholarship to Pursue a BBA at the University of Toronto

My name is Ahnaf Rahman. I was born and raised in Dhaka, Bangladesh before moving to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia for my middle and high school. I completed the IBDP from Fairview International School Kuala Lumpur. I am pursuing a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Toronto Scarborough. I have had a keen interest in business from childhood, as I practically grew up alongside my family’s business in garments. This degree has equipped me with the relevant soft skills to succeed at work after graduation, while also offering numerous opportunities to advance my financial acumen and technical skills through a wide array of course options. Toronto is the financial capital of Canada, as such pursuing a co-op degree in business has allowed me to explore numerous industries and types of roles throughout my internship.

Lester B. Pearson Scholarship Details

I received the Lester B Pearson Scholarship from the University of Toronto, which is a full-ride scholarship covering all 4 years of tuition, housing, food, and other ancillary expenses. I also received a full scholarship from the University of Melbourne in Australia, which would have covered all 3 years of tuition fees.

Educational Background

I pursued the IB Diploma program in high school, where I scored a 45 out of 45 score. This program is highly rigorous and demands you to balance academics and extracurriculars well. This has helped me in pursuit of my business degree as the academics itself is insufficient unless relevant extracurriculars (e.g. clubs, networking, internships, etc.) aren’t accompanied by it. The IBDP program instilled a sense of work ethic and enhanced my time management skills which has allowed me to succeed in university.

How Did You Prepare to Apply for the Lester B. Pearson Scholarship and the University of Toronto?

There was no additional tests required for my Lester B Pearson application alongside my IBDP predicted score. The nature of the scholarship is such that you must be nominated by your school in order to apply, and each school can only nominate one candidate per year. Thus, I prepared by ensuring that I could receive my school’s nomination for my academic year. The application essays were about my past extracurriculars and my future plans, which the IB Diploma program helped me work on proactively over the final 2 years of high school.

What Do You Think Made Your Application Stand Out?

The extracurricular experience I highlighted in my application showed how I took initiative to leverage my own hobbies and skills to solve a real problem in my community. I led this project for 3 years and alongside highlighting my project’s accomplishments, I also emphasized all the setbacks and how I overcame those moments. I would like to believe that my resilience and willingness to leverage my strengths and overcome my weaknesses to contribute to my community showcased my potential, which helped me ultimately receive the scholarship.

What Would You Have Done Differently if You Were Going Through the Process Again?

Almost all Lester B Pearson scholars are available on LinkedIn, so I wish I reached out to them for application tips and insights. This would have made the process much smoother and made me feel more confident about my prospects while applying.

What Advice Would You Give to Those Looking to Apply for a Similar Scholarship?

Start early by finding out the requirements of the scholarship, including the topics of the application essays. Try to make a draft of that essay assuming you will be applying now. Identify the gaps in your stories that could have made your candidacy look stronger, and work on addressing the gaps till the application deadline. This will give you a clear line of sight on all that you need to work on, and thus you can make a proper action plan towards realizing it.