Wikimania/Scholarships/2012
Number of scholarships edit
| Organization | Full scholarships | Partial scholarships | Total scholarships | Estimated spend (Local currency) | USD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WMF | 87 | 47 | 134 | ~$150,000 (TBC; not all these were accepted) | ~$150,000 |
| WMUK | 6 | 3 | 9 | £6,000 | ~$9,250 |
| WMFR | 8 | 0 | 8 | €10,000 (+€10,000 to global pot) | ~$24,500 |
| WMAT | 10 | 0 | 10 | 15.000 EUR (budgeted - actual numbers follow when financial report is soon ready) | ~$18,250 |
| WMAU | 0 | 3 | 3 | AUD$3000 | ~$3,000 |
| WMCH | 4 | 0 | 4 | 7500CHF | ~$7,500 |
| WMHU | 4 | 2 | 6 | 900,000 HUF planned, actual around 1,400,000 HUF | ~$5,750 |
| WMIT | 8 | 0 | 8 | €10,000 (final expense € 8,900) | ~$10,750 |
| WMDE | 20 | 0 | 20 | €30,000 | ~$38,745 |
| WMIL | 4 | 0 | 4 | $5,700 | $5,700 |
| WMPL | 9 | 0 | 9 | 89700 PLN | ~$28,460 |
| ROSEdu | 0 | 1 | 1 | $1,000 | $1,000 |
Acceptance rates by region edit
| Region | Applied | WMF accepted | Chapter accepted | Total accepted | Acceptance rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Africa | 73 | 11 | 0 | 11 | 15% |
| Asia & Pacific | 365 | 37 | 5 | 38 | 10% |
| CIS | 76 | 13 | 2 | 15 | 20% |
| Europe | 269 | 18 | 67 | 85 | 32% |
| MENA | 104 | 13 | 4 | 17 | 16% |
| North America | 114 | 18 | 2 | 20 | 18% |
| South/Latin America | 143 | 24 | 0 | 24 | 17% |
| Overall | 1113 | 134 | 80 | 214 | 18% |
Geographical distribution of scholarships edit
Note: graphs do not yet contain Australia chapter scholarship numbers
| 2012 Wikimania Scholarship distribution by country (WMF & Chapter) | By region, proportions of applicants at each stage |
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| See "By Country" for breakdown |
Average scores of applications by region edit
Note: graphs do not yet contain Australia chapter scholarship numbers
The applications were judged on a 5-point scale on the following three categories:
- Activity within Wikimedia projects (weight: 50%)
- Activity outside Wikimedia (weight: 15%)
- Future goals for participating in Wikimedia movement (weight: 35%)
For full definitions of these scoring groups, see 2012 Wikimania Scholarships Selection Criteria.
| Region | WMF - full | WMF - partial | Chapter | Accepted avg | None† | Applicant average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Europe | 3.7 | 3.5 | 2.8 | 3.0 | 2.6 | 2.7 |
| Asia-Pacific | 3.2 | 3.1 | 3.7 | 3.2 | 2.2 | 2.4 |
| Latin America | 3.3 | 2.8 | 0.0 | 3.2 | 2.3 | 2.6 |
| North America | 3.2 | 3.1 | 3.0 | 3.1 | 2.2 | 2.4 |
| MENA | 2.9 | 3.2 | 3.1 | 3.0 | 2.1 | 2.3 |
| CIS | 2.9 | 2.3 | 2.6 | 2.7 | 2.2 | 2.3 |
| Africa | 2.7 | 2.7 | 0.0 | 2.7 | 2.0 | 2.3 |
| Total | 3.1 | 3.1 | 2.8 | 3.0 | 2.2 | 2.5 |
†These averages are only for the 606 applications which made it to the 2nd round. The additional ~500 applications included both spam, blank applications, and some applications which were guaranteed to receive scholarships. The goal of filtering for the first round was to lighten the workload for the scholarship committee in round 2 which received score reviews.
WMF Full Scholarship Acceptance edit
| Asia & Pacific, South/Latin America, and CIS had the highest number of declines. | The primary reason for declining the scholarship was visa/passport constraints. | Visa for Washington D.C. were a problem everywhere outside of North America and Europe. |
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Assessment edit
While the scholarships outcomes were good, there were three fundamental issues that arose, which you can find a more detailed expose of in Scholarships Proposals. The top things that are immediately in need of change:
| Non-transparent process | Difficulty selecting right mix of scholars | Frustrating communication | High decline rates of recipients |
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While many little tweaks can and should be made, the most high-impact ones of focus should be:
- Formation of scholarship committee; increase # of representatives and create 2-year terms.
- Communicate with applicants at various stages in the application process
- Post the average scores from the regions upon announcement of the results
- Limit WMF scholarship funding to applicants who do not qualify for Chapters Scholarships
Notes edit
- The acceptance/awarded numbers do NOT indicate those who actually attended Wikimania
- The acceptance numbers DO include those five individuals who were placed on the Waitlist for WMF scholarships, as all of them were offered scholarships eventually
- The individual names are not able to be announced, as the scholars for this year did not agree to have their identities disclosed. Next year, we are considering adding this into the acceptance process. (See Discussion on Scholarships)