200 Bangladeshi students join ‘Access Microscholarship Programme’

Two hundred Bangladeshi students have joined the rigorous US funded two-year Access Programme to strengthen their English language, critical thinking, and leadership skills.

US Ambassador to Bangladesh, Earl Miller congratulated the new Access students for being selected for the two-year US State Department-funded English Access Microscholarship programme, said a press release.  

Ambassador Miller praised the 100 young women and 100 young men who were from local madrasas, public, and technical schools from Dhaka, Sylhet, and Chattogram for choosing to participate in this life changing programme.  

"Your participation in the Access Programme is critical to build long friendship of trust and mutual respect between Bangladesh and the United States. I hope as young minds, you will design the path for next 50 years that others will follow, and you will also work on further strengthening the relationship between the two great countries." he said.

The English Access Microscholarship Programme is a rigorous, two-year interactive programme building a foundation in English language, American culture, critical thinking, and leadership skills for 13-17-year-olds from economically-disadvantaged backgrounds, and helps them become more competitive when applying for higher education and employment opportunities. 

Since it began in 2004, 1,336 Bangladeshi students have successfully completed the programme which has more than 100,000 alumni in 85 countries. 

The Access programme is one of US Embassy Dhaka's many initiatives to strengthen and expand people-to-people ties and educational linkages between the United States and Bangladesh, enhance the quality of education locally, and empower Bangladeshi youth through innovative learning opportunities.