The Loran Award

Here we go with our first article of a series of three on, well, 'The Big 3'. In this series of posts, we want to walk you through what each scholarship is about, who the scholarship is a fit for, what the selection process entails, and what you get if you win the scholarship. By the way, my name is Louis-Philippe and I am a 2020 LORAN finalist. Without further ado, let's dive in!

What the Heck is the LORAN Scholarship?

Good question. Unless you live in a cave (or the province of Québec, where I'm from), you have probably heard of the LORAN Scholarship. LORAN stands for “LongRange Aid to Navigation”. The goal of the scholarship is to take student leaders and guide them long-term through a breadth of sectors in order for them to become even better leaders and helpers in their community. It aims to transform its scholars through challenges. This scholarship is more geared towards community service and engagement, rather than academic excellence. The LORAN Foundation searches for people with leadership qualities, community-oriented characteristics, and a strong will and desire to make a change.

Who is the LORAN For?

As I said earlier, LORAN Scholars are people that are very involved in their community. I must point out a key distinction here— there is a difference between simply being involved and caring for your community. As we will see when we get to the “What is the Selection Process?” section, there are people that are very involved in their community, but they do so just to pack their CV with scholarship application material. LORAN is keen to spot such applicants. All the leaders and finalists I've met are people who are deeply passionate about a cause and are on a mission to make a difference in the cause that they have chosen.

Although this is not mandatory, I have noticed with the people I have spoken to that the recipients of the scholarship are often (but not always) initiators of projects. The reason is twofold. First, starting an initiative or project means that you have good leadership capabilities and the drive to lead a team. Second, if you start a project about a specific cause, it probably means that you care about it, rather than just being merely interested in it. Again, I stress that one does not need to lead a national foundation to be a LORAN Scholar; caring for a cause is the common denominator of scholars and finalists alike. Caring for a cause is also a symbol of the values you have. If you are involved in a cause that is dear to you, it shows that you can live on sound values and principles, thus showing your strength of character.

Moreover, the LORAN Foundation is in search of people who have overcome struggles in their lives — and most importantly — have fueled what they have learned into their own personal growth. The definition here is pretty broad, but it is certain that if you have never faced difficulties, you might not necessarily fit the LORAN definition of good “Scholar material”. For instance, you could have faced difficulty in moving your idea forward, having a personal struggle, adapting to a new situation, finding a purpose or tackling any sort of problem. The key here is not that you must have suffered to be a scholar, but rather to show that you can face adversity with courage. For instance, you could speak about a project that you could not complete and explain why. The example I gave when I was interviewed was the time when I injured my foot in the woods, in 30 cm of powdered snow, and I had to ski 6km to get to my refuge for the night. I detailed how I felt and how I psychologically played myself into continuing and keeping a good attitude. Although I did not make the cut for the final selection, I believe it was at least a good story to tell.

On a final note, you need an average of 85% or more to apply for the LORAN Scholarship. If you come from a CÉGEP, you need an R score of 29. This is feasible, but it is harder if you come from a technical program where R scores are usually lower because of the calculation process.

In any case, you must be a Canadian Citizen or Permanent Resident and be at least 16 years-old by September 1st of the year after you complete your application form (that is, you must be at least 16 in your first semester of university).

What is the Selection Process?

Although straightforward, the overall process involves a lot of steps. First, you can either be nominated by your school or apply through the 'direct pool.' There were less direct pool applicants than nominees at the final, but they won't reject a good candidate just because they were not nominated (in fact, I know a guy that applied via the direct pool that made it to the finals, while his school's nominee was not even invited to the regionals). Plus, being a direct pool applicant at the finals is considered to be a pretty big flex.

The initial application involves a lot of writing and reflecting on your leadership experiences. Once it is sent, you will be notified 2–3 weeks before the regional interview if you are selected (and nominated; the process is different if you come from the direct pool). There is an initial screening of the applications made by the LORAN team—not everyone is invited to the regional interviews. About 10% of applicants make the cut of the initial screening.

At the regional interviews, you will meet all the regional finalists and the interview panel (it's very an amazing experience! You’ll make amazing friends on this day). You will go through three formal interviews and one informal interview throughout the day (not necessarily in that order). You will have two 10–15 minute interviews with individual members of the panel. You will also eat lunch with one other panel member and have a casual conversation. This is a very nice moment to get to know them a bit more and it is always interesting because the committee is made of driven and interesting people. Finally , you will be interviewed by the whole panel. In that interview, there is only one panel member whom you have not met yet, so they might ask more questions than the others.

Congrats! You can go home, exhausted but happy. Now, it's time to anxiously wait for the call that tells you whether or not you were selected. Have patience, it takes 2–3 weeks…

If you were a direct pool applicant, you will be interviewed via a video conference by someone from the national level of the foundation. Since you only have one interview, you can expect a much longer one.

Ring ring! That damn phone. Hi? Good news, you say? [you look at your parents, with a smile on your face] Wow, I'm speechless [they both run away and come back with the bottle of grappa]. Well, I'm really looking forward for the email from the Foundation! Thanks for calling. Have a nice day! [oops, you see that they poured big glasses of strong alcohol. Oh well, it's celebration time...]

Happy news! After receiving the call that you’ve been waiting for, the LORAN Foundation will tell you about all the details for the National Selections (a.k.a. the finals). This is held in Toronto, usually during the first weekend of February. Depending on where you live, you might get there by bus, train or plane. They ask you a $150 fee to help pay expenses, but it is totally worth it! You will sleep in a hotel, chill in a big conference centre with free refreshments all day long and eat at a buffet breakfast-lunch-dinner (with an open dessert bar!).

The finals' weekend is truly a life changing experience. I've met some people there with whom I know I will be friends with for the rest of my life. Everyone is easygoing, not self-centred, and has a story to tell. You will spend two days of interviews in the conference centre. Again, you have four interviews individually with your panel (there are multiple panels grouped in “committees” because there are a lot of candidates) and an additional interview with a chairperson from the Foundation. In the meantime, you get to sit in on some pretty helpful conferences held by past scholars. While you are chilling, it is the perfect time to meet with past scholars, discuss opportunities, and connect with applicants from the current year. The stress you will experience during the finals’ weekend will vary with your personality. I was stressed before my first interview, but it eased a bit afterwards. The older LORAN Scholars are there to talk you out of this stress. Time flies by very quickly! You won’t even notice when it’s time to go home.

The wait after the finals’ weekend is much shorter. After you arrive home on Sunday, you will receive a call from the Foundation telling you if you won the LORAN Scholarship or not. Even if you don't, it's not the end of the story! Read the next section to see what happens.

You Got It! But Got What, Exactly?

That might sound cliché, but whether or not you win the Scholarship, you are a winner of the finals’ weekend. The experience is incredible and I enjoyed every moment there. You also make friends from across Canada.

Enough of sentiments. Now, let's talk business.

If you do not win the full award, you will still receive a $5,000 finalist award, provided you attend a Canadian university in the following year. It's a direct cash deposit into your account.

If you do win the full award, buckle up, because you are in for a ride. Let's break down the different aspects of the award. But first, let me clarify something: the LORAN scholarship is not a $100,000 cash prize. Most likely, you won't use all of the money. Let's see why.

$10,000 Annual Stipend

This one is pretty self-explanatory. $5,000 for the fall semester and $5,000 for the winter semester to cover your residence, apartment, food and cost of living.

You can also apply on other scholarships, but you are limited to five thousand additional dollars from other scholarships per year (to be honest, this is a lot. If you do get so much extra money, please write to me I want your help).

Matching Tuition Waiver

The LORAN Foundation is partnered with 25 universities in Canada, and they cover your school fees. Pretty nice, eh? This is, however, why it might be misleading to say that the scholarship is worth $100,000. If you go to UofT or UBC, understandably you will pay around$10,000-15,000 per year in school fees. However, if you choose McGill or Laval as a resident of the Province of Québec, your studies are much less expensive ($5,000 per year, and I'm counting large). You also don't receive the 'extra money' that you don't spend on school, hence why I say it's a bit misleading. It is much more fitting to say that the LORAN Scholarship can be valued up to $100,000.

For your university, you will have the choice between 25 Canadian universities. The biggest universities in Canada will welcome you with open arms as a LORAN Scholar, so it’s worth applying left and right. Some universities also let you apply late if you say that you are a LORAN scholar or finalist, but I would not take that for granted.

$10,000 Internship Funding

 

I find this somewhat misleading as well. Ideally, you find your own paid internships across the world. If you can't find a paid one, this is where this $10,000 fund can help you. The Foundation can pay you while you work voluntarily for a company or an organization. I've also heard from past scholars that, unless you absolutely can’t find an internship, you won't get much help from LORAN directly. However, since you have a crazy large network, you can speak to a friend of a friend of a friend, who will gladly help you find something.

The Network and the Mentor

Being a LORAN Scholar gives you access to a very tightly-knit network of people whom you can count on to help you. As a scholar, you are also paired with a mentor that matches your interests and aspirations. For me, this is probably the most awesome aspect of the scholarship (after the fact that they pay for your school, of course!). This person will mentor you and challenge you during your 4 years at the undergraduate level to help you grow. Many mentors actually continue contacting their matched scholar long after their undergraduate degree is completed.

Activities

As a first-year scholar, you go on a camping trip with other first years and are asked to spend a night alone in the woods. Each year, you also get to spend an annual retreat with all the current scholars to connect and chill. If you are a first or fourth-year scholar, you are also invited to the national selection weekend to chat with the finalists, de-stress them, and guide them to their interviews.

Also, you HAVE to move out of your city if you win the scholarship. You also have to spend the first year of university in residency, again in the spirit of living new experiences and challenging yourself.

Maintaining the Scholarship

To keep receiving funding and the advantages of being a LORAN scholar, you need to maintain at least a 75% average at university. You also need to continue to demonstrate significant involvement in your community.

Another thing to keep in mind is the length of your degree. It has to be a 4-year degree (8 academic terms to be precise), otherwise, you might not reap the benefits of the full scholarship. If the degree you choose is a 3-year degree, you can add another major or just study for an extra year.

Closing Thoughts

There you have it, you are now a pro of the LORAN Scholarship. Big scholarships can be intimidating, but I feel that understanding the stakes helps us to be less anxious in front of a problem or — in this case —a scholarship application. I would like to mention that this scholarship is not necessarily a good fit for everyone. Even if you are a caring, involved, and dedicated leader, the selection committee is searching for someone who’s future potential is maximized with the LORAN Scholarship — and that’s not exactly everyone. Also, all the scholars I've met have told me that it is a very challenging scholarship to receive; it is not only a cash prize. In any case, best of luck! No matter if you get it or not, the LORAN experience is incredible. You will certainly meet dozens of amazing people and that makes applying worth it.

Do you have any questions? Comments? Leave them below and we will be more than happy to address them.

Until next time,
Louis-Philippe Robichaud