Several graduate students from the UH College of Technology have been awarded with scholarships from the Project Management Institute Houston Education Foundation (PMIHEF). Bolaji Ajisegiri and Mohit Borde, Information Systems Security majors; Burak Cankaya and Vishal Gulati, Technology Project Management majors; Soma Grover and Sparsh Varma, Supply Chain and Logistics Technology majors, were all chosen programs to receive $2,000. The highly competitive scholarships support students and comprise one of the many ways that the organization promotes excellence in the project management profession.
Last year, the organization awarded $40,000 to Houston area students to celebrate the chapter’s 40 years of service to the community. In 2015, the PMI Houston Educational Foundation continued the program and awarded another $40,000 in scholarships to further the education of the next generation of project managers. Academic Outreach Director of PMIHEF, David Thomas said, "It is the first year our scholarship program will be run by the PMI Houston Educational Foundation and the second year that PMI Houston has an opportunity to give back to the local project management community."
The Technology Project Management Graduate Program in the College of Technology has long enjoyed a strong relationship with the local Houston PMI Chapter and many of the former presidents and the current president from Houston PMI currently serve on the program’s advisory board.
University of Houston graduate student Bolaji Ajisegiri said "The PMI scholarship motivates me to raise the bar in computer information systems and security project management. It is an incentive for me to achieve project goals and align my efforts to the critical tasks of the project management." Interested in information technology and cybersecurity, Ajisegiri plans to pursue a doctorate degree in software engineering. Ajisegiri earned his B.S. in Civil Engineering at Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria and is pursuing a Master of Science degree in Information Systems Security in the College of Technology.
Vishal Gulati received his undergraduate degree in Computer Information Systems from UH and is pursuing his Master of Science degree in Technology Project Management, expecting to land a career in IT development or consulting. "Since I want to focus on developing better leadership skills, my interests gravitate toward the project management side of IT," he said. "I became interested as an undergraduate student at UH. When I learned that most IT programmers work as part of large project teams, I was fascinated by how project managers skillfully lead application development projects. The scholarship will help motivate me to always do my best to attain these goals."
Mohit Borde earned a Bachelor of Engineering in Information Technology from the University of Pune, Maharashtra, India. He is working toward a Master of Science degree in Computer Information Systems, specializing in technology project management with aspirations to work as an IT project manager.
"Earning a scholarship from the Project Management Institute Houston Education Foundation is a big privilege and honor. It eases financial concerns, and more importantly, the scholarship provides the much appreciated boost in confidence, which is a valuable enhancement to my career," he said.
Soma Grover earned her bachelor of technology degree in mechanical engineering while in India. "This scholarship motivates me to maintain focus on pursuing a career in quality improvement and supply chain project management", she said.
"We are grateful for the generosity of PMI Houston," said Dr. Gary Richardson, PMI Endowed Professor at the University of Houston. Echoing Dr. Richardson’s pride, Dr. Ron Hopkins, Visiting Associate Professor in project management said, "The PMI awards these scholarships for the purpose of helping to foster excellence. I applaud the work of these six students."
The Project Management Institute was established in 1969 and the Houston Chapter was the first chartered chapter of the institute in 1974. It is the eighth largest out of more than 270 chapters in 185 countries. PMI is the leading global association for the project management profession. Founded in 1974 as the first chapter granted a PMI charter, PMI Houston has more than 4,000 members who are involved in sectors where project management plays a crucial role including engineering and construction, industrial, information systems, oil and gas, healthcare, education, telecommunications, government, marketing and advertising, and service/support.
For more information about PMI’s scholarship program, contact academic.outreach [at] pmihef.org (academic[dot]outreach[at]pmihef[dot]org), and for more information about PMI Houston and the PMI Houston Education Foundation, visit pmihouston.org or pmihef.org.