Women in Business Scholarships

Scholarship description

Women have made great strides in the pursuit of education, careers and leadership roles they were once denied. However, they still comprise a minority of leaders in the business world. According to a December 2019 list from Catalyst, 21.2 percent of S&P 500 companies’ board seats are occupied by women, and just 5.2 percent of the companies’ CEOs are women.

Because Zonta International believes in gender equality, the Jane M. Klausman (JMK) Women in Business Scholarship program helps women pursue undergraduate and master’s degrees in business management and overcome gender barriers from the classroom to the boardroom. The Jane M. Klausman Women in Business Scholarship was established in 1998 from a generous bequest by Jane M. Klausman, a member of the Zonta Club of Syracuse, New York, USA, and the 1990-1995 Zonta International Parliamentarian.

The program operates at the Zonta club, district/region and international levels. Zonta annually awards up to 32 scholarships of US$2,000 each at the district/region level and six international scholarships in the amount of US$8,000 each.

Since the program’s inception, Zonta has awarded 602 Scholarships, totaling more than US$1.4 million, to 460 women representing 57 countries.

Read more about the Jane M. Klausman Women in Business Scholarship.

Eligibility

Women of any age, pursuing a business program with major field of specialization in accounting, finance, business management, marketing, operations management, human resources management, international business, or entrepreneurship at an accredited university/college/institute, who demonstrate outstanding potential in the field and are living or studying in a Zonta district/region, are eligible. Online students are also eligible to apply if enrolled at an accredited university/college/institute.

Students must be enrolled in at least the second year of an undergraduate program through the final year of a Master’s program at the time the application is submitted to the local Zonta club. Applicants must be in school at the time the scholarship funds are disbursed and must not graduate before December 2020. Previous International Jane M. Klausman Women in Business Scholarship recipients may not apply to renew the Scholarship for a second year.

Classified members (club members and individuals with direct membership with Zonta International) and employees of Zonta International and Zonta International Foundation, and their family members (ancestors, descendants, adoptees, siblings, nieces or cousins, and those of their spouse or co-habiting partner), are not eligible to apply for the Scholarship.

Golden Z club members may apply.

Note that applicants from geographic areas within a Zonta district/region where no clubs are located will be considered and are eligible to apply for the district/region and international awards.

Application process

The application process must start with a Zonta club. All application materials must be received at a Zonta club by the printed deadline. If you downloaded the application, you must contact a Zonta club for deadline information. Please locate the Zonta club nearest you using the Club Locator or email your name and contact information to Zonta International Headquarters at programs@zonta.org.

Zonta clubs each select one application to send to the Zonta governor/region representative. A district/region evaluating committee reviews the applications and selects one applicant per district/region to submit to Zonta International Headquarters. The Zonta International Jane M. Klausman Women in Business Scholarship Committee recommends six international recipients from the district/region applicants to the Zonta International Board. After approval by the Zonta International Board, the Zonta International Foundation provides awards and certificates to the district/region and international recipients.

Deadline

The 2023 application materials will be available in January 2023.