General Information
Wien International Scholarship Program
For 50 years, the Wien International Scholarship Program has been the perfect marriage of an institution and benefactor committed to improving the human condition through international understanding. But it almost didn’t happen.
Brandeis founding President Abram Sachar conceived of the idea of the pioneering educational and cultural exchange program. He and businessman/philanthropist Lawrence Wien, a member of the University’s Board of Trustees, worked together to find a sponsor for the program.
At a meeting with a prospect in Chicago, Wien tried to persuade the would-be donor to support the program. Instead, Wien convinced himself.
“I found myself describing the possibility of establishing such a program as an opportunity to achieve a meaningful immortality, and to render a truly worthwhile service to our country as well as to Brandeis University,” Wien remembered. “The more I spoke, the more enthusiastic I became.”
On the return trip home, Wien told Sachar that he would fund the venture -- and the Wien International Scholarship Program was born.
Since its establishment, the Wien program has been committed to furthering international understanding, providing foreign students an opportunity to study in the United States, and enhancing the lives of all students at Brandeis. More than 800 students from over 100 countries have come to Brandeis as Wien Scholars.
The program offers full or partial need-based tuition awards and requires applicants to present evidence of outstanding academic and personal achievement.
In recent years, Wien Scholars have visited the United Nations in New York and performed relief work to help victims of Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana.
Notable alumni include:
Phillipe Djangoni-Bi '71, United Nations ambassador from the Ivory Coast
Geir Haarde '73, prime minister of Iceland and the first Brandeis graduate to lead a national government
Wakako Kimoto Hironaka, MA '64, member of the Japanese Diet (legislature)
Osman Faruk Logoglu '63, former Turkish ambassador to the United States
Haile Menkerios '70, assistant secretary general for political affairs at the United Nations and former UN ambassador from Eritrea
Olaf Olafsson '85, executive vice president at Time Warner
Dimitrij Rupel '76, minister of foreign affairs in Slovenia
George Saitoti '67, minister of education, science and technology in Kenya
Shen Tong '91, organizer of the Tiananmen Square pro-democracy demonstrations in China
