Brown University has announced a $25 million commitment from siblings and alumni Aysha (’04) and Omar (’01) Shoman to boost financial aid for Brown’s international undergraduates, and expand the university’s ability to attract and educate the most exceptional international students from all socioeconomic groups. 

The largest individual gift for international financial aid in Brown’s history will help advance the university’s path toward becoming the sixth school in the United States to implement need-blind undergraduate admissions for international students. While Brown has been need-blind for domestic students since 2003, the university currently employs a “need-aware” policy that considers a student’s financial need in admissions decisions for international undergraduates.

Since their graduations, Aysha and Omar Shoman have made financial aid a key focus of their financial support of the university, including the creation of the Shoman Scholarship Fund in 2007, which has awarded more than $3.7 million to 78 high-achieving international students from 38 countries. “Meeting incredible people from all over the world played a major role in my time at Brown,” said Aysha Shoman, who graduated with concentrations in international relations and old-world archeology and art. “As there were limited options for financial aid for international students when my brother and I were studying, we decided to set up a scholarship to give talented students from around the globe an opportunity to receive a Brown education.”

“I am routinely inspired by the drive, intellectual curiosity, and accomplishments of our international students, and the world and our nation desperately need the contributions they can make,” said Brown University president Christina H. Paxson. “We want to be able to admit exceptional international students to Brown, regardless of their financial resources, and the generosity of Aysha and Omar Shoman will enable us to do that for many students for generations to come.” 

(Photo credit: Getty Images/kickstand)