Share

Share

Share on Facebook Share on Facebook Tweet Share on Twitter Share on WhatsApp Share on WhatsApp

SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER

Photo: Mariana Leder Kremer/Presentes Archive

On March 1st, registration opened for Progresar – scholarships from the National Ministry of Education that aim to guarantee equal educational opportunities in Argentina. One of the good news stories this year is the establishment of new priority groups, including trans and gender-diverse populations. “Trans people and people with disabilities are given priority, with no age limit for all types of scholarships,” states the call for applications, which distinguishes between “Groups in situations of multidimensional vulnerability.”

• Trans people and transvestites are exempt from the age requirement.
• Women with children up to 18 years of age who are in charge of a single-parent household and are between 18 and 30 years of age.
• Members of indigenous communities and/or belonging to native peoples, who are exempt from the age requirement in the "promotion of higher education" line and are between 18 and 30 years of age.

The scholarship amount varies according to levels and types of study, from 1250 to 7400 pesos per month, and is received for 10 months. 

The Progresar scholarships aim to strengthen the completion of compulsory education and promote higher education and vocational training courses. Their objectives are "to strengthen student enrollment, retention, and graduation rates by unifying all national government educational scholarships," according to the institutional presentation.

This is the first time that this public policy explicitly includes transvestite and trans people as beneficiaries under special conditions, people who have been excluded from the education system so often due to structural violence, as recognized by various reports and even court rulings.

READ MORE: The Mocha Celis Trans High School cannot start classes due to lack of funds

Registration

From March 1st to 31st, 2020. The process begins through the website:  www.argentina.gob.ar/becasprogresar

Requirements for admission

1. Age: Those who are not among the vulnerable groups mentioned at the beginning must be between 18 and 24 years old. 
2. Be a native or naturalized Argentine citizen with a National Identity Document (DNI) and have 5 years of residence in the country;
3.  Not to be beneficiaries of a national, provincial or municipal social plan/program; 
4.  That the income of the person applying for the scholarship and/or that of their family group (father, mother or cohabiting partner) does not exceed 3 minimum, vital and mobile salaries (the SMVM to date amounts to $16,875);
5. To be a registered student at an institution or to present a certificate of enrollment in a professional development course. In the case of advanced higher education students, the age limit is extended to 30 years (applies to those requesting renewal of the benefit).

Documents to be submitted

-ID.

-Birth certificate.

-Registration form signed by the school authority of the establishment where you study.

-If there is a need to update the family group data, also submit:

• ID cards and birth certificates of children.
• Marriage certificate (for married couples) or cohabitation certificate (for those who live together).

Starting in 2020, in addition to the inclusion of new priority groups, within the framework of Progresar “a tutoring system will be implemented, interaction with educational institutions will be strengthened, student networks and student centers will be created, and new benefits will be granted to scholarship recipients in health, culture, tourism and social development programs, among others,” reported the call for applications from the Ministry of Education of the Nation.