At Catalyst, we want to support more people to join the tech industry. We want to empower tech enthusiasts passionate about computer science to achieve their education goals. That's why we offer our Catalyst Open Source Scholarships and an internship at our Catalyst offices. The scholarships are open until the 30th of October, 2024. In this blog post, Don Christie, Managing Director and co-founder of Catalyst, shares the importance of supporting the next generation in tech.
The power of education
I was born and raised in a developing country, Zambia, and access to education was free until you're 12.There, education was treasured. The classes at my local school had 50 to 70 students. But getting access to knowledge was game-changing. And it makes me think of my grandparents' generation, who had to leave school at the age of 12 to go and work or look after family.
On the other hand, my parents' generation got free education, which gave them many more opportunities. Those opportunities pass on to future generations right through me, my children and so on. So, in this digital age, we have two pathways to knowledge. We can go down one path, where knowledge is captured owned and used. Or we can go down the track where technology enables, transforms and empowers us.
Open source software and open knowledge take us down that second pathway. Knowledge and access to knowledge is a transformational experience. As people go through the education system and hit tertiary education, whether it's polytechnics, vocational training organisations or universities, they need to recognise those two pathways. There's a chance to make sure that there are opportunities to sustain the next generations and to enable them to achieve their goals.
Why we offer Catalyst Open Source Scholarships
In the first year of my higher education study, I didn't have to pay fees, and I got a small living grant. I was the last generation to do that. At Catalyst, we recognise that students have to take out loans and incur debt, and that can be a barrier to carrying on with their learning and education. Previous recipients have shared how the scholarships supported them to focus on their studies and cemented that they’d made the right choice to further their education.
Because we want to support alternatives to big companies, we need to empower people with the brains and the ambition to build those alternatives. We can offer them a building block with open source software and create opportunities to share that exciting work can be done in New Zealand. That New Zealand can be a home for innovation.We had the question of 'how we contribute to encouraging people to continue their education. How do we keep encouraging people to value open source and open knowledge? How can we help people access education so it’s not just for those who can afford it?
Open source provides opportunities, and we want to continue to build opportunities, and that's why we offer two scholarships and internships to support students as they study.
Apply for the 2025 Open Source Scholarships
Applications for the Catalyst Open Source Scholarships have now closed. Our team will review the applications over the next few weeks and candidates will be contacted by email. Thank you to everyone who applied or shared the scholarships with their network. We'll share more updates next year.