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Sara Affara and Nandini Seth grew up in different provinces, but they have a lot in common. They both have supportive families, they both have impressive high school resumes, and they both have a keen interest in computer programming. The young women, who have become fast friends at UCalgary, are also both proud winners of Kennedy Scholarships. 

ā€œI was so happy when I found out that both Kennedy Scholars are Sara and I,ā€ Seth said in an interview. ā€œIā€™m so excited. Both of us are women ā€“ and itā€™s insane.ā€

The offers two five-year scholarships for students entering the Bachelor of Computer Science program in UCalgaryā€™s Faculty of Science, followed by the Master of Management program in the Haskayne School of Business. In computer science, the students learn from world-leading experts in areas such as cybersecurity, software development, game design, human-computer interaction, and AI. Once they add the masterā€™s degree, they will then be prepared to start their own businesses or become changemakers in a large corporation or non-profit organization. The full-ride scholarships are worth up to $125,000 for the top candidate from outside of Calgary and $75,000 for the best applicant from the Calgary area. Business leader Paul Kennedy gifted $2.3M to the program in 2022, making it one of the most prestigious in North America.

ā€˜Become a game developerā€™

Sara Affara grew up in Airdrie, Alta., after moving to Canada from Egypt as a child. The 17-year-old likes art, both doodling and sketching, and enjoys playing video games. ā€œI want to go into computer science to become a game developer,ā€ she says. ā€œMy love for games was what started that ā€“ and art, so together I felt like computer science was a nice mesh of the two.ā€ Sheā€™s also active in Tae Kwon Do, one of the oldest forms of martial arts.

ā€œIā€™m a black belt and Iā€™ve been teaching classes as well,ā€ she says. ā€œI teach a lot of childrenā€™s classes. Thatā€™s my part-time job.ā€ Affara continues to teach because she enjoys it. ā€œThatā€™s partly why I picked the University of Calgary. I wanted to be close to my Tae Kwon Do place.ā€

She says she had also heard good things about her closest university. ā€œIt has a good reputation,ā€ she says. ā€œI like the entrepreneurial mindset thatā€™s embraced at the university ā€“ thatā€™s what I want to do.ā€

She hopes to one day open her own game studio. ā€œItā€™s a really good university ā€¦ to start something, which is the slogan, but that wasnā€™t intentional,ā€ Affara says with a laugh. ā€œIt fits. I feel like itā€™s a good spot to start getting ideas.ā€

ā€˜I should learn to codeā€™

Nandini Seth, an 18-year-old from St. Thomas, Ont., says she initially planned to go to university closer to home. The Kennedy Scholarship, however, was too good an opportunity to pass up.

ā€œThe fact that I didnā€™t have to worry about tuition fees, I get to live in the Scholarsā€™ Advantage Community,ā€ she says. ā€œThe whole privilege you get after getting this scholarship is insane. I am really proud of myself for putting in the work in high school, so I can have more ease of mind while Iā€™m here.ā€

Seth was born in India and moved to Atlanta when she was nine. Her family moved to Ontario in 2020. During high school, Seth worked hard at her academics ā€“ particularly math ā€“ and formed a math peer tutor club with one of her teachers. She dances ā€“ Indian classical and hip hop ā€“ to relieve stress.

Seth was also part of her schoolā€™s musical, served on the student council and was on the swim team. ā€œI did so many clubs,ā€ she says. ā€œI didnā€™t have an interest picked out by 11^th grade, so I (decided) to try everything and see what sticks.ā€

Thatā€™s when she decided to take a computer science course. ā€œI thought, ā€˜I should learn to code, that would be useful,ā€™ā€ says Seth. 'Then I took it and I thought, ā€˜This is amazing, this is exactly what I want to do.ā€™ā€