Fundacion Integrar

Fundación Integrar offers higher education scholarships to low-income students from the greater Buenos Aires area.

We are a small NGO with a dedicated team of 6 employees, 1 part-time employees, and over 50 volunteers.

We are exclusively funded by donations from individuals in Argentina, Argentinean ex-pats, foreign philanthropists, and fifteen sponsors, including EY, Zurich, Pan American Energy, Fundación Fortabat, Fundación Kipp, and Novum Foundation.

History

Fundación Integrar was born from a simple yet powerful act of kindness. In the early 2000s, three university friends met a young man who had migrated alone from a poor northern province chasing his dream of attending college. University is free in Argentina but he was so poor that he couldn't afford transportation costs or books. He was never the less undeterred in his hope of becoming a kinesiologist. Touched by his conviction that a profession was the key out of poverty, and the hope and resilience he embodied, the three friends decided to help him. They offered financial support and mentorship and kept him motivated when he felt overwhelmed. This success story led to another, and then another, and in 2007, Fundación Integrar was formally established

Mission and Goals

For the last two decades, Argentina has been going through a severe crisis. The current context is highly recessive, and according to the most recent official data, 60 percent of Argentinian children live below the poverty line, and 53.5 percent of the total population is unemployed. Gender is an additional vulnerability predictor: the unemployment rate of young women from the lowest quintile of wealth is almost twice that of young men. For the past 17 years, Fundación Integrar's mission has been to bridge the gap between opportunity and access to higher education, fostering social mobility for youth from impoverished backgrounds. Our scholarship programs address financial constraints, provide guidance, and offer personalized mentorship, enabling students to fulfill their academic potential and acquire the skills required to join the job market, thus rising out of poverty. We are proud to have nearly 200 graduates and more than 130 ongoing students. Over 70% of them are women, and, most importantly, in a country with the highest youth unemployment in the Latin American region, 90 percent of Integrar graduates have secured a formal job in their fields. Our goals include increasing the number of students we support each year and keeping track of the demands of the evolving job market to ensure our graduates are adapted-ready.

Programs

Fundación Integrar offers two main scholarship programs:

1. Integrar Scholarship Program aims at youth aged 17 to 24 from underprivileged neighborhoods who want to pursue university degrees. We provide financial assistance, academic advice, mentorship, and workshops on job readiness and soft skill development. Our comprehensive support system ensures that students can navigate the challenges of higher education and unlock their academic potential.

2. IntegrarTEC: The crisis is increasingly harming the formal labor market in Argentina. However, the software industry grew more than 300% over the last decade, creating a fast-growing demand for technological profiles. IntegrarTEC was implemented in 2021 as a scholarship program for youth aged 17 to 28 from underprivileged neighborhoods interested in joining the booming software industry. This intensive one-year program is mentor-based and benefits from the knowledge accumulated during 17 years of experience supporting vulnerable students and preparing them to join the labor force.

Future Plans

As Argentina faces severe economic challenges, including high youth unemployment and widespread poverty, Fundación Integrar is committed to expanding its impact. In 2025 we look forward to admitting at least 60 new students into our traditional scholarship program and 40 more into IntegrarTEC. We have successfully built partnerships with various sponsors, including EY, Zurich, Pan American Energy, Fundación Fortabat, Fundación Kipp, and Novum Foundation, among others, and we rely on a solid base of individual donors, who represent nearly 40% of our incoming donations. To ensure sustainable growth for our programs we are committed to increasing significantly our funding in the next three years.

Join Us

Fundación Integrar empowers young people through higher education, bridging the gap between opportunity and access. Your support provides life-changing opportunities. Together, we can build a brighter future for Argentina's youth.

For more information, please visit our GlobalGiving project page and our IntegrarTEC project page.