Is Wellgates Scholar Program a scam?

[Dawn in MI]

The website looks pretty suspicious, but there is nothing on snopes.com about it. Here's the link: http://www.wellgatesprogram.org/ What do you think?

 

I'm glad that my son, a university student, checked with me before giving out any information. Any advice would be appreciated.

 

Thanks!

Dawn

[Sebastian (a lady)]

The website looks pretty suspicious, but there is nothing on snopes.com about it. Here's the link: http://www.wellgatesprogram.org/ What do you think?

 

I'm glad that my son, a university student, checked with me before giving out any information. Any advice would be appreciated.

 

Thanks!

Dawn

 

It looks like a version of the Who's Who in (blank) type listings. I tried searching for Wellgates International distinguished scholar and got back almost no useful information. That suggests to me, for example, that industry leaders are not on the board or that alumni are not making a big splash.

 

ETA: Notice, by the way, that there isn't a listing of members of a board of directors, winners of last year's scholarships, a calendar of events, or non-profit status. In fact, I find that in the Terms and Conditions section that the "governing law" for any claims against them is UK and EU law. This suggests to me that they are not a US group (ok, not unexpected given the International Scholar bit). But it also doesn't seem that they are quite in accordance with what I'd expect for data protection in the EU (which has tighter privacy laws than the US, imho).

 

I'd steer clear.

Edited February 8, 2012 by Sebastian (a lady)

[Dawn in MI]

I get so weary of these types of scams. It is so sad that people spend their time trying to figure out how to bilk money out of university students--as if they didn't have enough to deal with as they work to pay for an education while student loans loom in the future. (sigh)

[Guest Chris36]

Considering there is a typo in the first sentence, I would be absolutely suspicious.

 

Also, it is based on 'academic excellence' and only a 'B' average is required?

 

Phishing scam....DELETE! :)

[Guest arcmosby]

i as well as some friends received this same email. what alerted me immediately was the fact that it was sent to my personal email account rather than my .edu account. if it was at all legit they would work through my university and thus have access to my .edu address.

 

this is just another reason why it is a really good idea to maintain two email accounts and not rely solely on ones .edu account as so many students do.

[Guest lorelai]

I just got an email from them at my .edu account (which is downright obnoxious if they aren't legit) and am trying to figure out what the story is. It doesn't seem like they're reputable, but I haven't found evidence of them asking for money. So, I'm not sure what they're scamming - even though it does look like a hoax.

[Guest enggstudent7]

I just got one of these emails today through my school email, and when I clicked on the link, I got one of those "diagnose problem" boxes. (I even tried twice, and, nothing.) Which means to me, don't even bother. Could be spam for all I know, someone "clever" who has too much time on their hands. Unfortunately, it's very difficult to know what programs are legit, and which are not, outside of looking it up on the Better Business Bureau site, and that doesn't guarantee anything, but at least you'll be closer to your answer.

[Guest mikaboy]

I have confirmed with the office of financial aid that they are a legitimate organization that provides scholarships to students.

 

In fact, the information of the scholarship recipient listed on their website http://www.wellgates.org/scholarshiphighlights can be verified on an official univ page http://cala.arizona.edu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=660

 

We may be way too skeptical nowadays.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

I am also skeptical of someone joining a forum in order to assert that something is a worthwhile organization. (Though it seems that this is a common occurance when the organization is mentioned on College Confidential too.)

 

Wellgates may well give our some scholarships. In fact they would probably have to in order to not be investigated for wire fraud. I think the award amounts are paltry. They have 10 award winners annually, with awards of $500-1000.

 

That does not make it a prestigious organization or one worth spending money to join.

 

If you would like to join them, have at it. I consider them a phishing scam, looking to accumulate student info to sell to marketers. A few red flags to me include the lack of a board of directors listing, lack of information regarding charitable status or incorporation and a lack of information regarding corporate or non-profit support for the scholarship.

Edited May 28, 2012 by Sebastian (a lady)