Fellowship Background & History

Paul and Daisy Soros, Hungarian immigrants and American philanthropists, established their fellowship program for New Americans in December 1997 with a charitable trust of fifty million dollars. Their reasons for doing so were several. They wished to "give back" to the country that had afforded them and their children such great opportunities and felt a fellowship program was an appropriate vehicle. They also felt that assisting young New Americans at a critical point in their education was an unmet need. Finally, they wished to signal to all Americans that the contributions of New Americans to the quality of life in this country have been manifold.

Since the founding of The Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans, there have been thirteen rounds of competition. Almost 11,000 individuals have applied in those rounds. The thirteenth round was completed in February 2010 when the trustees announced the Class of 2010. Each class has thirty Fellows. In the past thirteen competitions, 384 Fellowships have been given; there are now 61 Fellows at 20 universities undertaking graduate study in 18 different fields. There are also 323 alumni.

Central to an understanding of the entire Program is an understanding of the donors, Paul and Daisy Soros. Assisting young New Americans in pursuing their life chances in this country is an autobiography of their lives - where friends, family and associates helped them as they built a life in this new land.

Born in Hungary in 1926, Paul Soros studied mechanical engineering in Budapest. When a Communist government came to power, he began looking for a chance to escape. In 1948, as a member of the Hungarian ski team at the Olympic games in Switzerland, he defected. Having made his way to the United States, he took a master's degree in engineering from Polytechnic University in Brooklyn. In 1956, he founded Soros Associates, an international engineering firm that eventually had port development, offshore terminal, and bulk handling projects in 90 countries. Mr. Soros holds several patents in material handling and offshore technology and is the author of more than a hundred technical articles. He served on the Review Panel of the President's Office of Science and Technology and received the Gantt Medal of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and the Outstanding Engineering Achievement Award of the National Society of Professional Engineers. He is now active in Paul Soros Investments, is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and is a board member of several corporations and nonprofit organizations.

Daisy Margaret Soros grew up in Hungary and graduated from Ecole Hotelier in Lausanne, Switzerland. She came to the United States on a student visa, enrolling at Columbia University. She later attended New York School of Interior Design, studied at New York University School of Social Work, and worked extensively as a counselor to terminally ill patients and their families.

Mrs. Soros has been a member of the Board of Overseers of Weill Cornell Medical College since 1993, where she has continuously served in leadership roles that promote the mission and ideals of academic medicine.  In addition to being the founder and host of the popular Information Please luncheon lecture series, Mrs. Soros also serves on the Steering Committee for the Medical College’s Discoveries that Make a Difference Campaign and the Dean’s Council.  She is Chairman of the Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans and the Friends of the Budapest Festival Orchestra, and serves on the Administrative Board of The Society of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, the Board of the American Austrian Foundation, the Board of Directors of The Metropolitan Opera, the Board of the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, the Board and Executive Committee of the New York Philharmonic, the Board of the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City, and is an Honorary Member of International House.

Mrs. Soros was the recipient of the Metro International Fulbright Award, Lincoln Center Laureate Award, Ellis Island Medal of Honor, International House Harry Edmonds Award, the Casita Maria Gold Medal of Honor, The National Immigration Forum's "Keepers of the American Dream Award," was honored by the Henry Street Settlement and received an honorary Doctor of Laws at Bates College in Maine.

Daisy and her husband, Paul, have two sons, Peter and Jeffrey. Peter is involved in finance and lives in England with his two sons. Jeffrey, a screenwriter, philanthropist, and President of The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, resides in California with his wife and two children.