The Greek shipping family, through its institutional representative body, has been a timeless supporter of Greek society. Especially in recent years, the solidarity of the Greek shipping community around the Union of Greek Shipowners has highlighted its unwavering commitment to social contribution and philanthropy. Throughout its history, the Union of Greek Shipowners has placed Education and the granting of scholarships at the heart of its social work, tangibly supporting the younger generation of the country.
On Tuesday, July 1, 2025, the ceremony for the awarding of the 130 Postgraduate Scholarships of the Union of Greek Shipowners (UGS) for the academic year 2025-2026 took place at the archaeological site of the Olympieion. This year’s program has been expanded numerically, reaching 130 scholarships, including the “Excellence” scholarship. Specifically, scholarships were awarded to 130 outstanding young men and women from 21 regions of our homeland, enabling them to pursue their postgraduate studies in 10 scientific fields, in 11 countries, at 6 Greek universities and 45 abroad, according to their choice.
Following its commitment “Shipping and Society Always Together,” the UGS has established the significantly expanded program “SYN-ENOSIS FOR EDUCATION +100 SCHOLARSHIPS,” as well as the symbolically named “Excellence” scholarship for the best of the best, the first among the first. The scholarships cover studies in Greece and abroad, in postgraduate programs at the pre-doctoral level, lasting one or two full years. As mentioned by the President of the Union of Greek Shipowners, Melina Travlos, the total investment for this program exceeds €5,000,000.
The realization of this year’s scholarship awards would not have been possible without the invaluable support of shipping companies, institutions, organizations, donors, and families who provide scholarships in memory of their loved ones.
More specifically, the shipping companies that supported the UGS scholarship program for the academic year 2025-2026 were as follows:
At the same time, the following scholarships were awarded in memory of distinguished members of the Greek shipping family who are no longer with us:
Finally, the UGS scholarship program was supported by the following individuals, institutions, associations, and companies:
It is worth noting that the 130 scholarship recipients meet the criteria of the call and have achieved exceptionally high academic performance, having been selected from a total of 800 applicants. The evaluation was conducted by the responsible Committee, composed of members of the Board of Directors of the Union of Greek Shipowners and SYN-ENOSIS, with Mr. Yannis Xylas as Chairman, as well as Messrs. Nikos Veniamis, Dinos Caroussis, and Alexandros Pappas. The Evaluation Committee was assisted by academic advisors Andreas Papandreou, Professor of Environmental Economics at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens; Elias Papaioannou, Professor of Economics at the London Business School; and Meletios-Athanasios Dimopoulos, Professor of Therapeutics-Hematology-Oncology and Director of the Therapeutic Clinic at the Medical School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, as well as by the artistic director of the Athens Concert Hall, Yannis Vakarelis.
The postgraduate scholarship program of the Union of Greek Shipowners is the most extensive in the country, serving as a strong pillar of its timeless humanitarian footprint, which “embraces” the fields of health, education, social welfare, food aid, public interest projects, and crisis response, having contributed over €130,000,000 in recent years.
