When we launched our scholarship campaign in October 2021 through #90DayTo1K, our goal was simple: grow our community organically across LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube so we could “pay it forward” by covering full tuition for a deserving participant in our Bridging the Gap (BTG) medical interpreter training. Thanks to the incredible support of the InterSys community, that campaign achieved its purpose and then some.

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In 2025, we decided to move forward under a name that reflects something even more meaningful. This scholarship honors the life and legacy of Ruben Ibarra—an interpreter, friend, and family member whose impact touched our work, our community, and everyone around him, including his brother Jose Ibarra, one of our instructors. Ruben himself also worked for InterSys, LLC for a time, and as a nationally certified medical interpreter, he appreciated the deep community need for language access and culturally responsive care for people of all backgrounds.

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One of Ruben's favorite sayings was: "Keep the dream alive!" We hope this scholarship honors that spirit in more ways than one—by helping a deserving candidate overcome a financial barrier in pursuit of their career, and by training the next generation of interpreters to serve an industry that remains severely underrepresented but vital to responsible medical care.

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What the scholarship provides

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Each year, InterSys, LLC will award one full-tuition scholarship for the 40-hour Bridging the Gap (BTG) course, which prepares bilingual and multilingual individuals to interpret in hospitals, clinics, and other health care settings. The scholarship supports applicants who can show how professional medical interpreter training will benefit their community and help improve quality of care for patients with limited English proficiency.

We are grateful to our partners who have supported this effort over the years.

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Application Overview​

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The Bridging the Gap (BTG) course trains bilingual/multilingual individuals to work as medical interpreters in hospitals, clinics, and other health care settings. InterSys, LLC (InterSys) will award one scholarship for the 40-hour course each year. The scholarship will cover the full tuition cost of the course for the recipient.

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This scholarship will be awarded to one individual who demonstrates why having a trained medical interpreter will benefit their community and how they plan to use this class to improve the quality of care for patients with limited English proficiency. The individual who is awarded this scholarship and attends the Bridging the Gap course will be highlighted in our organization’s social media pages, and website. Upon successful completion of the course, the participant will receive a certificate of successful completion.

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Please note that each applicant is eligible to receive only one scholarship.

 

Contact:
For questions about the scholarship or application process, please contact us via email at assist@myintersys.com

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​Applicant Requirements/Materials

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To apply for the Bridging the Gap scholarship, applicants must be at least 18 years of age and have a high school diploma or equivalent.

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Scholarship applicants must also provide language proficiency in English and the language they plan to interpret for. Applicants who are not able to provide proof of language proficiency in one of their languages can request a language assessment to be scheduled by InterSys, LLC. If an applicant is awarded the scholarship and does not have proof of language proficiency or does not pass their proficiency test, InterSys reserves the right to withdraw the scholarship awarded to that individual.

Proof of proficiency can be copies of any one of the following documents: High school diploma or equivalent, or university/college degree from a school using the assessed language(s); 5 or more years of verified professional experience working in the language(s) being assessed; State or federal court interpreter certification; Oral language exam results with scores equivalent to ACTFL Advanced Mid-level or ILR Level 2.

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You will be prompted to submit the following materials in this application:

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1. A completed scholarship application

2. An updated copy of your resume 

3. A 3-5 min video recording (details provided in section VI)

4. Proof of high school graduation or college/university graduation

5. Proof of language proficiency in English

6. Proof of language proficiency in the language you interpret