Cambodia Rural Students Trust
| Cambodia Rural Students Trust | |
|---|---|
| Khmer name | — |
| Common name | CRST |
| Type | Scholarship |
| Focus areas | Rural student scholarships, high school and university sponsorship, Siem Reap |
| Business type | — |
| Location | Siem Reap,Siem Reap,Cambodia |
| HQ country | Cambodia |
| Address | — |
| Founded | 2011 |
| EIN (US only) | — |
| Website | https://www.cambodiaruralstudentstrust.org/ |
| Donation | — |
| Contact | — |
| Languages | — |
| Sponsoring org | Cambodia Rural Students Trust (CRST), a student-run nonprofit headquartered in Siem Reap, Cambodia |
| Award amount | Full sponsorship: private high school tuition at Future Bright International School plus uniforms, meals six days a week, English classes, tutoring, and university tuition and living support |
| Eligibility | Bright students from poor rural Cambodian families, selected by CRST staff and its student-run Senior Leadership Team |
| Application window | Rolling; students are recruited and selected by CRST directly |
| Apply | Apply to this program |
| Impact geography | Siem Reap province and rural Cambodia |
| — | |
| — | |
| YouTube | — |
| TikTok | — |
| X | — |
| — | |
| Status | active |
| Last verified | 2026-09-16 by WikiSysop |
| Sources | |
Overview
Cambodia Rural Students Trust (CRST) is a Siem Reap-based nonprofit established in 2011 by co-founder Jessica Palti (together with her father Aviv Palti) with the mission of "breaking the poverty cycle through education." Housed in a renovated guesthouse near the Wat Po Langka pagoda in Siem Reap city, CRST sponsors bright students from poor rural Cambodian families to attend the best high school and university available in Siem Reap.
CRST's high-school program pays tuition at Future Bright International School and provides uniforms, three meals a day six days a week at the CRST campus, daily English classes, and subject tutorials. Its university program continues that support and adds a two-year practical curriculum in leadership, business, and life skills. A distinctive feature of the organization is that it is managed and run entirely by its students: roles from team member up to manager are chosen by a student-run Senior Leadership Team and rotated twice a year to give every scholar hands-on management experience. Doeb Chhay serves as Executive Director, and Jessica and Aviv Palti mentor students from abroad and visit Cambodia several times a year.