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Scholarship Advice

USA - Scholarship Guidelines

You may be in the midst of your admission process into a college in the US and probably looking for information on scholarships.  This section will help you understand all related information on scholarship procedures for international students applying to a college in the US. We have collated answers to all possible questions you may have, here below:

  • What scholarships are available for International Students?
    All Universities run various scholarship campaigns and details are usually announced on their websites.

  • Are scholarships available for International Students?
    Yes. Apart from regular scholarships, Universities offer a number of Teaching and Research Assistant-ships for students who apply for postgraduate and research program.

  • What is the difference between scholarship and bursary?
    Scholarships are mostly merit based whereas bursaries are automatic scholarships given by the University to students applying for a particular course or to all students coming from a domicile/country.
    Scholarships have deadlines, whereas bursaries do not have deadlines

  • Are scholarships available for all programs?
    Yes, there are plenty of scholarships for Undergraduate and Post graduate programs. However, availability of scholarships for post graduate and research programs is far more.

  • Are scholarships available for research programs also?
    Yes. In fact there are plenty of scholarships available for students aspiring for research programs. However, students need to apply at least a year in advance.

  • How easy is it to get scholarships?
    There is stiff competition for scholarships. The quality of the scholarship application and performance in tests like TOEFL/SAT/GMAT/GRE, play an important role.

  • What is required to apply for scholarships in the US?
    • An offer letter or I-20
    • Excellent and consistent academic performance
    • A well written scholarship essay/statement of purpose
    • Strong recommendation letters
    • Good test  scores in TOEFL/SAT/GMAT/GRE is a key factor
    • It’s important to apply before the deadline

  • What is the right time to apply for a scholarship?
    Ideally the student should start the application process for admission 18 months before the course start date so that he/she can receive the I-20 in advance and is able to apply for scholarships.  Application for scholarships can be made only after you’ve got an I-20 from the college/ university.  US Universities follow strict deadlines and applications sent after the deadline is rejected outright.

  • What is the amount of scholarship one can expect?
    The value of scholarship may vary between 10% and 50% or 50 % and 100% of the tuition fee. It depends on the scholarship scheme launched in that particular year.

  • Can the scholarship be deferred to the next year?
    No you cannot, you will need to apply for the scholarship again.

UK - Scholarship Guidelines

You may be in the midst of your admission process into a college in the UK and probably looking for information on scholarships.  This section will help you understand all related information on scholarship procedures for international students applying to a college in the UK. We have collated answers to all possible questions you may have, here below:

  • What scholarships are available for International Students to apply?
    There are various categories of scholarship available. You will need to explore the links provided below for details on each.


  • Scholarships offered by the International Office of Universities

  • Scholarships offered by specific departments in the University
    (i) The Rhodes Scholarships - Up to six fully covered scholarships offered at Oxford, for pure and applied sciences, law or medicine.
    Website: www.rhodesscholarships-india.com

    (ii) The Skoll Scholarship Programme  - Five fully-funded annual MBA scholarships within the Said Business School, University of Oxford, UK.
    Website : www.britishcouncil.org

    (iii) The Dorothy Hodgkin Postgraduate Awards - Awards for outstanding graduate students from India, China, Hong Kong, Russia and the developing world to pursue PhDs in the fields of science, engineering, medicine, social sciences and technology.
    Website : www.rcuk.ac.uk

    (iv) Oxford and Cambridge Society of India - Scholarships awarded for study at the Universities of Oxford or Cambridge.
    Website : www.oxbridgeindia.com

    (v) Felix Scholarships - Offers up to six scholarships each for Indian graduates at University of Oxford, University of Reading, and School of Oriental and African Studies every year.
    Websites :
    www.ox.ac.uk
    www.soas.ac.uk
    www.reading.ac.uk

    Other Useful Weblinks:
    1. Ministry of Human Resources Development: www.education.nic.in
    2. British education online: www.educationuk-in.org
    3. Student Money: www.scholarship-search.org.uk
    4. The Association of Commonwealth Universities: www.acu.ac.uk
    5. Scottish education online: www.educationukscotland.org
    6. UKCOSA -- The Council For International Education: www.ukcosa.org.uk


  • Scholarships offered by private organizations in India
    (i) Bharat Petroleum Scholarship for Higher Studies announced by Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. for students who have demonstrated all around brilliance and have a passion to achieve excel
    (ii) Lady Meherbhai D Tata Scholarships. Email: sdtt@sdtatattrust.com.
    (iii) KC Mahindra Loan Scholarship (nanhikali.org)
    (iv) ITC Overseas scholarships. Address: ITC Centre, 37, Chowringhee, Calcutta
    (v) HSBC Scholarships. Web: www.hsbc.co.in
    (vi) Debesh – Kamal Scholarships for Higher Education/Research Abroad. Address: Ramkrishna Mission, Golpark, Calcutta.
    (vii) Mariwala Trust Loan Scholarship. Address: Kanmoor House , 281/87, Narsi Natha Street, Mumbai.
    (viii) INLAKS Foundation
  • Are scholarships available for International Students?
    Yes, absolutely. More and more Universities are offering scholarships these days to attract talented students for their programs.
  • What is the difference between scholarship and bursary?
    Scholarships are mostly merit based whereas bursaries are automatic scholarships given by the University to students applying for a particular course or to all students coming from a domicile/country.
    Scholarships have deadlines, whereas bursaries do not have deadlines.

  • Are scholarships available for all programs?
    Yes, there are plenty of scholarships for Undergraduate and Post graduate programs. However, availability of scholarships for post graduate and research programs is far more.
  • Are scholarships also available for Phd programs?
    Yes. In fact there are plenty of scholarships available for students aspiring for research programs. However, students need to apply at least a year in advance.
  • How easy is it to get scholarships?
    There is stiff competition for scholarships. The quality of scholarship application plays an important role and all the scholarship requirements should be met.
  • What is required to apply for scholarships in the UK?
    • An offer letter for a full time course
    • Excellent & consistent academic performance
    • A well written scholarship essay/statement of purpose
    • Strong recommendation letters
    • Some Universities will require you to accept the offer before you apply for scholarship
    • Good test  scores in  is a key factor that will give you an edge over the others
    • It’s important to apply before the deadline

 

  • What is the right time to apply for a scholarship?
    • Application for Scholarships in UK can be made only after you’ve got an offer letter from the University.
    • Students looking for scholarships should apply as early as possible to the Universities and get offers from them. Organizations like British Council allow you to apply for some of the scholarships even if you are able to just attach a proof of application to a UK University.
    • Students who have offers are able to apply well before the scholarship deadlines and stand higher chance to be successful with their scholarship application.
  • What is the amount of scholarship one can expect?
    The value of scholarship may vary between 10% and 50% or 50 % and 100% of the tuition fee. It depends on the scholarship scheme launched in that particular year.
  • Can the scholarship be deferred to the next year?
    No you cannot, you will need to apply for the scholarship again.

Australia - Scholarship Guidelines

You may be in the midst of your admission process into a college in Australia and probably looking for information on scholarships.  This section will help you understand all related information on scholarship procedures for international students applying to a college in Australia. We have collated answers to all possible questions you may have, here below:

  • What scholarships are available for International Students?
    Scholarships are offered by the Australian Government, education institutions and a number of other organisations. They cover various educational sectors, including vocational education and training, student exchanges, undergraduate and postgraduate study and research. Australian Government scholarships are not available for international students undertaking English language training specifically in Australia. However, there are several English language training scholarships offered by Australian institutions - http://www.australiaawards.gov.au/

    International Student Scholarship- The value of these scholarships may vary from partial amount of 10% to 50% and few offering 100% also. For e.g.-one of the University in Australia offers the following International Student Scholarship.
    Up to 25 Scholarships will be available to commencing undergraduate or postgraduate international students each year, consisting of –
    • five scholarships equivalent to the full-time fees for the recipient’s course of study; and
    • 20 scholarships equivalent to one-half of the full-time fees for the recipient’s course of study
  • Are scholarships available for International Students?
    Yes, now more and more Universities in Australia have starting offering scholarships to international students to attract talented students for their programs. Education in Australia is quite cost effective as compared to other popular destinations for study abroad. Moreover the living cost is also quite economical.
  • What is the difference between scholarship and bursary?
    Scholarships are mostly merit based whereas bursaries are automatic scholarships given by the University to students applying for a particular course or to all students coming from a domicile/country. Scholarships have deadlines, whereas bursaries do not have deadlines.
  • Are scholarships available for all programs?
    Yes, there are plenty of scholarships for Undergraduate and Post graduate programs. However, availability of scholarships for post graduate and research programs is far more.
  • Are scholarships available for research programs also?
    Yes. In fact there are plenty of scholarships available for students aspiring for research programs. However, students need to apply at least a year in advance.
  • How easy is it to get scholarships?
    There is stiff competition for scholarships. The quality of scholarship application plays an important role and all the scholarship requirements should be met.
  • What is required to apply for scholarships in the US?
    • An offer letter for a full time course
    • Excellent and consistent academic performance
    • A well written scholarship essay/statement of purpose
    • Strong recommendation letters
    • Some Universities will expect you to accept the offer before you apply for scholarship
    • A good IELTS  score will give an edge to your scholarship application
    • It’s important to apply before the deadline
  • What is the right time to apply for a scholarship?
    • Application for Scholarships in Australia can be made only after you’ve got an offer letter from the University.
    • Students looking for scholarships should apply as early as possible and get offers from the Universities.
    • Students who get offers well in advance and apply before the scholarship deadlines stand higher chance to be successful with their scholarship application.
  • What is the amount of scholarship one can expect?
    The value of scholarship may vary between 10% and 50% or 50 % and 100% of the tuition fee. It depends on the scholarship scheme launched in that particular year.
  • Can the scholarship be deferred to the next year?
    No you cannot, you will need to apply for the scholarship again.