List of Scholarships Available for International Students to Study in UK

Thousands of students from Indian and all across the world every year dream of studying overseas in hopes to make their future better. However, many dreams can stay unfulfilled as cost of staying and studying in some other country could be too much for some to pay.

That’s where scholarship programs come in and these programs can be really useful for international students desirous of studying in some other country. Though, there are several countries that try to attract students’ attention, the US and UK , somehow manage to be on students mind while choosing a country for studying.
However, studying in UK can be a better option as compared to the US and Canada, for reasons like: as compared to US and Canada, studying in UK can be bit cheaper as tuition fees for certain courses is quite low. In addition, courses in UK are shorter as compared to US and other countries. In UK you’d be studying in bachelors program for 3 years as compared to 4-5 years in the US. By opting to study in UK, you would actually be saving your money.
Also, UK offers many scholarship programs to make it easier for deserving students to continue their studies there.

Below we’ve mentioned some names of the scholarship programs UK offers to its international student community:

1.     Gates Cambridge Scholarship: is a full expense covering scholarship for international students, who want to purse graduate study or research at Cambridge University, UK.  To know more about the program and if you are eligible please visit university website. Gates Cambridge scholarship candidates can apply to study any subject that’s available at Cambridge University; should be well-prepared for courses at the University also should meet all the conditions for admission; must be able to show evidence of high academic achievement, social commitment and that s/he will be good fit at University etc.

2.     Rhodes Scholarship: covers tuition and living expenses for two years of study at prestigious Oxford University.  This is the oldest and one of the most prestigious international graduate scholarship programs in the world. Applications for the year of 2012 have been closed but if you want to study in UK then you can apply for this scholarship for the year of 2013 and for this applications will be available in mid-2012.

3.      Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan (CSFP): Students, who are citizen of Commonwealth countries (not to be mistaken with Commonwealth of Independent States) or of a British dependent territory are eligible for this program. Also, you must be below 25, permanent citizen of your country and have university degree. Grants are offered for one to three years and cover expense such as tuition, travel, living expense and sometimes grants are provided for books and clothes as well.

4.       Department for International Development: You must be from developing Commonwealth country and the course you want to study must be unavailable in your home country. Grants are usually give for taught courses at postgraduate level and you must be under 35, not employed by government or by any international organization and should be fluent in English.

5.      Royal Society Fellowships: is for post-doctoral scientists from a North America and Asia to undertake research in the UK labs. The fellowship is available for up to two years for postdoctoral researchers coming from US and Canada and for one year if you are from Asia. Browse around the link above to know more about the program.

6.      Marshall Scholarship: program is specifically for US students and awards up to 40 outstanding college graduate American students with chance to study at the UK institute of their choice for two years.

How to Get Scholarship:

1.      Most important tip, start your search for a scholarship early. Prepare a winning application, spend some time on it. If you are serious about studying abroad, start your search a year in advance.

2.      Follow the process of applying seriously and studiously. Don’t mess up anything; provide all the necessary documents like admission details, financial documents, visa details, official grades, reference letters, personal essays, etc.

3.      Also, apply for more than one scholarship program as there’s no guarantee that you’ll win the first one. And don’t overlook low amount scholarships as getting a full scholarship is quite hard to get and is rare. So also focus on 4-5 smaller scholarships as they are easier to get and can actually cover good portion of expenses.

Lastly, beware of scholarship scams as international students are their primary victims. Keep these things in mind: if they are asking for money from you for scholarship; charging application fees (legitimate scholarship foundations don’t charge such fees.); if you are suspicious of an offer etc. Bottom line, be careful.
Good Luck!
By: Priyanka Sharma

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