The Programme
Eligibility Criteria
Value of the award
Application process
Selection and Post selection
Further information


The Programme

Dr Manmonhan Singh, the Prime Minister of India, is a graduate and Honorary Fellow of St John's College. He is widely acknowledged as the architect of the economic reforms that have helped propel India onto the World Stage. In honour of Dr Singh St John's College is launching the Dr Manmohan Singh Scholarships. These awards will enable academically outstanding Indian students to come to St. John's College, University of Cambridge to study for doctoral degrees in subjects like Science & Technology, Economics and Social Sciences. Applications in Aerospace Engineering, Marine Engineering and Energy Studies (both policy areas and technical areas, especially with practical applicability for India) will be of particular interest.

Eligibilty Criteria

The applicant should be:

• An Indian national with a valid Indian passport
• Below 35 years of age as on 31 January 2008
• Holding a Master's (postgraduate) degree from a reputed/recognised India university/ institution with a First Class award (UG and PG) in the relevant subject/ field
• Evidence of leadership qualities (to be assessed from personal statements e.g. extracurricular activities and/or evidence of having made a difference to the country/society/participation in symposia in the relevant subject, or peer reviewed publication in the area.)
• Keen to pursue a full time Doctoral Research degree from St. John's College , University of Cambridge commencing by September/October 2008
• Fluent in spoken and written English
• Able to fulfil any other admission criteria laid down by the university.

Value of the Award

The scholarships are fully funded:

• Academic fees
• International airfare
• Monthly stipend to cover living expenses
• UK Visa

Application process

It is the responsibility of the applicants to identify a suitable Doctoral programme and supervisor at the University of Cambridge , apply for a place for September/October 2008 and secure admission.

1. Identify a suitable doctoral programme and supervisor at the University of Cambridge.
2. Applicants to visit the Board of Graduate Studies (BoGs) website and make formal application to the University at the same time as to the Dr Manmohan Singh Scholarships. For further clarification, please click here.
3. Applicants to select St John's College as their first choice College on their BoGs application form.
4. Applicants to indicate on their BoGs form that they are applying for the Man Mohan Singh Scholarships, but also to complete the section applying for funding from the University.
5. Applicants also to send St John's copies of their application forms to:
   The Graduate Admissions Office,
   St John's College,
   Cambridge,
   CB2 1 TP, UK
   Or they can be e-mailed to graduate-admissions@joh.cam.ac.uk
6. Click here to apply for the Scholarship by 31 January and submit it to the British Council
7. Submit ‘offers' from St John's College to the British Council by 15 April 08

Notes:

Only those applicants who get offer of admission at St John's College will be considered for the final level of short listing and interviews

Everything else being equal, candidates who have not had exposure to UK education or UK government funding will be given preference.

Selection

Candidates for these scholarships are selected through a process of short listing from the applications received by the British Council, followed by personal interviews, which will be held in New Delhi .

Subsequent to the interviews the selection committee identifies the required number of candidates for the awards. The decision of the selection committee will be final. Selection results will be communicated within a month following the interview.

Post selection

Pre-departure briefings, UK visa and travel arrangements for the selected candidates will be co-ordinated by the British Council.

Further information

• The British Council will acknowledge receipt of applications through the emails provided on the application form. For this purpose, applicants are requested to provide their latest email ids. However, the British Council will not be responsible for failure of on-line delivery.
• The British Council will further contact only the short-listed candidates inviting them for interviews. Applicants are requested not to contact the British Council office directly.
• Short-listed candidates will be interviewed in New Delhi in mid May 2008. Candidates will be expected to make their own travel and accommodation arrangements. Train fare (equivalent to II A/C) will be reimbursed (on production of receipts) to those who attend the interviews.

For any queries, please contact

Vishu Sharma
Scholarships
British Council
17, Kasturba Gandhi Marg
New Delhi 110001, India
Tel +91 (0)11 41497272
Fax +91 (0) 11 23710717
delhi.scholarship@in.britishcouncil.org

The deadline for submission is 31 January 2008

The University of Cambridge and St John’s College would like to acknowledge and thank the three sponsors of the Dr Manmohan Singh Scholarships: BP Foundation, Rolls-Royce and TATA Sons Ltd.