Application Deadline:20th of April 2021.
A scholarship for doctoral studies in the UK, open exclusively to Mandela Rhodes Alumni
A partnership between the Mandela Rhodes Foundation and the Leverhulme Trust to amplify the impact of our alumni
Funding for your tuition
A stipend for living costs
Note: this scholarship is only open to Mandela Rhodes Alumni. If you’re looking for Honours and Master’s funding, please see the Mandela Rhodes Scholarship.
Purpose and aims
The aim of the Shaun Johnson Memorial Scholarships (SJMS) is to increase the impact and effectiveness of Mandela Rhodes Alumni who wish to pursue PhD studies outside the African continent, by connecting them to financial support for doctoral study in the United Kingdom.
The SJMS aims to increase vocational capacity by:
- Supporting alumni to further specialise in their disciplines through doctoral study.
- Enabling alumni to access some of the best supervisors and research facilities in those disciplines, which may not necessarily be available in their home countries.
The SJMS aims to increases leadership capacity by:
- Supporting alumni who have clearly identified and articulated the next phase of their leadership journey and feel that doctoral studies will support that intent.
- Increasing alumni access to international networks of academic and vocational influence via their UK universities.
Requirements
- Candidates must be Mandela Rhodes Scholars seeking to do doctoral study in the UK
- Candidates must be beginning a new PhD – the SJMS does not provide support for PhDs which have already been started
Selection Criteria
The secondary criteria for the SJMS are designed to support the MRF’s purpose and values. Applicants should motivate for the scholarship on the bases of the following criteria:
- Their research. The research proposal should have a demonstrable potential social impact, that will contribute to the betterment of Africa. The research should meet the criteria of originality, importance, significance and merit.
- Their research institution of choice. The applicant should motivate for why it is necessary for this research to be conducted at a UK institution of their choice, making specific mention of potential supervisor/s they have identified, or research units they intend to join. The applicant should be able to articulate how this positioning will advance them in their career, beyond the completion of the doctoral thesis.
- Their leadership capacity and potential. The applicant should demonstrate how the MRF values have been threaded through their journey since their time in residence to the present moment, though their academic and non-academic pursuits. They should be able to motivate for why they believe the Shaun Johnson Memorial Scholarship for doctoral study in the UK is an essential next part of their leadership journey.
- Applications will open on the 17th of March and close on the 20th of April 2021.
- Mandela Rhodes Alumni who wish to apply to be recommended for the Shaun Johnson Memorial Scholarship can download an application form via MandelaRhodesConnect. Forms will be made available on the 17th of March.
- Applications will close at 12 noon, SAST, on the 20th of April. Late or incomplete applications will not be considered.
- All application forms are to be submitted directly to Gigi Edross-Jeppie, via email (gigi@mrf.org.za).
- Referees must be asked to send reference letters directly to Gigi by the 12noon deadline on the 20th of April. If your references have not been received, your application will not be considered.
- Candidates will be contacted by the 30th of April, and informed on whether or not they have been shortlisted for interviews.
- Panel interviews will take place virtually in the week of the 10th of May.
- Candidates will be informed whether their application for the SJMS has been successful by the end of May.
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