Application Deadline: 23:59 SAST, 15 August 2019.
The Rhodes Scholarship programme is the oldest (established 1903) international scholarship programme in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Administered by the Rhodes Trust in Oxford, the programme offers 100 fully-funded Scholarships each year for postgraduate study at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom – one of the world’s leading universities.
Rhodes Scholarships are for young leaders of outstanding intellect and character who are motivated to engage with global challenges, committed to the service of others and show promise of becoming value-driven, principled leaders for the world’s future. The broad selection criteria are:•Academic excellence – specific academic requirements can be found under
‘Eligibility Criteria’ below.
•Energy to use your talents to the full (as demonstrated by mastery in areas such as sports, music, debate, dance, theatre, and artistic pursuits, including where teamwork is involved).
•Truth, courage, devotion to duty, sympathy for and protection of the weak, kindliness, unselfishness and fellowship.
•Moral force of character and instincts to lead, and to take an interest in your fellow human beings.
Countries, regions and schools
Scholarships in Southern Africa are distributed as follows:a. South Africa-at-Large Scholarships: You should apply to the committee (the “Regional Selection Committee”) in whose area you permanently live or in which you have received, or are currently receiving, any considerable part of your education. Save for KwaZulu-Natal as explained below, all successful candidates from Regional Selection Committees are sent to the South Africa-at-Large Selection Committee, for the final round of interviews.
The South Africa-at-Large Selection Committee selects successful candidates and recommends them to the Rhodes Trust, which ultimately makes the scholarship awards. There are four regional selection committees, namely:
i. Eastern Cape and Free State;
ii. KwaZulu-Natal;
iii. Gauteng, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and North-West; and
iv. Western Cape and Northern Cape. b. KwaZulu-Natal
Scholarship: You may apply for the KwaZulu-Natal Scholarship if you live permanently or have received, or are currently receiving, a considerable part of your education in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN).
The KZN Selection Committee may make one direct recommendation (similar to those of the South Africa-at-Large Selection Committee) to the Rhodes Trust each year, and also acts as a Regional Selection Committee
c. Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia and eSwatini (formerly Swaziland) Scholarship (BLMNS): You may apply to the BLMNS selection committee if you fulfil the citizenship or legal residence requirement in one of the mentioned countries. The procedure is the same as that for the South Africa-at-Large Scholarships.
d. Named and partner schools: Former pupils of the four named schools and their partner schools, namely:i. Diocesan College (Bishops), St Cyprian’s School, St George’s Grammar School, Herschel Girls School, and LEAP 1 School (all in Rondebosch);
ii. Paul Roos Gymnasium, Rhenish Girls’ High School and Bloemhof Girls’ High School (all in Stellenbosch);iii. South African College School (SACS), Sans Souci Girls’ High School and Rustenburg High School for Girls (all in Newlands); andiv. St Andrew’s College and Diocesan School for Girls (DSG) (both in Grahamstown), may apply for their relevant school Scholarship, or for the South Africa-at-Large (including KZN) or BLMNS Scholarships.
NOTE – For South Africa applications, you may only apply to one region or one school.
Eligibility Criteria
a.Nationality/citizenship: You must be a citizen or legal permanent resident of South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia or eSwatini.
b.Education/residency: You must have resided for at least five years within the period of ten years immediately preceding your application in South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia or eSwatini.
c.Age: You must have reached your 19th and not have passed your 25th birthday on 01 October 2020, which means you must have been born after 30 September 1995 and on or before 01 October 2001.For medical students and medical doctors the age limit is extended by up to three years to allow them to complete internship and community service. This means applicants must have been born after 30 September 1992 and on or before 1 October, 2001.
d.Academic achievement: You must have completed (or will have completed by 30 June 2020) an undergraduate degree from a college or university (normally a Bachelor’s degree) to a sufficiently high standard to be admitted to postgraduate study at the University of Oxford. In this respect, please note carefully the requirements for your chosen course at Oxford.
e.Given the very intense international competition for places at the University of Oxford, candidates (with the exception of those studying in South Africa and Namibia and, for some countries, those studying medicine) will have a greater chance of successful admission to Oxford if they have an Honours degree (or have taken an Honours year) from a University outside of their country or if they have studied to Masters level within their country. Please contact your National Secretary if you require further advice.
Application Procedure
a.You can apply online from 01 June 2019 at http://www.rhodeshouse.ox.ac.uk/scholarships/apply via the scholarships tab.
b.You must submit your application online, with all supporting documents, by 23:59 SAST, 15 August 2019.
c.In preparation for making your application, you should read carefully the general information, particularly that held on the Scholarships tab, on the Rhodes website, the Conditions of Tenure for the Rhodes Scholarship, the information in this document and the graduate admissions pages of the University of Oxford: www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/graduate.
d.Shortlisted candidates will be invited to a social engagement (a dinner) and a final interview. You must be available to attend both, in person, as no accommodations can be made on date and time, or mode, of these events. Interviews will be held in the region to which you have applied , all interviews will have taken place by the end of Novermber.
The regional and school selection committees usually meet in October/November. The BLMNS selection committee will hold its interviews during November. The South Africa-at-Large selections are usually held on the last weekend of November. No candidate will be selected without an interview. Reasonable travel expenses to the nearest selection committee (and for those shortlisted by the KZN committee) for the purposes of interviews will be paid. The Trust will not be responsible for the cost of overseas travel. Accommodation within South Africa will, where necessary, be provided.
For More Information:
Visit the Official Webpage of the Rhodes Southern Africa Scholarship 2020