New scholarship for international postgraduates

Seventeen new scholarships for PhD students, worth a total of £1.5 million, will be created next year, the University of Warwick has announced.

Eligible students will receive the full amount of overseas tuition fees (worth up to £14,600 in 2010/11) as well as an additional maintenance award (worth £13,590 in 2010/11). The University claims that this three-year scholarship is to be “one of the UK’s most generous university scholarships for international PhD students.”

Irrespective of discipline or nationality, any overseas student applying for a PhD beginning October 2011 may apply for a scholarship. The scholarship will be combined with the already existing Warwick Postgraduate Research Scholarship applications. The University also offers other scholarships specifically for international postgraduates, such as the Banco de Mexico scholarship for awardees of the FIDERH programme and departmental-specific scholarships.

“These complement those awards (given to UK/EU students),” commented Peter Dunn, Head of Communications. More information about these scholarships can be found at the Postgraduate Open Day on 17th November.

Warwick’s current statistics show that there are around 800 or more UK/EU postgraduate research students at the University, and 700 or more overseas postgraduate research students. Overall 7,000 postgraduate students in total contribute to Warwick’s community and a thriving Postgraduate Society.

“These new awards both reflect and build on the already global nature of Warwick’s student population and our significant concentration of postgraduate students,” said Warwick’s Vice Chancellor, Professor Nigel Thrift. “Warwick has a strong and vibrant community of over 1,500 postgraduate research students from 93 different countries.” This unbiased reputation as an international university is one Warwick University is keen to promote. The University maintains a support network for international students through trips, social events and visiting and exchange opportunities.

However, “this isn’t a solution that solves access to courses and doesn’t make up for good bursary support,” said Sean Ruston, Warwick Students’ Union Education Officer. “It’s good for targeting support at the best and the brightest, but it doesn’t mitigate the problem. It’s only for a minority of students.”

“We need to look more carefully at the bursary system. These days you have to be reasonably well off (to do a postgraduate course), and it’s increasingly difficult in social sciences and humanities. Warwick is always reasonable, but there is room for improvement.”

One undergraduate agrees that more needs to be done to help students. “I think that more support should be given to UK students and undergraduates. I have to have parental support just to be here.“

“There is a lack of thought in the Browne Review given to Postgraduates and little thought given to bettering access (to Postgraduate courses)” added Ruston. “This is not a solution to the problem.”