UK Government marks 30 years of international scholarships
Over 500 past and present Chevening Scholars representing 118 countries marked 30 years of the UK’s most prestigious scholarship programme.
On 9 July over 500 past and present Chevening Scholars representing 118 countries gathered at Chevening House to mark 30 years of the UK’s most prestigious scholarship programme and to invite the brightest graduates around the world to apply.
The event was hosted by Minister of State in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Hugo Swire.
The Chevening Scholarships Programme finances graduates from around the world with potential to be influential leaders and decision makers to study postgraduate courses at British universities.
The Alumni attending the 30th anniversary event included some of the most prominent people from the programme’s history.
Minister of State Hugo Swire said:
This event shows how successful the Chevening Scholarships programme has been in building relationships for the UK with decision makers in businesses and Governments all around the world.
Following the tripling of scholarships set out by the Chancellor in his Budget, I hope this event will encourage the brightest graduates around the world to apply to study in the UK so we can continue to build mutually beneficial and long-lasting relationships.
A number of Hong Kong Chevening scholars also attended the event. Au-Yeung Chi Fei, a current scholar from Hong Kong studying at London School of Economics and Political Science said:
Studying in London with classmates from over 20 nationalities has taught me how policies and decisions are dealt with using different approaches, which very much depend on one’s culture and experiences. Being part of the Chevening family has provided me with the opportunity to meet and share experiences with Chevening scholars from different backgrounds. I believe this year’s experience in the UK will offer me the tools and inspiration to be a person with greater responsibility and have a successful career in the future.
There are currently nine Hong Kong Chevening scholars in the UK finishing their Master’s courses in a range of subjects from international development to finance at universities in London, Warwick, Oxford, Cambridge and in September there will be 10 new students moving to the UK to commence their studies including Cambridge University, King’s College London, Aston University and the London School of Economics.
The event included an exhibition of the GREAT campaign to promote Britain as one of the best countries in the world to visit, study and do business with to influential decision makers from around the world.
Further information
Chevening Scholarships are the UK government’s global scholarship programme, funded by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and partner organisations. The Scholarships are awarded to outstanding graduates with the potential to be leaders to pursue one-year Master’s degrees in any subject and at any of the UK’s leading universities.
Chevening Scholarships operate in 118 countries worldwide, and this year - the 30th anniversary of the programme - the Scholarships will support over 600 individuals.
The Scholarships are an important element in Britain’s public diplomacy effort and bring young professionals, who have already displayed outstanding leadership talents, to study in the UK. The objective of the Chevening programme is to support foreign policy priorities and achieve FCO objectives by creating lasting positive relationships with future leaders, influencers and decision-makers.
The Chancellor announced in Budget this year that the number of scholarships will triple and more than 1500 will be awarded each year from 2015.
Applications for the 2015/16 programme will open on 1 August 2014 at www.chevening.org/hongkong