Be Gone, Imposter Syndrome! You Are Eligible for Fully-funded Scholarships

As if deciding on a field to pursue for further studies isn’t hard enough, climbing over this fence is still far from the end of our struggles. After, we have to consider study abroad locations and universities to apply to, and the most burdensome of all with no enthusiasm involved, COST. Cost of the program, cost-of-living, cost of travelling, and the list goes on. Sure, there are merit-based scholarships offered by some universities, but these only cover parts of the tuition fee, not all of it; forget living expenses and accommodation rent being covered. Not to mention, not all of us have stellar grades and academic performances.

Yes, back to reality.

Odds are that you are not a genius nor the wealthiest individual, but instead you have a genuine desire for betterment. Thankfully, others sympathetic to the plight of our kind have come together to form fully-funded scholarship programs. These serve to reward not only the academically-inclined, but also those with a vision for change, leadership or social improvement.

Being in a similar boat, I’ve put together a list of fully-funded scholarships that you can apply to, regardless of your grade point average. These programs are not solely merit-based, so applicants who show promise of embodying the goal of the program have a high chance of being accepted regardless of a non-competitive grade.

At the end of the day, an applicant must consider their overall portfolio. If your CGPA doesn’t sway, then what about your CV? Volunteer work, entrepreneurial activities, all of these have a great impact on an applicant’s chances when applying to these scholarships listed below.

FULLY-FUNDED SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAMS FOR THE STRUGGLING AND CAPABLE

1. Fulbright Foreign Student Scholarship
2. Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters Scholarship
3. Commonwealth Scholarship
4. Chevening Scholarship

FOR A FULBRIGHT FOREIGN SCHOLARSHIP, HELP YOUR SOCIETY

The Fulbright foreign exchange program allows individuals wanting to pursue a graduate degree or PhD to study or carry out research work in the US. Individuals from over 160 countries can participate in this program, and an estimated 4,000 applicants are selected annually.

The main focus during the screening process for Fulbright scholarships is on an applicant's Personal Statement and objectives. It is not a wholly merit-based scholarship, so there is hope for you yet. All other things being equal, preference will be given to those individuals who have been or intend to be beneficial to their society. Therefore, marketing your extracurricular activities and social work in the right way will help tons. The following criteria are focused on:

• Personal statement/motivation and objectives
• Letters of recommendation from the right mentors
• GRE score above 300

FOR AN ERASMUS MUNDUS JOINT MASTERS SCHOLARSHIP, SET YOURSELF APART

The Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters program offers participants the opportunity to complete their graduate level education by studying at two different universities in two different countries. This program funds its students entirely, along with the provision of a stipends and aid every step of the way. It is a competitive program, much like the rest. Merit is considered but also a country-wise quota needs to be met.

The criteria considered while selecting participants include:

• Academic merit and potential
• Language skills, polylingualism
• Quality of bachelor’s education
• Motivation letter
• Recommendation Letters
• CV

FOR A COMMONWEALTH SPLIT-SITE SCHOLARSHIP, PURSUE ALTRUISM

The Commonwealth Split-Site Scholarship is a need and merit-based scholarship program aimed at small & middle-income countries to fund their citizens so that they may receive quality education from the UK. Countries like Sri Lanka, India and Pakistan (to name a few) fall under this category as well. This scholarship program is only for PhD applicants for now.

Young professionals are required to apply for Fellowships with partnered universities. Once they are admitted into a program, then they may apply for the Commonwealth scholarship. From a pool of applicants, those that show the most promise in bringing about productive change in their society along with good merit are selected, similar to the Fulbright scholarship program.

Students must apply while affiliated with their current university with the aid of a supervisor from said university and find a prospective supervisor at a partnered UK university.

FOR A CHEVENING SCHOLARSHIP, BE INNOVATIVE

Chevening international scholarships are the initiative of the UK government. It is funded by a group of institutions and partnered organizations that allow foreign visionaries to pursue masters in the UK for a full year. Before applying for this scholarship, applicants are first meant to obtain an unconditional admission letter from at least one of the many partnered universities.

To obtain the scholarship, the basic requirements include:

• 2 years of work experience
• Receive an unconditional offer for at least one university partnered with Chevening

What is considered primarily for this scholarship is whether or not the applicant is an emerging leader in the field of their interest. That being said if you do not have experience in the field of your interest either by previous education or experience, then it could be difficult to obtain the scholarship for your chosen Master’s program. The preferred applicants are those that display leadership qualities and innovative ideas. 

The scholarship programs I’ve mentioned above take care of just about every one of your studies abroad concerns like tuition fee costs, living expenses and even accommodation; a complete stress-reliever for anyone who is setting foot on foreign lands.

The scholarship programs above will not solely look at your CGPA, they are more interested in whether or not an applicant's experiences, abilities and motivations align with the foundations of their program. To achieve this, heavy work on an individual's application development is required. So, shoo away the Imposter syndrome that hits you every time you come across the mere mention of fully-funded scholarships, and try applying!

If you need guidance and help, Edvise Hub provides free consultations, along with paid services of application-building and submission, SoP writing, CV building and much more, so that you have the best possible chance of receiving one of these scholarships.