Studying abroad can be financially challenging for many meritorious students who often opt out due to the expensive course fee, visa charges, accommodation and food expenses. Therefore, scholarships help many to pursue their dreams.
News18 ‘Scholarship Guide’ brings the best and most prestigious grants for Indian students to study abroad, with most of them covering flight tickets, accommodation and course fee; and some also providing stipend.
From film-making to painting, music and writing – there are many forms of arts and a wide array of scholarships and courses being offered to support students to pursue higher education the related fields. US, UK and Europe are among top choices for arts and related fields.
While a majority of Indian students prefer STEM and related fields, many also go for arts and humanities. Considered “non-lucrative” options, arts and humanities can be rewarding monetarily as well as intellectually.
Akshay Chaturvedi, Founder & CEO, Leverage Edu – a study abroad consultancy firm advised students to look for the employment history of alumni before applying in Arts and Humanities colleges. “Do those careers align with your future aspirations? Do you think the pay scale is enough for you to consider the university given the tuition fee involved? It is important to look at the curriculum and faculty involved in teaching too.”
Once a student has decided on the course and college, they need to make sure they are the right fit to get themselves the best scholarships and grants. “The most important thing that gets a student a scholarship in liberal arts is their portfolio. You don’t always need years of experience for a great portfolio. Universities look for intent to excel in the field and your work on your portfolio. Drafting a compelling statement of purpose goes a long way,” said Chaturvedi.
If you are among one of the many who are looking for a grant to support your dream project or higher education, News18 brings best scholarships in arts, humanities, and trade streams.
Centre for Competitive Creative Design and Design Thinking Excellence Scholarships
The creativity or creative thinking is at the core of any profession. UK’s Cranfield University offers a MDes course in Design Thinking. Cranfield Centre for Design Engineering offers scholarships worth £11,910, which covers full tuition fee for locals and 50% for international students. The scholarship is highly competitive and only two scholarships are granted in a year.
Who can apply: Candidates who have secured a seat at Cranfield University’s Master’s in Design Thinking can apply for the scholarship.
Where to apply: https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/funding/funding-opportunities/centre-for-design-engineering-and-design-thinking-excellence-scholarships#Whocanapply
Selection Prodedure: Candidates will be selected based on their academic performance and their work experience record. According to the varsity, applicants also need to be effective communicators.
Gucci Changemakers Scholarship
Fashion giant Gucci is offering scholarships for students who wish to study undergraduate courses in fashion, design, or related creative industries but do not have finances to do so. Under the scholarship, Gucci offers up to $1 million in grants annually. The award will be for up to $20,000 for one year for individual students.
Who can apply: Students who are pursuing a four-year bachelor’s degree or two-year community college programmes within North America can apply for the course. Applicants living or studying one of the 12 Gucci Changemakers cities, namely, Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Toronto, and Washington DC can apply. Students attending or enrolled in Historically Black College and University (HBCU) can also apply.
Where to apply: https://app.getacceptd.com/guccichangemakers
Selection Procedure: Candidates will have to get through a multiple-level admission process including submission of a 300-word essay on how they will use their talent to design a “future untold”, submitting a creative portfolio, and sending a video about themselves sharing their dreams, future plans and why they need the scholarship. Students also need to secure an admission in US-based universities as well as be in need of finances to fund education. Thus, they need to meet the admission requirement and might be asked to submit their financial documents too.
Chase AHRC Studentship
The Consortium for the Humanities and the Arts South-East England (CHASE) is offering studentship or scholarship for students who wish to pursue PhD in arts and humanities. As many as 56 scholarships are offered in a year. The studentship will cover the tuition fee and pay an additional stipend to cover living expense.
Who can apply: Candidates who have a graduate degree and want to pursue doctoral research can apply for the scholarship. Students need to secure an admission in one of the partnered universities in courses related to arts stream.
Where to apply: https://www.chase.ac.uk/chase-studentships
Selection Procedure: Students need to secure an admission based on the university criteria. As part of their application, students need to submit their research proposal, preparedness for research, equality diversity and inclusion monitoring form. Students also need to submit references and details of their supervisors. If interested in studentship, they will have to submit a separate statement for Stuart Hall Foundation studentship.
Andrew Grant PG Scholarships
Named after international businessman, liberal politician, landowner and an alumnus of the University of Edinburgh, Andre Grant Postgraduate scholarship offers grants worth of GBP 10,500 each to as many as 10 students each year.
Who can apply: Students who have secured admission in the Edinburgh College of Art (ECA) can apply for the course. Students need to have cleared their undergraduate degree in the UK first class or 2:1 honours degree or equivalent. Students who have secured admission in Master of Architecture (March) applicants and MPhil are not eligible.
Where to apply: https://www.ed.ac.uk/student-funding/postgraduate/uk-eu/humanities/edinburgh-college-of-art/andrew-grant
Selection Procedure: Candidates need to show ‘exceptional’ academic performance. They will also be assessed on the basis of their personal statement, evidence of preparedness for study and demonstration of citizenship and community engagement.
Lamar Dodd School of Art scholarships
Offered by the University of Georgia, the Lamar Dodd School of Art scholarships covers tuition fee for both undergraduate and postgraduates. Students who are working on special projects can also apply for the grant.
Who can apply: Students need an admission in a full-time course. Those applying for a need-based scholarship need to register at the office of student financial aid. There are different scholarships under the banner and students need to study requirements based on subjects and scholarships.
Where to apply: https://art.uga.edu/academics/student-resources/scholarships
Selection Procedure: Students will be selected based on both merit and need. This is a competitive scholarship; thus, students can apply for more than one scholarship.
Other Major Grants Across Top Destinations
“The US has the highest return over investment (ROI) when it comes to liberal arts degrees but of course there is a slightly higher cost involved because of the longer duration of the programme. That is followed by countries such as Canada, the UK and then Australia. There are also other European countries that also offer great programme, but they are few in numbers and don’t always guarantee a great ROI,” said Akshay Chaturvedi, Founder & CEO, Leverage Edu – a study abroad consultancy firm.
Amongst the famous scholarships in the stream for the UK aspirants is the ECA Taught Masters Scholarships offered by the University of Edinburgh. This is an umbrella scholarships covering a large number of grants, including, but not limited, to BAFTA UK scholarship, Bucher-Fraser Scholarships, ECA PhD Scholarships, Frederick Niecks Essay Prize among many others.
Several awards accepted in the wide range of countries and colleges include International Scholars in Liberal Arts Program (ISLA), Liberal Arts Excellence Award, Global Humanities and Arts Scholarship.
America still remains top choice of students even for humanities and arts too. In the stream, Belin Arts Scholarships for photography and sculpture artists, Cynthia and Alan Baran Fine Arts and Musical Scholarship Fund Naomi Winston Scholarship, Worldstudio AIGA scholarship, Krylon Clear Choice Arts scholarship are among top choices.
Fine arts and music scholarships offered by the University of Melbourne; Agnes Robertson Undergraduate Entry Scholarship is also a highly renowned scholarship in the field. Tess Hill and Bill Hawtin Fine Arts Scholarship by Monash University, Arts, fashion and textile scholarship offered by RMIT, Art and design scholarship by University of New South Wales are among top choices in Australia.
Though famous scholarships including Fulbright, Erasmus Mundus, DAAD are country-specific, highly competitive grants are also eligible for students pursuing liberal arts.
If students want to look for country-specific competitive scholarships, they can try for UK-based scholarships, US-based top grants, best options in Canada, famous grants in Australia, emerging study destinations for Indian students.
