SCHOLARSHIP

Things to Prepare before Applying a Scholarship

More scholarship information and tips http://www.cambosastra.org/

by Damry, University of Tadulako, Indonesia

Getting a scholarship for an overseas study is a competitive process. This is because many people like you want the scholarship, but not all can be awarded. The cholarship money is simply not enough to fund all at once. Also, the scholarship providers want to ensure that only the best, well prepared applicants are selected and so the money is spent rightly and efficiently to what it is intended for. So, you have to be a winner!

Lots of people have won scholarship. You hear this every time. But how have they done this good job? Are they luckier or more superior or intelligent than others? No, they are not! If you ask them about the winning secrets are, they may simply give you the following lists: things to prepare or consider before applying a scholarship.

Academic certificate and transcript
Soon after graduation, do not wait. Obtain your original academic certificate and transcript, and make some copies of them. You need to certify them and, remember, that people at university are some times going somewhere when you need their signatures. More importantly, you need to translate both your academic certificate and transcript. Check around, there maybe some people have done the same. This will ease the task. If not, they are yours anyway. When you are done, it is wise to get other people to see them. They may give you valuable inputs, even correcting misspelled course names. Again, you need signatures of dean and rector on the translated version of your academic certificate and record.

Research proposal
You need to decide earlier which study route you are going to undertake – course or research or both. If you prefer a course-based study, you do not need a proposal. But if you are going to do a research, you definitely need a research proposal.

Good research proposal require time and energy to construct. So it is always better to prepare it earlier. Basically, the proposal will not be much different to the one you have done previously in your research as part of your undergraduate study. This will include background, objective, problems or questions to answer, hypothesis, methodology, and references. These are the essences of a proposal.

When you are done with those basic requirements, ask suggestions from others. When the application is open, check if the scholarship provider requires a bit more to what you have prepared.

Letter from intended university and supervisors
Download application form from the university website and fill it before send it back to the university. The university will respond you and issue you with a letter of acceptance. You may indicate in the form that you will begin your study next year, waiting for a scholarship which you are now struggling for. Most likely they will issue you with a conditional acceptance. They will keep reissuing this until you succeed with your scholarship application.

While your are in the website, go to your targeted department or school to find your potential supervisor. Even, this needs to be done first before filling in a admission form. The reason you will not studying in this university unless you have got an academic staff willing to supervise you. So get their email address, and make contacts with them. In the first time, you just need to introduce yourself, mention your academic background and your research proposal, and ask if he/she is available to supervise you. If they are busy because there are many students already under their responsibilities, don’t panic. Ask him/her if they know people around there who are still able to take additional students.

The good with the letter from university and supervisor when you have them at hand is that you can attach them to your application form and present them to the interviewers. These letters will increase your chances of winning the scholarship because the interviewers will so impressed that you are better prepared and have taken more advanced steps compared to other candidates.

Family
For those who are married, this must not be overlooked. Not all scholarship providers allow you to bring family members (spouse and children) with you. The majority is yes, but you need to ensure whether additional funds for family members are available or not. If not, this means you have to be prepared to fund them yourself. Even if they do provide additional funds for family members, there are always cost to be funded using your own money. This is because the scholarship, usually, will only fund basic needs such living expenses, health insurance, health clearance before departure and visa. Other than these such as cost of transportation – international or domestic – are usually not covered and so funds for these have to be prepared.

More need to think if your spouse is working, especially if it is in a government institution or department. Will she be allowed to go with you or not? If, how are you going to overcome this. A discusion with spouse is needed here.

Work
If you are currently working, you need to check if your employer support you for a further study or not. If yes, it will allow you to go and may provide you with financial supports as well. Generally, government bodies support for human resource development of their employees and so this is not usually a problem for public servants. This is not the case for private enterprises, so many candidates working in these commercial bodies have had to maka a tough decision.

Health
Health status is another consideration for successfully obtaining a scholarship. Some people are fail or at least postponed to start their study because of health problems. So, if you intend to apply for a scholarship, keep practicing those healthy habits. Most scholarship providers will provide a health insurance to their awardees, but you need to make sure about what all this insurance covers. Does it cover dental and eyes-related health problems? If it not, then it is cheaper for example going to a dental practitioner or buying glasses here than there.

Driving license
It is advantageous to have a car there, not only to support your daily academic activities but also for your leisures. This is especially true if you are going there with your family members. But to do this, you need to have a valid license. Check with the scholarship or with experienced people whether a foreign license can be used in the intended country or not. This include different policies from one state to another. If students are allowed to use a foreign license, get one here or revalidate your old one. Obtaining a driving license there is expensive and time demanding.

So, these are things that you may prepare or consider before applying a scholarship. Remember that a good preparation equals to halfway through the whole process. Be prepared and win the scholarship!

Here are some scholarship information.

1. AIT Scholarships
2. ADB – Japan Scholarship
3. ASEAN Research Scholars (Singapore)
   
4. Asia Pacific Leadership Program
5. Asian youth fellowship (AYF), Japan
6. Asian Scholarship Foundation
7. Australian Development Scholarship (ADS)
   
8. Australian Leadership Awards (ALA)
9. Australian National University Scholarship
   
10. Australian Regional Development Scholarship
11. Australian Postgraduate Research Award
    
12. Boston College Presidential Scholars Program
13. British Council
14. BrokeScholar
15. Cambodian Mekong University Scholarship (Cambodia)
16. Cambodia-Peace scholarship program, Australia
17. Cambodian art & scholarship foundation
18. Carnegie Mellon University-AusAID Scholarship
19. Charles R. Westgate Scholarship in Engineering
20. Charles Sturt University Scholarship (Australia)
    
21. Chevening Scholarships
22. Chiang Mai University-Fellowships
23. CIDA Fellowships
24. College Board’s FUND FINDER
25. CollegeData
26. Collegenet Scholarships
27. CollegeView
28. Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowships Plan
29. DAAD – German Academic Exchange Service
30. David W. Miller Award for Student Journalists
31. Doctor of Philosophy Scholarship
32. e8 Masters and Post-Doctoral Program Scholarship
33. Educational exchange, USA

34. Endeavour Postgraduate Awards (Australia)

35. Eiffel Scholarship for Master and PhD
36. Fellows with Asia Research Institute
37. Fellowship for Visiting Scholars at Kyoto University
38. Fellowship Listing at Yale University
39. Fellowships at Chiang Mai University
40. Ford Foundation Fellowships
41. Fulbright Scholarships
42. Gilman International Scholarship Program
43. GRIPS, Japan
44. Guide to Grants, Fellowships, and Scholarships in International Forestry and Natural Resources
45. Humphrey fellowship, USA
46. Howard Hughes Medical Institute
47. International Development Scholarship
48. Japan Scholarship
49. Japan/World Bank Scholarship
50. JICE scholarships (JDS), Japan
51. KAAD Scholarships
52. Kampot Cement scholarship, Thailand
53. KAUST Discovery Scholarship
    
54. Malaysian International Scholarship for Masters and PhD
55. Malaysia Scholarship
    
56. Master in Public Administration Scholarship
57. Master in Public Policy Scholarship
58. Masters/PhD Scholarship at National University of Ireland
59. MBA scholarships at Queensland University of Technology
60. Messenger-Anderson Journalism Scholarship and Internship Program
61. Micron Scholarship (Singapore)
    
62. Monbukagakusho, Japan
63. Morehead State University scholarship
64. MTCP Scholarship for Masters and PhD
65. NACME, Inc.
66. NACM Scholarship in Finance
67. NAFSA Grants and Scholarships
68. National Security Education Program (NSEP)
69. Netherlands and AIT Scholarships
70. Netherlands Scholarships
71. New Mexico’s Honors Scholarship
72. New Zealand Scholarships
73. New Zealand development scholarships (NZAID)
74. NextStudent
75. Niagara University Honors Scholarship
76. Nightingale
77. Niseth Khmer Scholarship
    
78. Norway Scholarships
79. Norwegian MoFA Scholarships
80. OAS Scholarships
81. Peterson’s Award Database
82. PETRONAS Scholarship (Malaysia)
    
83. Ph.D at The Life Science Zurich Graduate School
84. PhD Research Scholarships, NUS
85. Postdoctoral Fellowships – Singapore
86. Presidential Scholarship
87. Ramapo Scholarship
88. Researchers at Walailak University
89. Researchers at Walailak University
90. ScholarshipExperts
91. Scholarships.com LLC
92. Sida Scholarships
93. Society for Software Quality, Grant-In-Aid Essay Contest
94. Society of Yeager Scholars
95. Southwestern Michigan Scholarship
96. Star Online Scholarship Program
    
97. The Abe Fellowship Program(0901)
98. The College of Medicine Scholarships Scholarship
99. The Dissertation Proposal Development Fellowship (DPDF)
100. The Dorothy Lemelson Scholarship
101. The ENS Lyon scholarships
102. The Netherlands Fellowship
103. The University of California Scholarship
104. The University of South Carolina Scholarship
105. THE-ICE Scholarship for Master, Bachelor and Diploma
106. Troy University Scholarship
107. Tylenol Scholarship
108. UCR Scholarship
109. Undergraduate Computational Science Award Program (UGCSA)
110. University of Bedfordshire scholarships for Cambodian students, UK
111. University of Detroit Mercy Scholarship
112. University of Melbourne Scholarship
113. Wake Forest University
114. Warner Pacific Scholarship
115. Warren L. Davis Scholarship
116. Young Muslim Scholarship
     

Scholarship Tips

1.How to Find Money for College Education

2.Scholarship Search Engine

3.Winning the Scholarship Award

4.Things to Prepare Before Applying a Scholarship

5.How to Write a Research Proposal-1

6.How to write a research proposal-2

7.How to write a structured essay

8.How to Write a Motivation Letter

9.How to Write a Cover Letter

10.How to write a Curriculum Vitae (CV)

11.Personal Statement Writing Tips

12.Writing Your Statement of Purpose for Grad School

13.Sample Statement of Purpose

14.Essay Writing Sample – Public Health Student Essay

15.Essay Writing Sample – The Engineering Student

16.Essay Writing Sample – The Environmental Studies Student

17.How To Write A Winning Scholarship Essay

18.How to Make The Most of Your Letter of Recommendation

19.Top Ten Tips for Winning Scholarship Applications

20.Top Ten Mistakes Made on Scholarship Applications

21.Scholarship Applications that Win!

22.Essential Elements for Scholarship Applications

23.To Be Good Candidate

24. Characteristics of a Successful Scholarship Holder

25.Top Ten Mistakes Made on Scholarship Applications

26.Top Ten Tips for Winning Scholarship Applications

27. Scholarship Applications that Win

28. 5 Essential Elements of a Great Scholarship Application

29. How to Write a Research Proposal