Focused on creating opportunities for Indian women to pursue global credentials in STEM. Globally partnering with 21 UK universities to offer women from over 20 countries to study a master’s degree or fellowship in the UK

British Council announced the third cohort of British Council Scholarships for Women in STEM. Twenty-six scholarships and fellowships are reserved for women STEM scholars from India and other South Asian countries, awarded on a merit basis with no country-specific cap. These are across 6 UK higher education institutions - Coventry University, the University of Bath, the University of Manchester, the University of Southampton, Imperial College London, and The University of Edinburgh. The scholarships will help enhance careers in STEM for the selected women scholars and enable them to promote research and innovation in their home country through their exposure to the expertise in the UK’s renowned STEM fields, stated a press release issued by Archetype on behalf of the British Council.

Selected scholars from India will be able to obtain a master’s degree or an early academic fellowship at a UK university, and the scholarship will cover tuition fees, stipend, travel costs, visa, health coverage fees, special support for mothers, and English language support. The scholarships will also provide the scholars a long-lasting platform to connect with the UK through active engagement in the alumni network and inspire the next generation of women in STEM.

Across the 2021/22 global cohorts of 115 scholars enrolled in their chosen course in the autumn session of 2021. 21 Indian women received the scholarship in 2022-23 and are currently studying in the UK. With these scholarships, British Council continues to support women looking to acquire global credentials in STEM (science, technology, engineering, or math) at a university in the UK.

Rittika Chanda Parruck, Director of Education, India, British Council, said, “At British Council, we believe that scientific and technological domains stand to gain a lot more through increasing accessibility of women. These scholarships will bring talented women’s fantastic creativity, innovation, and unique perspective to these domains making them richer and more productive. We are excited to enable more women to embark on their journey towards a career in STEM fields by sharing access to the UK’s renowned research pedagogy, state-of-the-art facilities, and cutting-edge technology, that can transform their learning and expand their horizon of opportunities."

As part of the programme, Indian women STEM scholars can apply for master’s courses and early academic fellowships across 21 UK universities in courses like Computer Science, Data Science, Biotechnology, Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Medicine, Public Health, Machine Learning, Robotics, Information Technology, Renewable Energy & Energy Management and many more.

The scholarship is also open to women with dependents to apply, with extra support. The deadline for application differs according to the university but is between March and May this year. Students are encouraged to check individual university deadlines. For more details about the eligibility criteria for the scholarship, or other information including a full list of participating UK universities, available courses, and university-specific deadlines, please visit www.britishcouncil.org/study-work-abroad/in-uk/scholarship-women-stem, added the release.