FirstRand International Postgraduate Scholarships 2019

ABOUT THE COMPANY – FIRSTRAND

FirstRand Limited was formed in 1998 as a South African financial services provider, whose products include lending, investments, asset management, insurance and transactional services. Licensed by the South African Reserve Bank (SARB), and headquartered in Johannesburg, FirstRand currently employs over 40 000 staff members.

The FirstRand group was established by a merger between Anglo American Corporation of South Africa Limited (Anglo American plc) and RMB Holdings.

ABOUT THE SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAMMES

FirstRand will be offering 5 different scholarship awards for international Postgraduate studies, including:
1) FirstRand Laurie Dippenaar Scholarship:

applicable for any field of study towards a postgraduate qualification
studies must be completed outside of South Africa at an international university of your choice
the scholarship is valued at R825 000
students must return to South Africa for a minimum of 5 years after completing their studies

2) FirstRand Foundation Scholarship:

applicable for any field of study towards a postgraduate qualification
studies must be completed outside of South Africa at an international university of your choice
the scholarship is valued at R825 000
students must return to South Africa for a minimum of 5 years after completing their studies

3) FirstRand FNB Fund Education Scholarship:

applicable for a postgraduate qualification in Education
studies must be completed outside of South Africa at an international university of your choice
the scholarship is valued at R825 000
students must return to South Africa for a minimum of 5 years after completing their studies

4) FirstRand African Studies Centre at the University of Oxford:

applicable for a Masters degree at the African Studies Centre at the University of Oxford
will be awarded to academically deserving student
full funding will be awarded to 1 student each year
students will be housed at Wadham College
partnership will run for 3 years

5) FirstRand FNB Fund Education Scholarship at the University of Oxford:

applicable for a Masters degree at the Department of Education at the University of Oxford
will be awarded to academically deserving student
full funding will be awarded to 1 student each year
students will be housed at Wadham College
partnership will run for 4 years

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

Applicants must satisfy the following minimum entry criteria before applying (please note that failure to satisfy all the requirements will lead to your application not being considered):

South African citizen
Good academic record
Intend on studying towards a postgraduate degree
Have NOT currently or previously studied outside of South Africa
*Preference will be given to students under 35 years of age (for all scholarships except the University of Oxford scholarships)
FirstRand African Studies Centre at the University of Oxford: students must be accepted to study an MSc in African Studies at the University of Oxford (http://www.africanstudies.ox.ac.uk/msc-african-studies)
FirstRand FNB Fund Education Scholarship at the University of Oxford: students must be accepted to study a Masters in Education at the University of Oxford (https://www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/graduate/courses/social-sciences/education?wssl=1)

Students must also possess the following qualities:

Strong leadership skills
Strong personal character
Involvement in the community
Ability to make a difference in your field of study

HOW TO APPLY FOR THE SCHOLARSHIP

Applications must be done online at: https://bursaries.firstrand.co.za/

Before you can apply, you will need to Register an Account (https://bursaries.firstrand.co.za/Account/Register) and then Login (https://bursaries.firstrand.co.za/Account/Login) and proceed with your application.

Students should also download and read the FirstRand International Postgraduate Scholarships FAQ(.pdf)

Submit clear copies of the following supporting documentation along with your completed application form (the submission of these documents is compulsory – if any items are missing, your application be disregarded):

Copy of your ID document
Photo of face
Copy of your Matric results
Minimum of 2 references (people whom you have worked under in an academic setting or in another area of interest). Confidential references can be emailed from the referee to: firstrandpgscholarship@firstrand.co.za and clearly marked with your name (or can accompany your application form).
A personal statement explaining why you deserve to be awarded this scholarship (max. 1 000 words)

CLOSING DATE

21 February 2019.
(Applications submitted after this date will not be accepted – please apply before the closing date to ensure your application is considered.)