Obtaining funding or acceptance of a grant has always been an obstacle for many to complete their studies abroad. In this article, I will highlight some points that I think are important for the scholarship, and here I do not claim that I know the magic formula for obtaining admission to these scholarships, but rather offer my point of view and what I have learned from my personal experience.
1- What jurisdiction do you want and why?
This is one of the important points to be asked when applying for the grant. Therefore, before starting to apply for the scholarship, you must completely determine what specialty you want, and form a good understanding of it with a clear vision and vision for your career after obtaining a certificate in this specialty. It is not enough to just decide that you want to complete your studies. Rather, you must define your direction and explain the importance of your specialty and its real benefit in supporting and developing your country. What is important for grant management is to see someone who has a passion for the specialty he intends to study while being aware of the requirements of this specialty and how to benefit from it through a clear future plan.
2- Work experience
Scholarships require two years of work experience, which many believe is difficult. But it is not so, these scholarships take into account all work, whether it is full or part-time work and even voluntary work, and if the student works during his university studies, and does volunteer work and certain activities, these are all counted among the years of experience, so you find that a student is still in his year The last academic but possesses the required work experience.
It is preferable that the student applying for the scholarship possesses practical experience in the same field in which he wishes to specialize, but volunteer work and experience in other fields also have importance in assessing the student.
When placing your work experience in applying for a scholarship, do not forget even the smallest work that you have done, which you may feel is not important, what matters is the results and lessons that you have learned from these experiences, and not only the amount of time spent in this or that work.
3- Leadership and communication skills
It is also among the things that are asked about in the application for the grant, they are looking for people who are able to make a real impact and change in their societies. Anyone can claim to possess these skills, but what proves this is that they are supported by examples of work experience, volunteering or even study, and as I mentioned earlier, small details can show great skills so do not neglect them.
4- Language
Language proficiency is certainly important and is among the conditions for grants and university admission. In the Chevening and Saeed Foundation Scholarships, you can apply for the scholarship before obtaining an IELTS certificate provided that it is granted before a certain date that is determined by the scholarship.
There are many articles on how to obtain an IELTS certificate and how to master the English language, but what I will say here is that the most important step for learning the language is to start with it, and then everything comes on its own.
5- The interviews
Upon success in the first stage of applying for the scholarship (which is the application writing stage), successful students are invited to conduct an interview. The interview is with a three-person committee. In which the question about the contents of the application is asked in addition to specific questions whose purpose is to know the personality of the student and his reactions more clearly, all the points mentioned above are also important in the interview stage just as important as when writing the application; In order for the student to demonstrate his competence and full understanding of his future project, and to demonstrate that he deserves this scholarship.
Self-confidence is important in the interview, of course, but increased confidence is not desirable. It is important to listen carefully to the questions and understand them before answering, and there is no objection to asking the committee when a question is not understood.
One of the things that leaves a good impression at the interview is the questions that the student asks at the end of the interview, but certainly these questions should not be general or can be answered from the grant site or by researching on the Internet, the questions show the student's interest in the grant and his seriousness in benefiting from it, Think about these questions and plan ahead in advance as you prepare for the interview.
Author: Steav