ISLAMABAD: The Higher Education Commission (HEC) on Thursday arranged a ceremony here to bid farewell to five Pakistani scholars selected for HEC-Cambridge Commonwealth Trust (CCT) scholarships.
The successful scholars who have been awarded this prestigious MS leading to PhD scholarship in the disciplines of Bio Chemistry, Development Economics, Engineering and Education are Mayida Azhar, Shan Aman Rana, Zaib Ali, Ishrat Rehman and Arooj Shafiq. They will join the University of Cambridge in the session starting in October.
The United Kingdom High Commissioner to Pakistan Adam Thomson was chief guest in the ceremony.
Addressing the participants, Thomson appreciated the efforts of the HEC for changing the overall scenario of higher education in the country. “I must say this is an institution which is making a real difference” he added.
Thomson said, “I am particularly proud of the level of cooperation between the HEC and the UK, primarily through the British Council, and am very aware of the HEC’s commitment to knowledge exchange at an international level”.
“University to university links are an important part of the exchange of ideas. Thus today it is a great pleasure to mark the further strengthening of an enduring intellectual and academic relationship between Pakistan and a UK university,” he added.
“I hope that this partnership between the HEC and the Cambridge Overseas Trust will be sustained for many years to come, giving many of Pakistan’s best and brightest, irrespective of their economic background, the chance to excel at the highest international level”, the High Commissioner added.
Congratulating the students, Acting Executive Director HEC, Dr. Riaz Hussain Qureshi, on the occasion, said that although the number of scholarships is limited but the expected impact is very large.
He said that the United Kingdom has been a great partner in the development of higher education in Pakistan and because of social and historical relationships among the people of the two countries, most Pakistanis prefer to go to UK for higher studies.
Addressing the selected scholars, he said, “You are going to the top most University of the world for attaining the highest qualifications but this is not enough. Getting this degree is only an important milestone in your life and your real contribution will start after this achievement.” A chaired the session.
In a recorded message, Chairperson HEC, Dr. Javaid R. Laghari appreciated the cooperation of CCT for materializing these scholarships.
He said that the students, who are outstanding in their academic fields, are chosen for these scholarships. He hoped that the selected scholars will enrich country’s research upon their return.
Mr. Michael O ‘Sullivan, Director CCT was also present on the occasion.A Memorandum of Understanding has been signed between HEC and CCT for the establishment of these scholarships.
Under the programme, five outstanding Pakistani scholars will be chosen every year to study at the prestigious University.
The scholarship is applicable in all areas of knowledge except those for which clinical rate fees are charged.
According to the MoU, HEC will pay 5000 GBP towards the tuition fee plus its standard stipend 9000 GBP per annum.
CCT will pay the remainder of tuition fee, the College Fee and the remainder of the annual stipend to bring that up to CCT’s annual amount. Applicants are required to secure admission letter by themselves.
CCT was founded in 1982 by the University of Cambridge as a charity to support international students from member countries of the Commonwealth who wish to study at the University of Cambridge. The Trust offered support to 247 students from 23 countries to start their studies at Cambridge in October 2010.
There are currently 590 students in residence in Cambridge who receive support from the Trust.
It is pertinent to mention here that currently 158 HEC scholars are studying in various universities of UK on different scholarship programmes.