“More men and women with such intellectual and know-how specialised skills enhance our quality of life and provide the critical mass needed to continue to sustain Malta’s attractiveness as a destination for establishment and investment,” said Education Minister Louis Galea yesterday when he launched the Malta Government Scholarship Scheme officially with an initial sum of Lm200,000 allocated for 2006.
Dr Galea said the government is contributing tangibly towards research and development and increasing the participation rates at post-graduate level. The scheme complements other schemes such as the Chevening Scholarship offered by the British Council, the Commonwealth Scholarship, and the Youth Specialisation Studies Scheme which is a result of collaboration between the Government and APS bank.
Dr Galea said that in a knowledge-based economy, it is imperative to have a very strong base of Master’s and Doctorate programmes researching innovative and creative hypothesis that ultimately bring intellectual and economic growth and society.
“High quality postgraduate education is of central importance to a number of objectives: the increase of research and development activity in Malta; development of new academics in fields of study and research; a more highly skilled workforce; and the impact and social benefit of ground-breaking discoveries,” Dr Galea said.
Minister Galea said that Malta had made significant progress in stepping up participation rates in the post-secondary and tertiary sectors. Over the last decade there has been an overall expansion in the higher education sector with figures almost doubling from 10,648 in 1994 to 19,057 in 2004. The percentage of people aged 25 and over and who were participating in higher education had risen from 3.9 per cent in 2004 to 5.3 per cent in 2005. Persons aged 20-24 who had at least post-secondary education stood at 56 per cent in 2005 up from 44.9 per cent in 2002. This shows that the education system is delivering and more people are taking up higher levels of education.
The key objectives of this scholarship scheme are:
To encourage and promote more student participation in higher levels of academic research, both locally and internationally.
To assist exceptional students to pursue further levels of academic research
To contribute towards research in identified areas requiring expertise.
To increase the capacity and level of research and development activity at the University of Malta and in Malta generally.
The scheme aims to create the same incentives for the UoM as those available for fee based universities in other countries to attract the best students.
The ministry will set up a Malta Scholarship Selection Board (MGSSB) to administer and operate the process of selection.
The distribution of the funds allocated for this year’s scholarships has been decided as follows:
25% (Lm60,000) allocated for Masters degrees, that is, approximately 15-20 students will be sponsored (between Lm3,000 to Lm5,000 for each award depending on University applied for).
75% (Lm140,000) allocated for Doctoral programmes. Approximately 8 to 10 students will be sponsored (approximately Lm15,000 per award over an average three year duration).
Eligibility
In order to apply for the Malta Government Scholarship Scheme, candidates should:
Be Maltese citizens or hold citizenship for Countries identified as eligible from time to time;
Hold, by application deadline, a first degree of upper second class standard, or higher qualification;
Be available, by 1st October of the same year of deadline, to commence their academic studies;
Types of Scholarships
The Malta Government Scholarship Scheme will support 12-36 months full-time Masters or a Doctoral postgraduate qualification.
Selection Criteria
Applications are considered according to the following selection criteria:
Academic merit of the candidate.
The quality of the proposal.
Local availability of courses.
The likely impact of the work on the development of Malta.
Eligible candidates are invited to submit their application, including CV, transcripts, and the nature and objectives of the proposal for the relative scholarship.
Applications may be withdrawn, as from 6 July, from: The Policy Development and Project Implementation Directorate,
Ministry of Education, Youth and Employment,
Floriana.
Tel: 2598 2304
Or online from: www.education.gov.mt/mgss.htm
The closing date for application is Friday 4 August at noon.