Applications are now open for Rhodes Scholarships in Kenya

The Rhodes Scholarship is an international postgraduate scholarship which allows students to study at the University of Oxford. It was established in 1902, making it the first large-scale international scholarship program.

The Rhodes Scholarships are awarded to outstanding and versatile students and fully fund two to three years of study at the University of Oxford. The scholarship aspires to create “leaders for the future of the world” and are achievement-based awards open to students who have proven their high level intellectual and academic level who demonstrate exceptional character, leadership, achievements in extracurricular activities and a commitment to serving the public good.

Rhodes Scholars are able to work with world-class academics in their field as well as an international alumni network that includes Heads of State, Pulitzer Prize-winning authors, Nobel Prize winners and Olympians .

Each year two Kenyan Fellows are selected to join 98 other Rhodes Fellows from around the world at the University of Oxford. The two Kenyan Rhodes Scholars elected for 2019 who were selected last year are Claudia Kahindi and Martin Wachiye Wafula. They will start their studies at the University of Oxford in October 2019.

Claudia is a development assistant at Legal Outreach, a nonprofit educational organization in New York City. She graduated from Wesleyan University with a minor in African studies and with distinction from the College of Social Studies – a multidisciplinary major in history, government, economics and social theory / political philosophy. Claudia attended Wesleyan with help from the Kenya Scholar Athlete Project (KenSAP), which made her realize the importance of access programs. While at Wesleyan, she initiated an educational project in her hometown of Kilifi and served as; Senator of the Wesleyan Students’ Assembly, Residential Councilor, President of KenSAP and Member of the Board of the African Students Association and of the Board of the Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship. At Oxford, she hopes to pursue the Bachelor of Jurisprudence and connect her passion for social entrepreneurship with the law.

Martin is a happy and social young Kenyan. He has developed a great interest in emerging communication technologies and next generation networks. While at Oxford, he aspired to participate in cutting-edge research in these fields. He is currently IT Risk Insurance Associate at Pricewaterhouse Coopers Ltd Kenya and has previously taught graduate students in Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications at Kenya Multimedia University. Community is at the center of Martin’s heart. They carry out community outreach activities to empower young people in schools, especially the boy from Kajiado county – Ngong region in Kenya. This program aims to foster innovation, improve education and protect young boys against drug addiction and dropping out of school. Martin enjoys singing in choirs and reciting Swahili poems. He’s also a rotaractor and loves MATLAB.

If you are interested, click here.