Skoll MBA Scholarships on Social Entrepreneurship for International Students

Brief description:

The Skoll MBA Scholarship is a competitive scholarship for incoming MBA students who pursue entrepreneurial solutions for urgent social and environmental challenges. The Scholarship provides funding and exclusive opportunities to meet with world-renowned entrepreneurs, thought-leaders and investors.

The Skollarship provides full tuition to social entrepreneurs who have set up or been working in social enterprises, and who wish to improve their knowledge of market-oriented practices so they can be more effective in their subsequent social change pursuits.

The Scholarship is given in recognition that the MBA may represent a significant financial burden, particularly for those who have chosen to work in social ventures rather than the commercial or public sectors.

Host Institution(s):

Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship, Said Business School at University of Oxford, UK.

Field of study:

Full-time Masters in Business Administration (MBA) on Social Entrepreneurship

Number of Awards:

The Skoll Centre offers five MBA scholarships every year.

Target group:

International students

Scholarship value/inclusions:

The Scholarship is intended to provide college and course fees of £31,200. Additional funds are provided as a contribution towards living expenses.

NOTE on waiving the admission fee:

The Skoll Centre wants to provide educational opportunities to a diverse range of social entrepreneurs, including those from developing or marginalized communities, or those who are putting their time into a social venture at significant personal cost.

If you are unsalaried or have an income which may preclude you from applying to study on the MBA programme because you cannot afford the admissions fee, we reserve the right to waive your fee. This is done on a discretionary basis and is non-negotiable.

If you would like to apply for a waiver, you should be confident you meet the requirements for the MBA and the Skoll Scholarship, then send us your CV and a covering letter explaining your financial circumstances. The admission fee is waived only if you have been offered scholarship.

Eligibility:

To be considered, you need to meet the following criteria:

1. Candidates must have started or worked in a social venture for 12 months or longer.

2. Candidates must demonstrate evidence of personal qualities strongly resonating with social entrepreneurship leadership, and illustrate how these have influenced their career path thus far. These qualities include:

• • •  Single-mindedness and persistence in pursuit of a social benefit goal, including a willingness to face failure and start again
  • •  A bias towards action rather than reflection
  • •  A tendency to explore the environment for opportunities and resources
  • •  A willingness to take personal, and sometimes financial, risks
  • •  A habit of developing a network and subtly or unsubtly exploiting its members.

3. Candidates must demonstrate how a business education can contribute to the wider development of the community they work with in the social entrepreneurship movement. They will need to illustrate why a business degree at this stage of their career trajectory can help them amplify their impact.

4. Candidates must demonstrate some evidence of their need for the scholarship.  This may be exhibited, for example, in previous work experiences or personal backgrounds which make self-funding the MBA a significant financial burden.

Application instructions:

To be considered for a Skoll MBA Scholarship, state your interest in the “Scholarships” section of the MBA application form. Do this by checking the box next to “Skoll”.

When your MBA application is submitted, the MBA admissions team will first assess your application to ensure that you meet the academic requirements sought by the school. If you are accepted onto the programme, the Skoll Centre will send you an essay question that needs to be completed. Please do not request the Skoll scholarship essay from the admission team – you will receive it immediately following your acceptance to the MBA programme.

The Skoll Centre will then consider your candidacy for the scholarship. If they are interested in pursuing your candidacy further, they will request a phone interview.  A final decision will be made shortly thereafter.

The scholarships are awarded on a rolling basis however,  candidates are encourage to apply as early as possible, specifically in Stage 1 (around October) and Stage 2 (around January).  The 2010-2011 Skoll Scholarship application is now open until 02 April 2010.

It is important to visit the official website (link found below) for detailed information on how to apply for this scholarship.

Contact information:

Please see the frequently asked questions first before contacting the School for enquiries.

MBA Office
Saïd Business School
Park End Street
Oxford
OX1 1HP
UK
Telephone: +44 (0)1865 278804
Fax: +44 (0)1865 288831
Contact us: Enquiry form

Website:

Official Scholarship Website:  http://www.sbs.ox.ac.uk/centres/skoll/scholars/Pages/scholarship.aspx