Brief introduction to OSI/Chevening/FCO University of Essex Scholarship Program
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GUIDANCE NOTES FOR APPLICANTS

Open Society Institute / Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Chevening / University of Essex Scholarships in Human Rights 2004/2005

Guidance Notes for Applicants

Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.

1. What does the programme offer?
The scholarships aim to provide opportunities for independent postgraduate study in the United Kingdom for students who are engaged in or intending to pursue postgraduate work in their own country and who have demonstrated both academic excellence and the potential to become leaders, decision-makers and opinion formers in their own country. Subject to satisfactory progress, the scholarships lead to the award of a Masters.

The scholarships will enable suitably qualified students to pursue taught postgraduate programmes within the Human Rights Centre at the University of Essex. The two programmes offered are the MA in the Theory and Practice of Human Rights and the LLM in International Human Rights Law

Each award will provide for payment of academic tuition fees, examination fees, a monthly stipend for living expenses sufficient for a single student, and other agreed allowances including one return economy airfare.

2. Who is eligible to apply?
The scholarships are open to applicants from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan

Applicants should:

A. be nationals of and normally resident in one of the selected countries at the time of applying for the award; applicants who are temporarily out of the country at the time of application (for a total period of less than 3 consecutive months) may be treated as being resident;
B. already hold (or expect to hold by the time of taking up the award) a relevant first degree with good grades;
C. have passed a IELTS test at an appropriate level (7.0) by the time of taking up an award;
D. normally not have already spent a full academic year or more studying in a university outside Mongolia, Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union;
E. normally have relevant practical experience;
F. commit to returning to their home country at the end of their scholarship period to continue their studies/ work there.

3. How can I apply?
You can get application forms (together with information about the courses at the Human Rights Centre) from your National Foundation Office or Soros Educational Advising Center (see Section 7 for contacts).

You will have to complete a Graduate Admissions Applications Pack. (This requires that you submit a number of additional documents, such as academic references.)

It may be that you will not be given an original copy of the Graduate Admissions Form, but rather a photocopy of the form. This is equally valid.

You must submit all the necessary documents to your National Foundation Office or Soros Educational Advising Center (see Section 7 below for contact details) by 26 January 2004 at the latest (one original set plus one complete photocopied set).

Please note the following important points:
- Incomplete applications will not be considered, two complete copies (the original and one photocopy) of your application must be received.

- The overall impression of your application will be taken into consideration. Applications should be typed if possible or, if this is not feasible, they should be written clearly - with defined paragraphs and margins. If we cannot read the application then it is unlikely to succeed.

- References - please note these must be academic (from the institution where you gained your degree). References relating to work you have undertaken will not be considered.

- Statement of Purpose - this should be clear and concise. You should remain within the 500 word guideline as only the first 500 words of your statement will be taken into consideration.

- If your application for a scholarship for the MA or LLM is unsuccessful we cannot subsequently forward your application to the University for consideration. If you want to make a separate application to the University then please contact the relevant department.

- Applicants are expected reach the required level of English language. All students from overseas are required to sit an examination with the University's English Language Teaching Centre (ELTC) on their arrival at Essex. This examination is to ascertain if the student has a particular weakness, and to enable the ELTC to offer them assistance as deemed necessary.

- Completed applications should be sent (together with one photocopy) to your National Foundation Co-ordinator. You must NOT send the completed application form direct to the University and you must NOT send it by e-mail. Any applications sent direct to the University of Essex or by email will not be considered.

4. How does the selection procedure work?
All applications will be sent by the National Foundation Offices/ Soros Educational Advising Centers to the Human Rights Centre at Essex. Applications will be considered by selectors for the programmes at the University who will prepare a short-list of applicants who will be invited for interview. By the end of March applicants will be informed as to whether they have been invited for interview and English language tests. It is expected that these will take place in late March/early April 2004.

The final decisions as to which applicants will be offered scholarships will not be taken at the time of the interviews. These decisions will be taken later by the Human Rights Centre (in conjunction with OSI-Budapest and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office). It is hoped to inform all applicants by the end of May 2004 as to whether they have been successful, or not.

Please note that all successful applicants with the exception of Turkish applicants will be requested to attend a 1-month preparatory academic writing summer school starting at the end of June/beginning of July 2004. The exact date and location of the summer school will be available at a later stage of the selection process.

5. How can I find out more about the University of Essex and the Human Rights Centre?
· Read the University of Essex 'Introduction to the Graduate School' booklet and the Human Rights Centre leaflet (included within the University's application pack).
· Visit the University's Home Page: http://www.essex.ac.uk or http://www.sx.ac.uk
· Visit the Human Rights Centre Home Page: www2.essex.ac.uk/human_rights_centre / www2.sx.ac.uk/human_rights_centre/

6. Who should I contact if I have any questions?
Please make use of all of the written documentation available to you: these Guidance Notes, the University's 'Introduction to the Graduate School' booklet and the Guidance Notes included within the University's application pack.

If you have any queries about these Guidance Notes, then you should contact either:
· your local National Foundation Office/ Soros Educational Advising Center or
· Kristina Savickiene, UK Programs Coordinator, Network Scholarship Programs, OSI-Budapest

Fax or e-mail only:
Fax: 00 36 1 327 3107
E-mail: ksavickiene@osi.hu

If you have any academic questions, then you should direct these to the Human Rights Centre at the University of Essex.

Emma Rix Tel: + 44 (0) 1206 872529
Human Rights Education Programme Secretary Fax: + 44 (0) 1206 873627

Human Rights Centre E-mail: hrep@essex.ac.uk
University of Essex
Wivenhoe Park
Colchester
Essex CO4 3SQUK

7. Contact details of National Foundation Offices and Soros Educational Advising Centers:
You can obtain application forms from the bellow addresses. Please note that completed application forms, together with all other necessary documents, must be returned to National Foundation Offices/ Soros Educational Advising Centers by 26 January 2004

Oyuntulkhuur Jukov
Scholarships Program Coordinator

Mongolian Foundation for Open Society
Jamyan Gun street 5/1
Sukhbaatar district

Ulaanbaatar - 48
Mongolia

Phone (976 11) 313207
Fax (976 11) 324857
E-mail oyu@soros.org.mn