Felix Scholarships

Felix Scholarships are designed for meritorious students who need financial aid to pursue postgraduate studies. The scholarships are awarded to students from India and other developing countries which have been categorized by the World Bank as low-income countries.

Felix scholarship applicants can apply for any masters/research-level program at the participating universities, except for medicine. Presently, the Felix Scholarship scheme offers 20 scholarships at three universities in the United Kingdom:

University of Oxford,
University of Reading, and
The School of Oriental and African Studies (part of the University of London).

The Felix Scholarships cover tuition fees and provide a stipend or maintenance grant against living expenses. Given below is a table providing an estimated cost incurred by international students at each of the participating universities:

University	Tuition & Fees (in USD)	Cost of Living (in USD)
University of Oxford	37,200-42,100	17,500
University of Reading	20,600-24,800	18,000
SOAS	25,900-29,400	17,500

Felix Scholarships are distributed annually and are renewable for up to 3 years depending upon the course of study and financial need of the recipient.

Highlights

Scholarship Type	College-Specific, Merit-Based, Need-Based
Offered by	Trust
Organization	Felix Trust
Application Deadline	Jan 30 ,2024
Number of Scholarships	20
Amount	Variable Amount
Renewability	Yes, Yearly
International Student Eligible	Yes
Scholarship Website Link	https://www.reading.ac.uk/ready-to-study/study/fees-and-funding/fees-and-funding-pg/felix-scholarships

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for the Felix Scholarships, underprivileged applicants must opt for a full-time postgraduate program with any one of the partner universities. Also, scholarship applicants must be below the age of 30 years.

In addition, for Indian scholarship, an applicant has to fulfill the following eligibility criteria:

Must be an Indian national
Must not be currently residing or studying outside India.
Must have a first-class UG degree from a recognized Indian university.

For non-Indian scholarship, an applicant must fulfill the following eligibility criteria:

Must hold a first-class UG degree from a university of the applicant’s home country.
Must not be currently residing outside the home country.

Felix Scholarship Terms and Conditions

Applicants who already hold a master’s degree are not eligible for the Felix Scholarships.
Applicants must return to work in their home country after the completion of studies.

Application Process

Prospective applicants should note that Felix Scholarship applications can be made to only one of the participating universities the University of Oxford, School of Oriental and African Studies, and University of Reading). The application process for Felix Scholarships varies at each partner university.

Application Process at the University of Oxford

Applicants are not required to submit a separate application form. All they have to do is tick a box on their Oxford PG application form. The university officials use the details inserted by the applicant in necessary sections of the admission application.

In order to be considered, applicants must their PG application before January 30, 2024.

Application Process at the University of Reading

To apply for the scholarship, the applicant must obtain the admission offer to the PG program at the University of Reading before January 30, 2024. Upon receiving the offer, students need to complete the scholarship form at the me@reading applicant portal.

Application Process at the School of Oriental and African Studies

Applicants are first required to apply for a Master’s or Research degree program at SOAS. They must receive their offer of admission by January 30, 2024. After that, the students must complete the Felix Scholarship online application form.

Selection Process

Each university shortlists candidates on the basis of their academic excellence and financial need. The shortlisting process will take place in early March 2023.

Shortlisted students have to complete a short questionnaire and appear for an interview in India. The interview or questionnaire not only tests the academic abilities of the applicants, but also assesses their personality, financial need, and suitability for the Felix Scholarships.

Candidates will be sent a letter setting out the date and venue of their interview. Each interview lasts around 30 minutes and will be held either in New Delhi or Bangalore. The decisions will be announced in May 2023.

Note: There is no interview for non-Indian students.

Grant Details

Study-Level	Masters and Doctorate
Eligible Candidates	Underprivileged students from India and other developing countries
Number of Scholarships	20
Study-Length	1-3 years
Scholarship Award	100% Tuition Fees and Stipend
Award Distributed	Annually

The first six Felix Scholarships were awarded in 1991/1992. Over the years, the number of scholarships has now risen to 20 per academic year. Till now, the trust has awarded 428 scholarships, of which, 40 scholarships have been awarded to students from countries other than India.
Since 2001, Felix scholarships have been awarded to gifted underprivileged students from Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Lebanon, Czech Republic, Kenya, South Africa, Egypt, Nepal, Hungary, and Lebanon.