The Rhodes Scholarship Trust plans to increase the number of scholarships available to Indian students from 2028, aligning awards more closely with India’s large population, Sir Richard Trainor, CEO of the trust, announced.
Currently, six Rhodes Scholarships are awarded annually to Indian candidates to study at the University of Oxford. “India has a population of over 1.5 billion, so it’s clear there should be more scholarships,” Trainor told PTI during his visit to India ahead of the 2026 application cycle.
The trust is actively fundraising to boost its endowment, which funds tuition and living expenses for scholars. Alongside India, the trust is considering increasing scholarships for candidates from China—currently four annually—and Africa, which receives 21 awards.
The target is to raise these numbers ahead of the scholarship’s 125th anniversary in 2028, Trainor said.
A Rhodes Scholar himself in 1970, Trainor highlighted the transformative impact the scholarship has had on recipients’ lives, including his own. “It broadened my worldview and shaped my career as an international academic leader,” he said.
The Rhodes Scholarship, one of the world’s most prestigious and oldest graduate fellowships, supports outstanding students aged 18-23 (with some exceptions up to 27) to pursue two to three years of study at Oxford. Selection criteria include academic excellence, leadership, character, extracurricular achievements, and commitment to addressing global challenges.
Applications for the 2026 academic year opened on June 3 and will close on July 23.
Prominent Indian Rhodes Scholars include economist Montek Singh Ahluwalia, writer Girish Karnad, environmental law expert Lavanya Rajamani, political analyst Mahesh Rangarajan, and Olympian Ranjit Bhatia.
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