Pune: Maharashtra Government Launches Foreign Education Scholarship Scheme for Minority Students
Pune, 11th December 2023: In a significant move towards empowering minority students, the Maharashtra State Government has fulfilled its commitment by introducing a scholarship scheme aimed at providing opportunities for foreign education. This initiative opens new avenues for minority students to pursue their academic aspirations on an international platform.
Two years after earmarking a substantial fund of 120 crores in the budget, the Maharashtra State Government has greenlit the implementation of the Foreign Education Scholarship Scheme for minority students. The scheme aims to facilitate access to overseas educational institutions that rank within the top 200 institutions in the QS World Ranking.
The scholarship is applicable for Post Graduate Degrees and Ph.D. programs. A total of 27 students annually will have the privilege of benefiting from this scholarship, emphasizing the State’s commitment to fostering educational opportunities for minority communities.
To cater to a broad spectrum of academic interests, the scholarships will be distributed across various fields. Ten scholarships will be awarded for Science, Technology, and Engineering courses, six each for Medicine and Biology, Liberal Arts, and Humanities, three for Agriculture, and two for Law and Commerce.
The scholarship program prioritizes inclusivity by awarding opportunities based on the demographic distribution of minority communities. Out of the 27 beneficiaries, 15 will be from the Buddhist community, one each from the Christian, Jain, Parsi, Jew, and Sikh communities, with the remaining 27 scholarships designated for the Muslim community.
The stipulation that students must secure admission to overseas educational institutions within the top 200 of the QS World Ranking underscores the government’s commitment to ensuring that recipients of the scholarship receive a high-quality education that can compete on a global scale.