ABU DHABI // A scholarship programme that each year gives two of the UAE’s best and brightest students the chance to study at Oxford has been granted permanent funding.
The Rhodes Scholarship for the University of Oxford will now be supported by a permanent endowment from the Salama bint Hamdan Al Nahyan Foundation, allowing students to pursue their postgraduate studies in England. Previously, funding depended on individual donors.
So far, eight students from the UAE have been awarded a place, among them five Emiratis, following in the footsteps of the likes of former US president Bill Clinton, former prime minister of Australia Tony Abbott, and the astronomer Edwin Hubble.
Established in 1902 by British businessman Cecil Rhodes, the scholarship pays all expenses for up to three years – about Dh774,000 – at the university.
“We started with temporary funding because we wanted to see if the UAE was the kind of place we could consistently get scholars that met our standards,” said Charles Conn, chief executive of the Rhodes Trust and warden of Rhodes House.
“We had some wonderful people like Shamma Al Mazrui [now Minister of State for Youth Affairs] and then set up permanent funding which has come from the Foundation.”
The intention was to fund one student each year but with consistently high-quality applications, Mr Conn said it was clear there was room for two.
Dubai Abulhoul, a student at New York University in Abu Dhabi, will join the programme next year.
“Having a permanent Rhodes Scholarship in the UAE will encourage more people to apply, and will give future candidates more time to prepare in advance for the application during their earlier undergraduate years.”
Fewer than 1 per cent of applicants make it as scholars, who are chosen on intellect, character, leadership and commitment to service.
Mr Conn said priority would be given to Emirati scholars.
“We’d like to have at least one Emirati each time but we wouldn’t rule out non-Emirati applicants,” he said.
Prof Tod Laursen, president of Khalifa University, which recently announced its second successful Rhodes Scholar who will start next year, said the permanent scholarship highlighted the UAE’s progress in developing higher education.
“It’s great news that the UAE is being recognised on an international level as a key nurturer of young talent, and here at Khalifa University we are proud that we have been able to contribute to this by producing two Rhodes Scholar graduates in the last year.”
Doug Cutchins, director of global awards at NYUAD, which has put forward 6 of the 8 winning UAE scholars to date, agreed.
“This endowment is a symbol that Oxford University knows that students educated in the UAE can compete at a global level with the best in the world. It is also a sign of the commitment of the UAE to providing a world-class education to its people and those who choose to pursue their education here.
“It is my hope that the establishment of the UAE Rhodes Scholarship inspires more people to come to the UAE from around the world to take advantage of the opportunities here, and similarly inspires even more Emiratis to pursue their education here at home.”
He said there was “no undergraduate scholarship or award in the world that is more life-changing or prestigious than the Rhodes Scholarship”.
“It will open doors that students do not even know exist yet.”
Mr Conn said the next step was to broaden the UAE’s pool of scholars, as the successful candidates have so far come from NYUAD and Khalifa University.
“We’re sure there are other incredibly talented people at other institutions as well. We’d like broader awareness of the scholarship, especially now we’re permanently funded.”
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Bio
Born in Dubai in 1994
Her father is a retired Emirati police officer and her mother is originally from Kuwait
She Graduated from the American University of Sharjah in 2015 and is currently working on her Masters in Communication from the University of Sharjah.
Her favourite film is Pacific Rim, directed by Guillermo del Toro
Water waste
In the UAE’s arid climate, small shrubs, bushes and flower beds usually require about six litres of water per square metre, daily. That increases to 12 litres per square metre a day for small trees, and 300 litres for palm trees.
Horticulturists suggest the best time for watering is before 8am or after 6pm, when water won't be dried up by the sun.
A global report published by the Water Resources Institute in August, ranked the UAE 10th out of 164 nations where water supplies are most stretched.
The Emirates is the world’s third largest per capita water consumer after the US and Canada.
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How to vote in the UAE
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2) Take it to the US Embassy
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4) The embassy will ensure all ballots reach the US in time for the November 3 poll
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
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Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
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Sunday
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Young women have more “financial grit”, but fall behind on investing
In an October survey of young adults aged 16 to 25, Charles Schwab found young women are more driven to reach financial independence than young men (67 per cent versus. 58 per cent). They are more likely to take on extra work to make ends meet and see more value than men in creating a plan to achieve their financial goals. Yet, despite all these good ‘first’ measures, they are investing and saving less than young men – falling early into the financial gender gap.
While the women surveyed report spending 36 per cent less than men, they have far less savings than men ($1,267 versus $2,000) – a nearly 60 per cent difference.
In addition, twice as many young men as women say they would invest spare cash, and almost twice as many young men as women report having investment accounts (though most young adults do not invest at all).
“Despite their good intentions, young women start to fall behind their male counterparts in savings and investing early on in life,” said Carrie Schwab-Pomerantz, senior vice president, Charles Schwab. “They start off showing a strong financial planning mindset, but there is still room for further education when it comes to managing their day-to-day finances.”
Ms Schwab-Pomerantz says parents should be conveying the same messages to boys and girls about money, but should tailor those conversations based on the individual and gender.
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