The Rhodes Scholarship is one of the most prestigious scholarships programmes in the world. This scholarship is awarded to meritorious students looking to pursue postgraduate courses from the University of Oxford. The Rhodes Scholarship - MBA is a fully funded scholarship, which means that it covers all University and College fees, a personal stipend and one economy class airfare to Oxford at the start of the Scholarship, as well as an economy flight back to the student's home country at the conclusion of the Scholarship. This is one of the oldest scholarship programmes in the world that started in 1902 with the will of Cecil John Rhodes. However, it was only in 1947, when the first Rhodes scholarship was awarded in India. It is not only the most prestigious but arduous scholarship to get. It is awarded to students from 22 designated constituencies, one of which is India.

Shortlisting Process

• Longlisted candidates will be invited to attend a preliminary, personal interview at regional centers, which may include Bangalore and Delhi. Candidates not ordinarily resident in India may be interviewed preliminarily by video conference or telephone.
• Candidates selected from these preliminary interviews will be called for a final in-person interview, on a date in October or November 2021.
• Candidates must be available to attend the final interview, in person, as no accommodations can be made on the date and time of the interview. No candidate will be selected without an interview. The granting of an interview is entirely within the discretion of the Selection Committee. A domestic travel allowance for candidates invited for the final interview will be paid by the Rhodes Trust. International travel will not be reimbursed.

The selection criteria for awarding the scholarship is made without any discrimination based on gender, race, ethnic origin, social background, colour, caste, or disability.

Terms and Conditions

The continuation of the scholarship depends on the good academic performance of the scholars in the examinations conducted by their respective universities.

Renewal cases of stipend holders who are not promoted to the next year will not be considered for further renewal.

• Rhodes Scholars must have completed a Bachelor’s degree before coming up to Oxford, to a sufficiently high standard to meet both the Rhodes and the Oxford criteria
• Rhodes Criteria:
  • Applicant must be a citizen of India, holding an Indian passport, or equivalent proof of citizenship; PIO or OCI cardholders are not eligible
  • Applicant must have undertaken formal study at an educational institution in India for a minimum of 4 of the last 10 years, and have either (i) completed a school-leaving exam (10th or 12th standard) at a school in India, or (ii) have received, or be in the final year of, an undergraduate degree at a university in India
  • Interview: 
    • Longlisted candidates will be invited to attend a preliminary, personal interview at regional centers, which may include Bangalore and Delhi. Candidates not ordinarily resident in India may be interviewed preliminarily by video conference or telephone
    • Candidates selected from these preliminary interviews will be called for a final in-person interview, on a date in October or November 2021
    • Candidates must be available to attend the final interview, in person, as no accommodations can be made on the date and time of the interview. No candidate will be selected without an interview. The granting of an interview is entirely within the discretion of the Selection Committee. A domestic travel allowance for candidates invited for the final interview will be paid by the Rhodes Trust. International travel will not be reimbursed
• University of Oxford Criteria:
  • IELTS: 7.5 with a min score of 7.0 in each component
  • GMAT/ GRE: 
    • Candidates are recommended to apply with a GMAT score of 650 or above
    • Recommended score for Sub-sections Verbal score of 160 and Quantitative score of 161
  • Work Experience: Applicants should have at least two years of previous full-time work experience
  • Interview: It is part of both the admission and scholarship process
  • Applicants with a full-time degree-level course of a minimum of nine months, at a recognized institution, where the medium of instruction and assessment was entirely in English can be exempted from the English proficiency exam at the discretion of the University

Candidates are nominated by their university, approved by their state Rhodes committee, go through a state-level interview, and then a cocktail party and again pass a regional level interview. 

Application Documents

• A birth certificate confirming that applicant meets the age criterion.
• A copy of a valid passport (with translation, if necessary), confirming that the applicant meets the citizenship criteria.
• An official transcript from the university at which the applicant is studying, or have studied, showing grades achieved
• Official transcripts from the 10th and 12th standard (or equivalent) school-leaving board examinations.
• If applicants are neither a graduate of a university in India nor in the final year of undergraduate study at a university in India, they must provide evidence of formal study at an educational institution in India for at least 4 of the last 10 years as of the date of application and completion of a school-leaving exam at a school in India (10th or 12th grade).
• CV: It should include details about prizes, scholarships, positions of leadership, involvement in student, voluntary, community or political activities and any cultural, musical or sporting accomplishments. This should not exceed two A4 (12pt) pages in length.
• A head-and-shoulders color photograph (jpg format).
• A signed personal statement of no more than 1,000 words:
  • Addresses applicants general interests and activities and what he/she plan to do with their life once they have completed their studies
  • Discusses applicant's aims and priorities and the contribution they had made and would like to make to their home country and the region
  • Indicates the course of study and degree they wish to follow at Oxford
  • Demonstrates that applicants are able to meet the requirements of the specific course they have chosen.
• LOR: Applicants will need to provide a list of six people (referees), who are willing to submit references on their behalf:
  • Provide email addresses of all the referees.
  • At least three of the referees should be academics who have taught the candidate in undergraduate studies and who can comment in detail on  their academic ability and how well they think the candidate would fare at Oxford.
  • Additional referees should testify to the applicant's character and/or his/ her involvement in extracurricular/service or leadership activities. These referees should be teachers or other persons who are able to comment critically on whether the candidate fulfils the extra-curricular, non-academic requirements of the Scholarship and who can speak in detail to their character.
  • Referees must not be personal friends, relations, or contemporaries.