Islamabad, High Commissioner of the UK to Pakistan Adam Thomson, has valued the efforts of the Higher Education Commission (HEC) for changing the overall scenario of higher education in the country. In a ceremony to offer scholarships to 5 Pakistani students for HEC Cambridge Commonwealth Trust CCT scholarships, as a Chief Guest he said “I must say this is an institution which is making a real difference.”

The successful scholars who have been awarded this prestigious MS leading to PhD scholarship in the disciplines of Biochemistry, Development Economics, Engineering and Education are Mayida Azhar, Shan Aman Rana, Zaib Ali, Ishrat Rehman and Arooj Shafiq. These scholars will join the University of Cambridge in the session starting in October.

Mr. Thomson said, “I am particularly proud of the level of cooperation between the HEC and the UK, primarily through the British Council, and am very aware of the HEC’s commitment to knowledge exchange at an international level.  University to university links are an important part of the exchange of ideas.  Thus today it is a great pleasure to mark the further strengthening of an enduring intellectual and academic relationship between Pakistan and a UK university”. Addressing the selected scholars, he said, “You are going to the top most University of the world for attaining the highest qualifications but this is not enough. Getting this degree is only an important milestone in your life and your real contribution will start after this achievement.”

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed between HEC and CCT for the establishment of these scholarships. Under the programme, five outstanding Pakistani scholars will be chosen every year to study at the prestigious University. The scholarship is applicable in all areas of knowledge except those for which clinical rate fees are charged. According to the MoU, HEC will pay 5000 GBP towards the tuition fee plus its standard stipend 9000 GBP per annum. CCT will pay the remainder of tuition fee, the College Fee and the remainder of the annual stipend to bring that up to CCT’s annual amount. Applicants are required to secure admission letter by themselves.

CCT was founded in 1982 by the University of Cambridge as a charity to support international students from member countries of the Commonwealth who wish to study at the University of Cambridge. The Trust offered support to 247 students from 23 countries to start their studies at Cambridge in October 2010.  There are currently 590 students in residence in Cambridge who receive support from the Trust.