120 Australian scholarships available for Filipino leaders and achievers
Australian Ambassador to the Philippines Bill Tweddell announced the opening of applications for Australia Awards for Development at the Masters and PhD levels in Australia for 2013. At least 120 post-graduate scholarships will be available to high-achieving Filipinos to study in leading Australian universities.
"The Development Awards, through extensive scholarship programs, aim to contribute to the long term development of the Philippines, and to promote knowledge, education links and enduring ties between Australia and the Philippines,” Ambassador Tweddell said. “Through its aid program, the Australian Government places a high premium on improving the human capital of the Philippines by increasing access to quality education and training for people.”
Australia Awards for Development include the Australian Development Scholarships and the Australian Leadership Awards administered by AusAID. These awards aim to develop capacity and leadership skills so that individuals can contribute to development in their home country. In the Philippines, the Australia Awards for Development are part of the Australia-Philippines development cooperation program and are targeted at priority development needs in the areas of basic education, social protection and welfare, peace and development, public financial management, disaster risk reduction and management, climate change adaptation, organisational development, trade, foreign relations, and pandemics. Australian Development Scholarship applicants who demonstrate the most potential to impact development in the Philippines will be considered for the additional prestigious Australian Leadership Award.
Past Australian Government scholars who have made significant contributions in their respective fields include: former Department of Education Undersecretary Fe Hidalgo, Mr Rex Bernardo (2008 Apolinario Mabini Presidential Awardee, 2008 Ten Outstanding Young Men awardee, and 2011 World Economic Forum Young Global Leader), and Ms Dodette Bernaldez (2010 Presidential Lingkod Bayan Awardee).
“Awardees will experience and benefit from cutting-edge and high-quality Australian education. Australian universities are consistently ranked among the top educational institutions in the world for teaching and research, offering a complete range of programs and courses that lead to highly regarded and internationally-recognised qualifications. In 2011, eight Australian Universities were among the world’s top 100 Universities.” Ambassador Tweddell said.
At least half of the 120 scholarship slots are allocated to Australia’s key partner agencies delivering priority development initiatives, with the remainder open to the public. Australia Awards for Development cover travel, study and living expenses for study at Australia’s world-class universities. Awardees will also join the Philippines Australia Alumni Association upon their return. Further information on the Australia Awards is available at www.australiaawards.gov.au and www.pahrodf.org.ph. Applications are open from 1 February to 30 April 2012.