Islamic Development Bank Scholarship
The Islamic Development Bank Scholarship 2011 is an amazing source for financial aid. Islamic Development Bank is an international group put together in 1973 to develop economic opportunities in states around the world. States become members in the organization when they apply, and must have a strong Muslim background in how they operate, including the initiation of Shari’ah Law or other general Islamic legal practices. There are currently fifty six nations which are counted as members of the IDB, and students in these countries are eligible to apply for the many scholarship opportunities IDB offers.
As of 2011, there are three separate programs which have been made available for eligible students including the Scholarship Program for Muslim Communities, Scholarship in Science and Technology and the Merit Scholarship Program for High Technology. Interested students should take the time to peruse the available IDB scholarship programs and almost certainly apply to those IDB scholarships which they are eligible for.
The first Islamic Develop Bank Scholarship that needs to be mentioned is the Scholarship Program for Muslim Communities which allows students from non-member nations to apply for financial assistance. This program offers a rare opportunity for students who are from a Muslim background but do not live in a state which has initiated Islamic Law and are thus not members of the IDB. This Islamic Development Bank Scholarship program covers all expenses necessary to fund a student’s education, which makes this particular IDB scholarship incredibly attractive. Students interested in this scholarship cannot be over 24 years old, must have completed their secondary education, have already secured admission into an institution of higher education and must be a committed Muslim. It is dedicated to funding students who are interested in medicine, engineering, agriculture or any field which is directly related to any of those three disciplines. The deadline for the bank scholarship program for Non-Member Communities is December for in-country studies and July for those students interested in going to school abroad.
Islamic Development Bank Scholarships are primarily designed to help students interested in engaging at the community level, and so the Masters of Science Scholarship Program works to encourage students to enter disciplines such as human resources, science and technology. The generous awards for this program cover academic expenses, living costs, health insurance, air travel to their university, along with allowances for computer needs and conference participation.
Amongst the IDB eligibility requirements, the most important is that interested students must be from the pre-selected list of developed member nations in the IDB. They cannot be over 30 years old, must be a graduate student, have been nominated from their four year institution and be interested in returning home after graduation. Students who have studied and received a Bachelor of Science in demography or statistics are also welcome to apply for the program. In order to apply for this program, students will need to have submitted all of their relevant material by December 31.
The final Islamic Development Bank Scholarship that the IDB offers is the Merit Scholarships. This IDB scholarship is designed to help those students interested in advanced studies in the fields of applied science and technology. It gives awards to those students who are involved in a three year doctoral programs or have begun post-doctoral research. Applicants cannot be over the age of 35, must be attached to an established program, have a strong academic background and have a good understanding of whatever language their chosen institution speaks natively. In order to better fund those students selected for this program, the Merit Scholarship covers all academic expenses, provides a living allowance, gives money for health insurance programs, pays for air fare, and makes available cash for computer needs. Beyond these, the Merit Scholarship also provides an allowance for students preparing a scientific paper and additional resources for family-oriented needs, though these last two items are only available to post-doctoral students. The deadline for the IDB Merit Scholarship program is December 31. It is always smart to start planning out an application as early as possible so starting now will prove to be a boon to many interested applicants.