Dr Heather Elgood Scholarship University of London 2022

Scholarship Description:

SOAS Postgraduate Diploma in Asian Art alumni, Gretchen Welch and Ida Chow, set up the Dr Heather Elgood Scholarship in 2018 to honour their teacher and friend, Dr Hettie Elgood, MBE, Founder and Director Emerita of the Postgraduate Diploma in Asian Art. They hope that those who study under this scholarship will go on to contribute to the course by lecturing or tutoring in the future, or by promoting the study of Asian art through other platforms. This is the third year the Scholarship has been offered, which has been made possible by an anonymous further donation.

The Scholarship covers full tuition fees for the Postgraduate Diploma in Asian Art and an allowance to cover living costs during term time. The scholarship is open to anyone, anywhere in the world who is not financially able to pursue the course without a full scholarship and stipend. We strongly encourage applicants who would not have considered the Postgraduate Diploma in Asian Art programme without the opportunity afforded by this scholarship. We hope the scholarship will be a transformative opportunity, enabling the successful applicant to pursue a career related to Asian art, such as academia, curatorial or museum work, or a position in the commercial art world.

Eligible Course of Study

One Dr Heather Elgood Scholarship is available for the 2021/22 academic year running from 04 October 2021 to 17 July 2022. The year-long course includes three, 12-week modules including Indian Art, Chinese Art and either Islamic Art or Southeast Asian Art.

Candidate Eligibility Criteria

• Applicants must possess or expect to be awarded an Upper Second-Class Honours Degree or above, an equivalent non-UK qualification, or equivalent professional experience. Students with a non-UK degree to be adjudged by their referees and transcript.
• Applicants must provide a personal statement stating why they wish to take this programme and how this scholarship will make a difference to them.
• Applicants must explain their eligibility in a separate statement of financial need.
• For international students, English language proficiency must be evidenced and must meet IELTS level 6.5 overall and for all sub-scores (or equivalent).

Scholarship Application Procedure

Please apply for the Dr Heather Elgood scholarship by downloading the application form and returning a completed scanned copy to asianart@soas.ac.uk. You must also submit:

• A personal statement
• A seperate statement of financial need
• Transcripts from your undergraduate degree (and any further degrees)
• Evidence of proficiency in English language (where applicable)
• A recently submitted piece of academic work at least 1000 words in length, or equivalent piece of writing from a professional context (i.e. auction or museum catalogue essay). If you have not recently submitted a piece of academic work please produce a new piece of writing on an art historical topic of your choosing at approximately 1000 words in length.
• A copy of the picture page of your passport
• Two references providing an opinion on your suitability for this programme of study. Academic references are preferred, but one professional reference is acceptable. Two professional references can be provided if you have been out of academia for more than five years.

Referees can email references directly to Patrick Monger at asianart@soas.ac.uk 

The deadline for applying for the scholarship for the 2021/22 academic year is 23.59 (BST) on Friday 06 August 2021. Scholarship applicants will be notified of the outcome of their applications by 13 August 2021.

Contact us

If you have any queries on the application process, eligibility requirements or any other aspects of the Postgraduate Diploma in Asian Art course, please contact Patrick Monger at pm50@soas.ac.uk.

Terms and Conditions

Language Requirement

• Where an applicant’s offer of admission to the SOAS Postgraduate Diploma in Asian Art includes an English language condition, any scholarship award will be conditional on having met that condition at least one month prior to the start of the module.

Candidate Assessment

• Candidates will be assessed by an Advisory Panel consisting of three members of SOAS staff.
• Selectors will be looking at the applicants’ degree results, references, professional experience, supporting statement, writing sample, and other relevant information.
• The scholarship will be awarded on the basis of a combination of academic potential, financial need, and impact of the scholarship on the applicant’s academic and professional development.

Terms

• The scholarship cannot be held along with any other major scholarship.
• It is expected that the successful candidate dedicates themselves to the course full-time and will not undertake any further form of work or study during term-time.
• The successful candidate is expected to attend all teaching sessions live (online or in person).
• Continuation of the award will be conditional on satisfactory attendance and contribution, which will be assessed at the end of every term as well as monitored throughout.
• The stipend is based on scholars being resident in London for the course. If this is not possible, depending on circumstances, the stipend amount may be reduced accordingly.