The British Council has offered scholarships to 19 female students pursuing master’s and doctoral degrees at Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU).
On Friday, the AIOU campus hosted a scholarship certificate presentation event. Prof Dr Zia Ul-Qayyum, Vice Chancellor of AIOU, presided over the ceremony, with Amir Ramzan, Country Director of the British Council Pakistan, as the chief guest.
Principals, Deans, and Heads of Academic Departments from AIOU were also in attendance, as were top employees from the British Council in Islamabad, including Sarah Parvez and Zoha Fatima.
Zahid Majeed, director of AIOU’s International Collaboration and Exchange Office, said the scholarships were given out on the basis of merit to students from Pakistan’s disadvantaged areas.
The Scotland-Pakistan Scholarship Scheme was developed by the British Council in collaboration with the Scottish Government to support women’s education in Pakistan. Many AIOU students applied for this programme, which will cover selected students’ educational expenditures for two years. A total of 37 female students were shortlisted, and 19 were awarded scholarships at the ceremony.
Prof Dr Zia-ul-Qayyum congratulated the victors and suggested that the British Council may offer extra scholarships to AIOU students, which Amir Ramzan enthusiastically agreed with.
Following that, the British Council’s Country Director in Pakistan announced that chosen AIOU scholarship holders will receive free laptops to help them work throughout the pandemic.
Prof Dr. Zia Ul-Qayyum expressed gratitude and stated that AIOU has set aside significant sums to provide educational opportunities to the impoverished and neglected segments of society.
https://pk.mashable.com/social-good/10240/british-council-awards-scholarships-to-aiou-students
