A proper send-off
I’ve said it here before and I will say it again and again: I am a certified Anglophile.
Blame it on all of those James Bond movies of my youth: the crisp suits, the fast cars, the breathtaking locations, and, of course, the ubiquitous Bond girl.
My love for almost anything British (except, perhaps, traditional British cuisine) verily included the desire to study there, and this dream was realized when I became a scholar of the British government under the Chevening program.
Never did I imagine the honor of being chosen among the thousands who applied then, and there were only three or four of us who were selected.
This allowed me, at no cost to my parents or myself, to pursue my dream of tucking in, under my belt, a Master of Laws in International and Economic Law degree at the prestigious London School of Economics and Political Science.
So many beautiful memories of my stay in London: the Tate Gallery, West End, Covent Gardens, Notting Hill Gate where I lived, the pubs… but I digress.
Chevening is the United Kingdom (UK) government’s international scholarships and fellowships program. It offers fully funded scholarships and fellowships to “individuals with ideas to create positive change.”
Funded by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and partner organizations, Chevening offers individuals who show potential to inspire, inform, and influence positive change the opportunity to study at a UK university to gain a UK educational qualification.
Chevening Scholars study subjects in a diverse range of fields and go on to implement their ideas for positive change in a range of sectors, while Chevening fellows, on the other hand, are mid-senior-level professionals that have the opportunity to undertake specialized short courses or research placements at UK universities and institutions.
After completing their period of study in the UK, scholars and fellows return home and join a global network of over 60,000 alumni, which in the Philippines is the CAFPI or the Chevening Alumni Foundation of the Philippines, Inc.
I had the honor of serving as the first CAFPI president, and I only had one mission during my tour of duty: to spread the word of Chevening.
The current 2024-2025 cohort is composed of 21 scholars and one fellow.
The lone fellow, Hydro Domado, is under the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies (OCIS) Fellowship Program. The OCIS Fellowship is aimed at professionals who are dedicated to the promotion of academic activities that encourage a more informed understanding of the culture and civilization of Islam and contemporary Muslim societies.
Only a maximum of four fellowship awards are given globally each year, and the Philippines holds one award for this year. The country has not had a fellow since 2018. The last fellow was Nassef Adiong, also a TOYM (The Outstanding Young Men of the Philippines) awardee.
According to Jed Ivan Manjares, Chevening Scholarships Officer of the British Embassy Manila, this year’s cohort is well-distributed in different subject areas with climate change as the majority choice of study, unlike last year’s batch where the majority of scholars went into politics and law.
This year’s cohort of 22 brings to 585 the total number of Chevening scholars and fellows from the Philippines.
Incidentally, two of the scholars were sponsored by Prulife UK.
When we sent off this new batch of Chevening scholars and fellow recently, together with Elcid Pangilinan, current CAFPI president, and Karen Gomez-Dumpit, CAFPI chairperson, I could not help but wax nostalgic, recalling fond memories of my own sojourn in the UK.
I will always be grateful to the UK government for the scholarship, and I thank the current British Ambassador to the Philippines, Laure Beaufils, for the support.
I wish our new batch of scholars and fellow all the best as they embark on their studies in the UK. Please bring back home what you’ve learned from there for the good of our country.
- Latest
