T

he British Embassy in Jakarta has once again opened its prestigious Chevening scholarship program to applicants for the 2019-2020 period, in the hope of attracting some of Indonesia’s highest achievers and setting them on the path to becoming change- makers and future leaders.

“All we are looking for are people that will come back and put that study to good use and become leaders in their community,” said Rob Fenn, the United Kingdom embassy’s deputy head of mission.

The diplomat spoke at a gathering on Thursday afternoon in Jakarta to launch the scholarship program to an audience of Chevening alumni, sponsors, media and embassy officials.

The program, which started in 1983 and spans 150 countries worldwide, offers fully funded tuition fees, a living allowance in the form of a stipend, trips across the UK and exclusive networking events, among other things, said Robert Campbell-Davis, a second secretary (political) at the embassy.

For the 2018-2019 period, the UK government has accepted 75 Indonesian applicants, but they are still looking to expand.

“One of the ways we are trying to grow that number is by partnering with international and Indonesian businesses, so we have a couple of our sponsoring organizations here tonight,” Campbell-Davis said.

He added that other sponsors included HSBC and CIMB Niaga banks, as well as insurance firm Prudential, which, along with the UK government, help cover the costs so more scholarships can be offered each year.

Basic requirements for applicants include having an undergraduate degree, at least two years of work experience, adequate English language skills (IELTS of 6.5 or equivalent), among others.

Such requirements ensure that selected students can thrive and make the most out of a rigorous program, embassy officials say.

“We’re looking for [someone with] clarity of ambition — like you know where you want to get to,” says Campbell-Davis, who believes that work experience gives applicants an understanding of their field of interest and who they would like to meet or what would they want to achieve to help them reach their goal.

With strong applicants and a selective program, Chevening scholars often boast impressive resumes. Campbell-Davis referred to Rita Kolibonso, who was also at the event on Thursday, as an example. Rita is a champion of women’s rights in Indonesia who got her Chevening scholarship to study law at Sheffield University in 1997.

By helping to seed fund Rita’s program on sexual health education in Indonesia, Campbell-Davis explains that Chevening is “much more than just sending people to the UK for a year and forgetting about them”.

The Chevening scholarship program has a strong network of alumni, who often assist their scholars long after they have graduated.

Ricci Wijaya, a 2015 scholarship recipient, said the program gave him “a new perspective on dealing with life’s problems”. “When I was in the UK, when you have a problem, you were trained to be more critical and to see problems from a different point of view, from different angles, and how to be more open minded,” he told The Jakarta Post.

While education is a large part of the expected student experience during the program, cultural immersion is equally important, alumni say.

“I always try to travel to other cities in the UK every week,” said Ricci. “Tips [for] when you are in the UK: don’t only spend your time studying, because the UK is unique. For me, I like the culture, I like the art.”

Ricci took his undergraduate degree at the University of Indonesia before working a few years for Coca-Cola Amatil Indonesia and Samsung Indonesia. Currently, he is a human resources manager at ride-hailing company GoJek.

— The writer is an intern at The Jakarta Post.