2017 Niger Delta Postgraduate Scholarship Scheme

The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC) is delighted to announce the seventh annual SPDC Niger Delta Postgraduate Scholarship Scheme for applicants from Rivers, Delta, Imo and Bayelsa States. The objective of the scheme is to provide an opportunity for qualifying students from these Niger Delta states to further their education in courses that are relevant to the oil and gas industry.

In the six years of this programme, 60 students have won the opportunity to study at top rated universities in the UK on an all-expenses paid scholarship.

For the academic year commencing September, 2017, SPDC in partnership with three universities in the UK–Imperial College London, University College, London and the University of Leeds—will award ten scholarships for one year post-graduate MSc studies.

The following courses qualify for award of scholarships at the three institutions

Imperial College London

• MSc PETROLEUM ENGINEERING
• MSc PETROLEUM GEOSCIENCE
• MSc PETROLEUM GEOPHYSICS

University College London

• MSc CHEMICAL/PROCESS ENGINEERING
• MSc MECHANICAL ENGINEERING (Rotating Equipment or Metallurgy)
• MSc CIVIL ENGINEERING (Geotechnics)

University Of Leeds

• MSc EXPLORATION GEOPHYSICS
• MSc ELECTRONIC/ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING.

Eligibility Criteria

• To qualify for the scholarship, applicants must:
• Display sound intellectual ability and leadership potentials
• Meet the individual universities’ English Language requirements (usually at least 6.5 in IELTS score valid for Sept. 2017 admission).  Please note that TOEFL is no longer recognised by most UK universities. Candidates are advised that failure to meet each university’s English Language requirement at the time of selection may invalidate their application.
• Be aged between 21-28 years by 30/09/2017
• Be an indigene of Rivers, Delta, Imo or Bayelsa states (documentary proof of this will be required and will be verified)
• Currently reside in Nigeria
• Return to Nigeria on completion of the proposed programme of study
• Have obtained a university degree (at least of equivalent standard to a UK Second Class Upper (Honours degree)
• Not have studied previously in the UK or any other developed country
• Have a Nigerian international passport valid to end December 2018
• Be neither a current nor former employee (who has left employment less than 5 years before) of SPDC or the Royal Dutch Shell Group of Companies
• Not be a spouse, child or ward of staff of Shell Companies in Nigeria.

Application Process

• Submit application for admission to the  any of the prospective universities for any of the qualifying courses
• Application forms for the scholarship will ONLY be available through the websites of the participating universities following an offer of admission by the university
• Universities will process applications and select candidates to attend interviews  before being considered for final selection
• Completed scholarship application forms must reach participating universities not later than 30^th  January 2017.

The scholarship will cover tuition fees, one economy return flight ticket from Nigeria to the UK and a contribution towards living expenses only*.

MORE INFORMATION ON SPECIFIC COURSE ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS CAN BE OBTAINED from the websites of the individual universities.

• Please note that the stipends are based on the Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU) published living rates and are limited to this only
• This is a non-committal scholarship. Note that NEITHER SPDC  NOR any of its affiliate companies is obligated to offer employment of any sort to any candidate upon graduation neither are successful candidates bonded to SPDC for any period of time on account of the scholarship award.

Education, as all parents and guardians admit, is a long-term investment with an equally long gestation period, but it is one of the best legacies to bequeath to individuals, groups and society. That has been the belief of Shell Nigeria since 1952. In 2014, $14.8 million was invested in scholarships by the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) and Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCo).

The University Scholarship Scheme, a programme run by SPDC on behalf of the NNPC/Shell/Elf/Agip Joint Venture, makes a quiet but very profound commentary on the company’s interest in the promotion of capacity building in the country.

Every year, more than 4,000 Nigerian undergraduates write aptitude tests to join the evergrowing list of students which Shell Nigeria supports in Nigerian Universities. The applicants are shortlisted on the basis of the national SSCE and JAMB examination results. This is followed by an aptitude test at the PortHarcourt, Warri, Enugu, Lagos and Abuja centres.

There are two categories of the Scholarship Scheme, the National Merit Award (NM), open to Nigerian undergraduates and Areas of Operation Merit Award (AOM), for students from communities in which Shell Nigeria operates. Only first year students are eligible for the awards in both categories.

An average of 16,000 applicants respond to advertisements by Shell Nigeria every year, inviting qualified candidates to apply for the scholarships which are tenable only in Nigerian Universities.

Application for the 2016/2017 University Scholarship Award closes on December 31 2016.

The Shell Nigeria Secondary School Scholarship Scheme is for host communities in Abia, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Delta, Edo, Imo and Rivers states.

Every year, an average of 2,600 post-primary scholarships are awarded in the seven states. The Secondary School Scholarship Scheme is to help students pay through school, as well as enhance academic achievement in host communities.

The scheme, which is also a welcome relief for many parents and guardians in the education of their children, has become so popular that annually, thousands of parents and children look forward to it as a golden opportunity.

Indeed, it has today become a welcome feature of educational development, especially in the Niger Delta area of Nigeria.

The Cradle-to-Career Scholarship is an all-inclusive scholarship programme that provides opportunities for brilliant pupils of less-privileged background to attend reputable secondary schools in Nigeria.

The Cradle-to-Career scheme is designed to bridge educational inequalities resulting from geographic and socio-economic difference as well as help to enhance high literacy level in the Niger Delta and Nigeria in general.

There are two categories of the Scholarship Scheme;

1. The SPDC JV Cradle-to-Career Scholarship scheme managed by Shell Petroleum Development Company Limited (SPDC) on behalf of the joint venture.Started since 2010, candidates are selected from key Niger Delta States of Rivers, Bayelsa and Delta. Three hundred and fifty (350) talented students are already enrolled in quality secondary schools.
2. The National Cradle-to-Career Scholarship scheme, managed by Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Limited (SNEPCo) on behalf of itself, its co-venture partners and the NNPC.Candidates are selected from each of the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, out of which the best three (3), who also meet all other award criteria are awarded the scholarship.

   The scheme is in its second year with 60 beneficiaries already placed in very good private secondary schools.

Shell Nigeria Cradle-to-Career scholarship has received several local and international commendations. At the 2011 United Nations (UN) Innovations Fair in Geneva, the UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon described the scheme as “a landmark initiative” and acknowledged its impressive contributions to educational development in the Niger Delta and Nigeria.

The Shell scholarship programme commenced in the 1950s. with awards to qualified Nigerians in various fields of study, both within and outside Nigeria. Many of them returned home to occupy key positions in public service, commerce and industry.

Shell Scholars’ Forum – Promoting Academic Excellence in Nigeria

As Shell worked to produce and export the first barrel of crude oil for Nigeria, it also had the foresight to think of the generations of Nigerians who would one day drive the development of the newly independent nation. A quick way of achieving this was to train the required manpower through scholarship awards.

The Shell scholarship programme commenced in the 1950s with awards to qualified Nigerians in various fields of study both within and outside Nigeria. Many of them returned home and some still occupy key positions in public service, commerce and industry.

The Shell Scholars’ Forum inaugurated in 2013 is intended to create an avenue for older beneficiaries to mentor the younger ones. Relatedly, a new Shell education portfolio strategy was launched also in 2013. The objective is “to generate the intellectual and creative energy required for sustained economic performance and global competitiveness of Nigeria”. Element of the strategy include; Building Scholars, Promoting Digital Transformation and driving Growth and Development in Nigeria.

As a mark of recognition and appreciation of Shell’s effort in supporting quality education in Nigeria from the 1950s to date, the company emerged “Best Company in Education” at the 2013 Social Enterprise Report & Awards (SERAs).

See Also: Shell past questions and answers