British Marshall Scholarship (United Kingdom)

About

Marshall Scholarships finance young Americans of high ability to study for a degree in the United Kingdom. Up to fifty Scholars are selected each year to study at the graduate level at a UK institution in any field of study.

As future leaders, with a lasting understanding of British society, Marshall Scholars strengthen the enduring relationship between the British and American peoples, their governments, and their institutions. Marshall Scholars are talented, independent, and wide-ranging, and their time as Scholars enhances their intellectual and personal growth. Their direct engagement with Britain through its best academic programmes contributes to their ultimate personal success.

The program objectives are:

  • To enable intellectually distinguished young Americans, their country’s future leaders, to study in the UK;
  • To help Scholars gain an understanding and appreciation of contemporary Britain;
  • To contribute to the advancement of knowledge in science, technology, the humanities, the social sciences, and the creative arts at Britain’s centres of academic excellence;
  • To motivate Scholars to act as ambassadors from the USA to the UK and vice versa throughout their lives thus strengthening British American understanding;
  • To promote the personal and academic fulfilment of each Scholar.

With over 2,000 alumni, Marshall Scholars come from all academic, cultural, socio-economic, and regional backgrounds, creating an inclusive community that you will be part of for a lifetime. Marshall Scholars have gone on to become Supreme Court Justices, Members of Congress, diplomats, educators, entrepreneurs, philanthropists, authors, musicians, filmmakers, scientists, and astronauts.

Fields of Study

The Marshall Scholarship places no limitations on your undergraduate major or field of study. Marshall Scholarships are awarded to students from all backgrounds in any academic discipline. The programme strives to promote a diverse pool of candidates drawn from a wide range of US colleges and universities. In recent years, minority students hold around 40% percent of the Scholarships, while more than one-third of successful candidates come from public universities.

Marshall offers funding for one or two years. Many Marshall Scholars choose to complete two one-year master’s programs, which are common in the U.K. Candidates are invited to indicate two preferred universities, although the Marshall Commission reserves the right to decide on final placement. Expressions of interest in studying at universities other than Oxford, Cambridge, and London institutions are particularly welcomed. Candidates are especially encouraged to consider the Marshall Partnership Universities. You can learn more about the U.K. university systems and search available graduate degrees at Study in the U.K. on the Marshall Scholarship website.

The Marshall Commission does NOT fund the following courses: Second BA/BSc (undergraduate) Degrees; MBA (any university); MPhil Development Studies (University of Oxford only); MSc/MFE Financial Economics (any university); MSc Global Health Science and Epidemiology (University of Oxford only); MSc International Health and Tropical Medicine (University of Oxford only); MSc Law and Finance (University of Oxford only); MPP (Public Policy) (University of Oxford only); PG Diplomas/Certificates in any subject (any university); Degrees leading to professional qualifications in medicine, dentistry, veterinary science and law (these degrees typically take 5 years to complete); Distance Learning Degrees; Degrees that require extended periods away from the University or the UK, including joint degrees with Universities not in the UK; Supervised research not leading to a degree qualification (see Fulbright Study/Research, above, instead).

One year candidates must be registered for degrees that are 12 months in duration. Courses that run for 10 months or less (where the course ends before August) will not be funded on the one year Scholarship.

Eligibility

To be eligible for SOP advising services on a Marshall application, an undergraduate student (or recent undergraduate alumni) must:

  • be a junior (intending to graduate next academic year), a graduating senior (intending to graduate in the current academic year) or a recent undergraduate degree recipient from UCI within the past 12 months*;
  • a citizen of the United States;
  • have earned, and continue to maintain, a G.P.A. of at least 3.7;
  • intend to begin enrollment in a graduate program exactly two Fall terms in the future (not in the upcoming Fall term of the calendar year of application).

*If you are studying for a second bachelor’s degree, please note that, if applying in Spring 2021, your first undergraduate degree must have been earned after April 2019.

Scholarship Benefits

The Marshall Scholarship provides the following benefits:

  • University fees,
  • Cost of living expenses,
  • Annual book grant,
  • Thesis grant,
  • Research and daily travel grants,
  • Travel fares to and from the United States,
  • and, where applicable, a contribution towards the support of a dependent spouse.

 

Recent Recipients and Finalists

  • In 2015, Felipe Hernandez (Political Science, Music Performance) received a two-year Marshall Scholarship for study in the MEd in Educational Leadership, Policy and Development at the University of Bristol, and in the MSc in Comparative Social Policy at the University of Oxford.
  • In 2014, Kenneth Lai (English, Classics) was named a Finalist (and also received a Fulbright Study/Research grant for master’s level study in Finland.)
  • In 1995, Kelly Maglia (Drama, Music) received a Marshall Scholarship for study in theater arts and English at the University of London’s Goldsmiths College.

Competitiveness

The Marshall Scholarship is highly competitive. In 2019-20, the Marshall Aid Commemoration Commission regional selection committees reviewed 1,000 endorsed applications and interviewed 160 Finalists. The Commission awarded 40 two-year scholarships and 6 one-year scholarships.

In appointing Scholars the selectors will look for candidates who have the potential to excel as scholars, as leaders and as contributors to improved UK-US understanding. Assessment will be based on academic merit, leadership potential, and ambassadorial potential. Full descriptions of the selection criteria are available on the Marshall Scholarship website.

Besides exceeding the 3.7 G.P.A. requirement, SOP recommends curating a record of original and significant accomplishment in your discipline (such as presentations, publications, exhibits, or performances), as well as a record of significant leadership achievement in campus or off-campus organizations, before applying to the Marshall Scholarship. Most recent recipients participated in the Campuswide Honors Collegium and/or the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program and were also competitive for invitation to School-based Honors Programs.

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