The Rhodes Scholarship is the oldest international fellowship. Established after the death of British colonialist, magnate, and statesman Cecil J. Rhodes in 1902, it brings outstanding students from many countries around the world -- with 32 each year coming from the United States -- to pursue studies in all of the fields available at the University of Oxford, the oldest university in the English-speaking world.

Rhodes scholars hail from a wide range of academic institutions and from all walks of life. Above all, the selection committees seek applicants who offer the promise of effective service to the world. In other words, Rhodes Scholarships are seen as investments in individuals, rather than in, say, highbrow research proposals. But that doesn't mean getting a scholarship is easy. Each year, the 32 American Rhodes scholars are culled from an initial pool of roughly 1,500 undergraduates and recent college grads.

Here's some information to get you started:

Q: What are the criteria for becoming a Rhodes scholar? What principles are at the heart of the program?

A: Cecil Rhodes set forth in his will four standards by which prospective Rhodes scholars should be judged: (1) literary and scholastic attainments; (2) energy to use one's talents to the full, as exemplified by fondness for and success in sports; (3) devotion to duty, sympathy for and protection of the weak, kindliness, and unselfishness; and (4) moral force of character and instincts to lead and to take an interest in one's fellow beings. In short, scholars are chosen for being more than bookworms; the selection committees are looking for intellectual talents combined with concern for others.

Q: What does the second requirement mean? Do I have to be a star athlete?

A: No, satisfying that standard does not require evidence of outstanding achievement in organized sports. However, applicants should be able to demonstrate the physical vigor that will enable them to make a lasting contribution to the world. It is also fair to say that unusual athletic distinction is a plus; in previous years, as many as a quarter of successful applicants have been varsity athletes.

Q: How can I best demonstrate "concern for others"? Does tutoring or volunteering to work in a shelter count?

A: Concern for others is critical, but it can be reflected in countless ways aside from direct, hands-on charitable work. "Starting an orphanage in Africa is not required," says Elliot F. Gerson, American secretary of the Rhodes Trust, which administers and awards the scholarships. Reference padding, with sudden charitable activity in an applicant's junior year, for example, is usually transparent to committees.

Q: What are the "selection committees"? Do committee members read my application?

A: Yes. Sixteen district committees in the United States identify the 32 American students each year who best satisfy the criteria. Each committee considers applications from applicants who either maintain their legal residence in the state(s) grouped within the district or who will have received at least two years of college or university training and a bachelor's degree in one of the district's states before October 1 in the year following application. Each of the districts may pick two candidates as Rhodes scholars-elect.

Q: If my home state falls under a different district than the district where I go to college, is there a strategic advantage to applying within one district instead of another?

A: The sixteen districts are drawn so that each has approximately the same number of applicants, so the choice should be made purely on convenience. Selected applicants are invited to a personal interview with their district's selection committee, and transportation costs are the applicant's responsibility. It's not going to boost your odds of acceptance, for instance, to apply as a North Dakota resident, if that's where you're from, rather than as a Harvard student, if that's where you go to school, says Gerson.

Q: So I don't have to be a student at an Ivy League university or a highly selective college to apply?

A: No. Individuals, not schools, are selected for Rhodes Scholarships. In fact, in most years, at least one Rhodes scholar is selected from an institution that has not previously supplied a successful applicant.

Q: How old do I have to be to apply?

A: All applicants who wish to apply for consideration next year must be at least 18 but not yet 24 by Oct. 1, 2010. Applicants must also have achieved academic standing sufficiently advanced to assure completion of a bachelor's degree before Oct. 1, 2011. (Rhodes scholars elected in November 2010 will enter the University of Oxford in October 2011.)

Q: How long do Rhodes scholars study at Oxford?

A: Rhodes Scholarships are normally held for two years, the duration of most master's degrees and bachelor's degrees for those who already have another bachelor's degree, or for three years, the duration of many doctorates.

Q: Why would I want to get another bachelor's degree if I already have one?

A: The Oxford B.A. is a very different degree, with far greater specialization, than one would get in his or her major in an American college. It is nearly equivalent to an M.A. at a U.S. school. (An Oxford M.A. can even be awarded automatically to someone with an Oxford B.A. seven years after matriculation.)

Q: I might want to branch out. Would I have to study a subject at Oxford that's related to my major or career plans?

A: Not necessarily. Some Oxford B.A.'s and master's courses require more preparation in the field than others, although most humanities and social science B.A. courses -- and even some of the master's degree courses -- can be attempted without an undergraduate degree in the same field. The committee is unlikely to view you any more favorably because you elect to stay in your academic field or because you opt to move from it, as long as you have a cogent explanation for your choice.

Q: I'm not sure if a Rhodes Scholarship is for me. Are there similar fellowship programs I should consider?

A: Scholarships that are typically of interest to Rhodes applicants include the Marshall Scholarship, which is tenable at any university in the United Kingdom; the Gates Cambridge Scholarship at the University of Cambridge; the Mitchell Scholarship, which is a one-year scholarship for Irish universities; and the Fulbright Scholarship, which is tenable at institutions worldwide.

Q: How do I apply to become a Rhodes scholar?

A: Apply online at Embark. You will need five to eight letters of recommendation, the endorsement of your institution, a personal essay, a certified transcript, a list of activities, and proof of citizenship. You should probably begin the process by the spring of your junior year, since the deadline for receipt of materials is in early October and many colleges to have their own internal deadlines, which precede the Rhodes deadline, for endorsing candidates. About 1,500 students nationwide usually apply each year, and approximately 200 are invited to the interview with their respective district's selection committee. These interviews usually occur earlier in the same weekend that the announcements are made.

More information is available on the U.S. Rhodes Scholarship website (www.rhodesscholar.org), on the website of the Rhodes Trust, and on Oxford's website.

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