CANON COLLINS SCHOLARSHIP FOR ECONOMIC JUSTICE TO STUDY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF THE WITSWATERSRAND 2022

Canon Collins Trust

admin July 15, 2021

3 minutes read

Apply for the Canon Collins Scholarship for Economic Justice [Canon Collins Trust]

Deadline: 09 August 2021 3:00 pm GMT

About the Canon Collins Scholarship (Canon Collins Trust)

Canon Collins Trust, in partnership with the University of the Witwatersrand and the Institute of Economic Justice, is offering scholarships for a Masters of Commerce in Applied Development Economics at the University of the Witwatersrand in 2022. These scholarships seek to support exceptional individuals who are committed to social justice in Southern Africa, and for whom a postgraduate qualification is an essential tool in working towards advancing economic justice, and promoting equitable economic development that realises socio-economic rights for all. Funding for these scholarships has been made possible through support received from the Sol Plaatje Educational Project (SPEP).

We offer funding towards your Masters course, an opportunity to enhance your networks and strengthen your leadership skills through organised events, and a 6-month paid internship at the Institute of Economic Justice, a progressive economics think tank committed to building a more just economy.

Successful applicants will be expected to apply for the 2022 Wits University Postgraduate Merit Award.

About the University of the Witwatersrand

Commonly known as “Wits”, the University of the Witwatersrand developed out of the South African School of Mines, set up in Kimberley in 1896. The institution moved to Johannesburg in 1904 and acquired full university status in 1922. From the start, it embraced a philosophy of non-discrimination on the basis of race, which led to intense conflict with the government – including police raids and the detention of both faculty and students – during the apartheid era.

Though located largely in the district of Braamfontein in central Johannesburg, a major expansion programme in the 1960s and 1970s saw the university establishing facilities in other areas of the city such as Hillbrow and Parktown. It also acquired two farms about 40 kilometres to the north-west, Sterkfontein and Swartkrans, which incorporate a celebrated set of limestone caves and have proved a rich source of archaeological remains.

Its location in Johannesburg means that Wits is close to the economic powerhouse of the whole African continent. It was one of the founders of the African Research Universities Alliance and has an active programme of collaborative projects right across Africa and beyond. Highly research-intensive, it has made a major contribution to applied areas such as healthcare and the challenges of deep-level mining but performs strongly in subatomic physics and other fields of fundamental science.

The most famous alumnus of the university is Nelson Mandela, who studied law there and went on to become President of South Africa and the 1993 Nobel laureate for peace. The novelist Nadine Gordimer (Nobel Prize for Literature, 1991) also attended for a year, while Aaron Klug (Nobel Prize for Chemistry, 1982) and Sydney Brenner (Nobel Prize for Medicine, 2002) both took their first degrees at Wits.

Are you eligible?

Eligible applicants for the Canon Collins Trust must:

be a resident national of South Africa, Namibia or Zimbabwe;
be applying for a full-time Masters of Commerce in Applied Development Economics at the University of the Witwatersrand in 2022;
hold an honours’ level academic qualification with a minimum grade point average of 75%, or be in their final year of Honours study in the year of the application;
demonstrate a commitment to apply their skills and qualifications to advancing social justice, and promoting equitable economic development that realises socio-economic rights;
be available to undertake a 6-month paid internship at the Institute of Economic Justice immediately after completion of study.

Please download and read the guidelines carefully before applying for this scholarship.

Please see here for information on the Masters of Commerce in Applied Development Economics and the eligibility requirements of the university.

What we offer

The Canon Collins Scholarship for Economic Justice includes:

a contribution towards your costs for the duration of your study period (R60,000 per academic year);
a 6-month paid internship at the Institute for Economic Justice, a progressive economics think thank located in Johannesburg that works at the intersection of policy, research and advocacy to build a more just economy; and
an opportunity to enhance your networks, and strengthen your academic and leadership skills through organised events.

How to apply

Applications for this scholarship opens on 30th June 2021 and closes 15:00 BST on Mon, 9th August 2021.
Late applications will not be considered.