Nigeria Scholarship Scheme for Innovation and Development (PRESSID), 2015

The Federal Government of Nigeria invites application for Presidential Special Scholarship Scheme for Innovation and Development (PRESSID) for the third edition (2015/2016 academic session). PRESSID Scholarships are available for qualified candidates to pursue postgraduate studies at the top 25 universities in the world. Applicants must be graduates from the 2011/2012 and 2012/2013 academic sessions, who would have completed their National Youth Service by October 2014 and have obtained First Class Honours degree from any recognized and approved University. The application deadline is 18th October 2014.

Study Subject(s): Scholarships are awarded in the specified and allied programs: Sciences: Nuclear Physics, Operations Research, Industrial Chemistry, Quantitative Genetics, Biometrics, Molecular Biology, etc; Medicine: Clinical Sciences, Dentistry, Oncology, Human Genetics, Forensic Medicine, Physiotherapy, Hepatology, Nuclear Medicine, Geriatrics, ophthalmology, etc.; Veterinary medicine*: Veterinary Parasitology, Theriogenology, Public Health, etc; Basic Medical Sciences: Biochemistry, Physiology, Dentistry, Anatomy, Medical Biochemistry, Human Nutrition, Nursing Science, Anatomic and Molecular Pathology, Biomedical Engineering, Medical Microbiology, Physiotherapy, Pharmacology, etc; Pharmaceutical Sciences: Drug formulations, Natural products, Drug design, Phytochemistry, Ethnopharmacology, Pharmaceutical Microbiology, etc; Accounting/Actuarial Science: Financial Accounting, Management Accounting, Forensic Accounting, Petroleum Accounting, Cost & Management Accounting, Environmental Accounting, etc; Economics: Econometrics, Development Economics, Micro Economics, Macro Economics, Applied Economics, Labour Economics, etc; Engineering: Aeronautical Engineering, Mechatronics, Control Systems, Material Science and Production Engineering, Nanotechnology, Process Engineering, Energy Systems Engineering, Refinery Design and Operations, Subsea Engineering, Thermal Power (Gas Turbine Option), Reservoir Analysis, Drilling Optimization, Chemical Process Dynamics & Control, Process Modelling and Simulations, etc; Computing and Information Technology: Intelligent Robotic Systems, Computer Systems and Software Engineering, Computer Information Systems, Information Technology, Artificial Intelligence, Cyber-Security, etc.
Course Level: Scholarships are available for pursuing postgraduate studies at the top 25 universities in the world (University of Cambridge, UK, Harvard University USA, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), USA, Yale University, USA, University of Oxford, UK, Imperial College London, UK, University College London, UK, University of Chicago, USA,University of Pennsylvania (UPenn), USA, Columbia University, USA, Stanford University, USA, California Institute of Technology (Caltech), USA, Princeton University, USA, University of Michigan, USA, Cornell University, USA, Johns Hopkins University, USA, McGill University, Canada, ETH Zurich (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology), Switzerland, Duke University, USA, University of Edinburgh, UK, University of California, Berkeley (UCB), USA, University of Hong Kong (HKU), Hong Kong, University of Toronto, Canada, Northwestern University, USA, The University of Tokyo, Japan. The following 3 universities can be applied to in addition to the aforementioned 25 universities: University of California, Los Angeles, USA, Carnegie Mellon University, USA and University of Washington, USA.
Scholarship Provider: The Federal Government of Nigeria
Scholarship can be taken at: USA, UK, Canada, Japan, Hong Kong and Switzerland

Eligibility: Presidential Special Nigeria Scholarship Scheme for Innovation and Development (PRESSID)Interested candidates should:
-be graduates from the 2011/2012 and 2012/2013 academic sessions, who would have completed their National Youth Service by October 2014;
-have obtained First Class Honours degree from any recognized and approved University in the following disciplines and aim at postgraduate degrees in the specified and allied programs: Sciences: Nuclear Physics, Operations Research, Industrial Chemistry, Quantitative Genetics, Biometrics, Molecular Biology, etc;  

Medicine: Clinical Sciences, Dentistry, Oncology, Human Genetics, Forensic Medicine, Physiotherapy, Hepatology, Nuclear Medicine, Geriatrics, ophthalmology, etc.; Veterinary medicine*: Veterinary Parasitology, Theriogenology, Public Health, etc; Basic Medical Sciences: Biochemistry, Physiology, Dentistry, Anatomy, Medical Biochemistry, Human Nutrition, Nursing Science, Anatomic and Molecular Pathology, Biomedical Engineering, Medical Microbiology, Physiotherapy, Pharmacology, etc; Pharmaceutical Sciences*: Drug formulations, Natural products, Drug design, Phytochemistry, Ethnopharmacology, Pharmaceutical Microbiology, etc; Accounting/Actuarial Science: Financial Accounting, Management Accounting, Forensic Accounting, Petroleum Accounting, Cost & Management Accounting, Environmental Accounting, etc; Economics: Econometrics, Development Economics, Micro Economics, Macro Economics, Applied Economics, Labour Economics, etc; Engineering: Aeronautical Engineering, Mechatronics, Control Systems, Material Science and Production Engineering, Nanotechnology, Process Engineering, Energy Systems Engineering, Refinery Design and Operations, Subsea Engineering, Thermal Power (Gas Turbine Option), Reservoir Analysis, Drilling Optimization, Chemical Process Dynamics & Control, Process Modelling and Simulations, etc; Computing and Information Technology: Intelligent Robotic Systems, Computer Systems and Software Engineering, Computer Information Systems, Information Technology, Artificial Intelligence, Cyber-Security, etc.
-In the case of Medicine, Veterinary Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, candidates must have a minimum of 2 Distinctions in their Part 3 and Part 4 MBBS examinations or in their final results. In all cases, candidates must: not be above 30 years of age by October 2014; be computer literate; and be ready to be bonded and to work, preferably, as academic staff in any public university or research institute for a minimum period of five (5) years.

Scholarship Open for International Students: PRESSID Scholarships are open for citizens of Nigeria.

 Scholarship Description: As part of efforts to achieve the goals of Vision 20:2020 and the Transformation Agenda, the Federal Government of Nigeria is currently developing a critical mass of professionals who would serve as catalysts of change and agents of scientific and technological advancement, as well as sustainable economic development. This is being achieved through the sponsorship of outstanding students for postgraduate studies in the top 25 universities in the world. To this end, the Federal Government has instituted the Presidential Special Scholarship Scheme for Innovation and Development (PRESSID).The Scheme, which sponsors graduates that have obtained First Class Honours degrees from any recognized and approved university, was established in January 2012 and has awarded a total of two hundred and five (205) scholarships under two editions (the 2013/2014 and 2014/2015 academic sessions).

Duration of award(s): Scholarships are awarded for the duration of one academic year, i.e., for 2015/16.

How to Apply: Applications should be submitted online.

 Scholarship Application Deadline: Application closes on 18th October 2014.