Frequently Asked Questions

Written applications must be filed online through the Rhodes House online application portal by October 12, 2012. Please see the 'how to apply' section of this website for details on eligibility and application requirements. Full details on the process are also contained in the current Rhodes Memorandum.

Rhodes Scholars come from many academic backgrounds and pursue a wide variety of courses while at Oxford.  The scholarship is more accurately viewed as an investment in a person of remarkable promise than support for a particular course of study.  Please see the current Rhodes Memorandum for details on the possible degree pathways that could be supported by this scholarship.  With these scenarios in mind, applicants should study The University of Oxford's course offerings carefully in determining the degree and subject for which they would apply.

Canada has been divided into six areas with regional committees responsible for the selection of 11 scholars annually across the country.  Each year, two scholars are selected from each of Ontario, Quebec, and the Maritimes (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island); one scholar is selected from each of British Columbia and Newfoundland; and three scholars are selected across the Prairies region (Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba).

Candidates may apply in the province or region described under either (a) or (b) below:

(a)    The province in which they are ordinarily resident. If a candidate is ordinarily resident in Nunavut, the Yukon or Northwest Territories, application may be made in a province under (b) or, if there is no such province, in the Prairies Region (Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta). If ordinarily resident in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia or Prince Edward Island, application may be made in a province under (b) or, alternatively, in the Maritime Region.

(b)    Any province in which they have attended a university, provided that if a candidate is ordinarily resident outside Newfoundland, an application may not be made in that province. Summer courses do not qualify as attendance at a university.

If a candidate is in doubt about the appropriate province or region in which to apply, the General Secretary should be contacted and will decide on the basis of available evidence.

This is the single most important element in your application package. The personal statement is your chance to tell your story: who are you? what matters to you? what are you out to do in the world? Your list of activities and your reference letters will provide the substantive detail of your commitments and accomplishments, but this essay gives you the opportunity to cast the overarching narrative for the selection committee.

Ask yourself probing questions about why you do what you do; take the time to really sound yourself out and consider the larger contexts for your actions and initiatives in depth. Work your way toward a strong yet supple sense of your reason for being and think carefully about how the chance to study at Oxford fits into your vision of the future.

The personal essay should thread the rest of your application together into a coherent and compelling story, giving members of the selection committee a vivid sense of your trajectory. They will use this essay when formulating their questions in interview, and it will also be sent along to Oxford as part of the University's admissions process.

Selection committees are made up of past Rhodes Scholars and leaders in the academic, business, and public policy communities. Regional secretaries aim to balance the make-up of the committee so that there will be the fullest possible play of perspectives contributing to the interview and decision-making process.

The interview is of core importance as it is here that selection committees have the opportunity to weigh up a candidate's depth of engagement, accomplishments, and aspirations. In posing their questions, committee members initiate discussion that will help them ascertain who best represents the potential Cecil Rhodes sought to invest in. Proven intellectual and academic attainment of a high standard is the first quality required of scholars, but they are also required to show integrity of character, sympathy for and protection of the weak, and ability to lead and the energy to use their talents to the full. The interview will therefore be wide-ranging in nature, designed to test candidates' intellectual skills and reasoning ability, but also to reveal their core commitments and potential to make a positive contribution to society.

Many applicants wonder how they might best prepare for the interview. Know yourself, be ready to speak with passion and energy about what you have done and what you intend to do, have a sense of what's going on in the world and something to say about it. The interview will be a rigorous intellectual discussion that will test not just the breadth and depth of your knowledge, but also your positions and ability to defend these positions on a variety of important issues ranging from the political to the social, and the cultural to the economic. The best preparation for these interviews is to know what is going on at a general level in your own province and country as well as around the world, and to have spent significant time thinking and talking about these issues with other interested people. Rhodes Scholars are meant to be engaged citizens, so if you don't already read publications such as the Globe and Mail and The Economist regularly, it would be a good idea to start now.

Try not to be overly intimidated by the interview. While it will no doubt be a little nerve-wracking to face a panel of seven or more bright, accomplished interviewers, remember that they have a sincere interest in discovering who you are. Their questions are not designed to trip you up, but to draw you out.  The opportunity to discuss your ideas with so many intelligent and interesting people is a rare one indeed, and once underway, the interview can be very stimulating and even enjoyable.

You should of course carefully review your own application beforehand so that you are able to remember quickly how you framed your experience for the committee. Be ready to discuss the issues you raised in the application as well as the major events, organizations, beliefs and subjects that surround these issues. Questions will certainly arise from your personal statement, which is of utmost importance. Ensure that this essay accurately expresses your experience, your aspirations, and your spirit, and the conversation should flow naturally, enabling you to show who you are.

Applicants are expected to have made the most of their opportunities for non-academic participation, which is often demonstrated by sporting activities. However, taking into account the varying abilities of each applicant, the selection committees will review with interest an applicant's involvement in music, theatre, and other activities. There are powerful ways of demonstrating vigor aside from athletic pursuits.

No. While this is the track of the vast majority of candidates, people may also apply after a year or two spent in graduate or professional school or in the workforce. 

Applicants for the Rhodes Scholarship must be born in the date range shown on the Memorandum. There are no exceptions, deferrals or adjustments to this age range for applicants under any circumstances.

No. The committees will only read the first six reference letters received for each candidate, so choose the six people who will best be able to attest to the criteria envisioned. Please see the 'overview' section of this website for Cecil Rhodes's vision of the scholarship. Please ensure that at least four of your reference letters are academic in nature, bearing witness to your scholarly achievement and intellectual potential.

Yes. Applicants should bear in mind, however, that the Scholarship stipend is sufficient only for one person, and that the Trust takes no financial responsibility for the support of a Scholar's spouse.

Yes. Every university organizes its own screening process, enabling them to identify and support students who best satisfy the criteria for the Rhodes Scholarship. Ask early at the Fellowships and Awards Office on your campus to find out more.

The Rhodes Scholarship application process now takes place online, so appicants must upload an official copy of their transcript marked by the stamp of the Registrar's office. All candidates shortlisted for interview will also have to bring along an original transcript, sealed and stamped by their university Registrar.

No. Scholars come into residence in Oxford in October of the year following their selection.

Applicants should research their course of study extremely thoroughly as they prepare their Rhodes application and ready themselves for interview.  Successful candidates should be prepared to file their Oxford application almost immediately after their election and certainly by early December.  The admissions process at the University works in stages, by a series of gathered fields, so early application meets with the greatest possible chance of acceptance.

The basic tenure of the Scholarship is two years, subject always, and at all times, to satisfactory academic performance and personal conduct. Only Scholars reading for a DPhil are eligible for a third year of funding. Please see the current Rhodes Memorandum for a detailed description of the various pathways of study supported by the Scholarship.