EAC students eligible for CMU scholarships

Students from countries in the East African Community will be eligible for scholarships at the Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) in Rwanda, the government has announced. This will involve the two initial professional development programmes offered from February 2012 and the Master of Science in Information Technology (MSIT) from August 2012. “The scholarships will be offered to students who fulfill the academic requirements and acceptance to the CMU Rwanda programmes and completion of an evaluation form for the assessment of the student’s financial needs by the Ministry of Education,” reads a statement from MINEDUC. Loans will also be offered to Rwandan students by the Rwanda Education Board in addition to the scholarship. Scholarships will amount to 50 percent of the global tuition fee for the MSIT and to 50 percent of the enrolment fee for the professional development courses. Carnegie Mellon University globally will charge an estimated US$ 38,900 for the academic year 2012 / 2013. However, this rate will be confirmed in March 2012. This means that qualifying students would pay US$19,450 per annum, based on the estimation. The Minister of Education, Vincent Biruta, said that CMU is a regional ICT Centre of Excellence that Rwanda is proud to host. “These scholarships will give students from the region an opportunity to enroll in master’s programmes from one of the best universities in the world right here in Rwanda. They will learn from CMU’s renowned faculty about solving problems for our country and this region,” Biruta said. Bruce Krogh, the Director of CMU-Rwanda, expressed his gratitude to the government for offering the scholarships to support students from Rwanda and the region where it aims to make an impact. The CMU-Rwanda education programmes are offered by CMU’s School of Engineering which is ranked sixth in graduate engineering education by the 2011 U.S. News and World Report. CMU is the first top ranked U.S. research institution to offer graduate degrees in Africa with an in-country presence and resident faculty. maria.kaitesi@newtimes.co.rw

National

EAC students eligible for CMU scholarships