December 14, 2010
By Emmnuel Elebeke
As part of its ongoing
scholarship programme
across the nation, MTN
Foundation, the corporate
social investment vehicle of
MTN Nigeria, has said that
it is set to present new
scholarships to 238
Nigerian undergraduates
for the 2010/2011
academic session.
Also at the programme,
the Foundation said it will
also be renewing the
scholarships of another
264 students who
maintained a 3.5
cumulative grade point
average (CGPA) in their
studies, from a total of
500 who benefitted from
the first phase of the
scholarship scheme last
year.
The 238 beneficiaries of
the scheme this year, like
their counterparts last
year, had passed through
a rigorous assessment
exercise conducted
simultaneously in three
zones of the country by
the Joint Admissions and
Matriculation Board (JAMB).
In addition, MTN said they
met all the criteria set for
the selection of
beneficiaries.
According to the
Foundation, some of the
criteria adopted in the
selection process include;
the course of study, type
of tertiary institution (only
public institutions), current
level of study (only 200
level), academic grade
(only 2nd Class Upper or
Upper Credit), institution ’s
confirmation, economic
status of parents and the
strength of the essay
entered by candidates.
Haven met all these
requirements, MTN
Foundation said it is set to
present successful
candidates scholarships at
separate ceremonies in
Zaria, Enugu, and Lagos,
the three zones where
the tests were held.
The first batch of
presentations will take
place in Zaria on December
13, 2010; the second
batch, in Enugu on
December 17, and the last
batch in Lagos on
December 20.
Director, MTN Foundation,
Wale Goodluck, said
“ Education is pivotal to the
growth and development
of any nation. Through this
scheme, we hope to
provide opportunities for
hundreds of our brilliant
but indigent students to
acquire qualitative tertiary
education in order to
optimize their potential. ”
According to him, the
scholarship scheme will also
encourage Nigerian
students to take interest
in Science and Technology-
related courses for the
ultimate benefit of the
country.
He praised the awardees
for their hard work,
dedication and industry
while congratulating them
for scaling through the
stringent test and criteria
which produced the 238
final recipients.
Government officials, top
officials of MTN and MTN
Foundation, as well as
other dignitaries are
expected at the
presentation ceremonies.
The MTN Foundation
Science and Technology
Scholarship Scheme kicked
off last year with 500
beneficiaries drawn from
accredited public
universities, polytechnics
and colleges of education
across the six geo-political
zones of Nigeria.
The scholarship, worth
N200, 000 per academic
year, covering tuition,
book allowance and pocket
allowance, is renewable
provided recipients
maintain a minimum of 3.5
CGPA in their course of
study.