Russian nuclear energy corporation woos Kenyan students with scholarships

Russian nuclear energy corporation, Rosatom has announced that applications are now open for scholarships in nuclear for Kenyan and other African students to help develop the next generation of African nuclear scientists and engineers.

The scholarships fully fund tuition fees and partly living expenses.

“The goal of the scholarship is to support interest in nuclear research and capabilities among young African scientists and engineers and contribute to solving some of the world’s most critical issues in the nearest future allowing for the continent to be self-sufficient”, Rosatom Central and Southern Africa’s CEO Dmitry Shornikov said in a statement sent to newsrooms on Wednesday.

Scholarships are available for students interested in studying nuclear energy related fields in Russia and include tuition fees and free preparatory courses of Russian language depending on the university program.

Students will have access to subsidizeded accommodation, library funds and practical experience at Russian nuclear enterprises.

Several study options are available at Russian universities specialising in nuclear engineering such as the National Research Nuclear University MEPhI in Central Russia and Tomsk Polytechnic University (TPU) in Siberia.

READ: KENYA’S PLAN FOR NUCLEAR ENERGY ON COURSE

MEPhI is the leading Russian university in the field with more than 75 years’ expertise in nuclear engineering.

The company is the key partner of Rosatom in the field of educating young high- qualified nuclear specialists and today hosts more than 1500 foreign students from 57 countries, including over 50 students from sub-Saharan Africa including South Africa.

Bachelor’s Degree involves programmes in Nuclear Power Engineering and Thermal Physics; Nuclear Reactors and Materials; Nuclear Power Plants: Design, Operation and Engineering.

Master’s Degree programmes in Nuclear Physics and Engineering; Nuclear Power Engineering and Thermo Physics are also available as well as Postgraduate Degree in Nuclear Power Engineering and Technologies.

TPU is the only Russian university equipped with a nuclear research reactor available for foreign students.

The IRT-T research reactor has been commissioned in July 1967 and is now used for peaceful atom technologies such as nuclear medicine, transmutation neutron alloying, isotope engineering, thorium power engineering.

In over 60 years, more than 12, 000 specialists graduated from TPU, including 8 000 trained in nuclear engineering and research.

TPU offers Bachelor’s Degrees in Nuclear Physics and Technology, a Master’s Degree in Nuclear Power Installations Operation, Nuclear Medicine and a Postgraduate Degree in Nuclear, Thermal and Renewable Energy and Related Technologies.

Rosatom cooperates with these universities to create opportunities for training Rosatom partner-countries’ academicians.

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Shornikov also notes: “This is a great opportunity for scientists and engineers based specifically in Sub-Saharan Africa as well as for the recent matriculants in the region who made progress in mathematics and the sciences and want to apply for nuclear specialties”

Interested persons can visit www.russia.study and fill in an application form.

The deadline for the first round of applications closes on 15 February 2019.