Rwanda to offer scholarships to EAC students

KIGALI, Rwanda, Jan. 31, 2011 (Xinhua) — Rwanda on Tuesday announced that it would start giving scholarships to students from East African Community who would need to study at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) in Rwanda.

Rwanda is a member of east African community that comprises of five countries including Ugandan, Tanzania, Burundi, Kenya and Rwanda. Courses that will be considered are Professional Development short courses from February 2012 and the Master of Science in Information Technology (MSIT) from August 2012.

“The scholarships will be offered to students upon 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,” a statement sent to Xinhua from the Rwandan ministry of education said Scholarships will amount to 50% of the global tuition fee for the MSIT and to 50% of the enrolment fee for the Professional Development courses.

Carnegie Mellon University globally charges an estimate of 38, 900 USD for the academic year 2012 / 2013. However, this rate will be confirmed in March 2012. Scholarship therefore means that qualifying students would pay 19,450 USD per annum, based on the estimation. Vincent Biruta, education minister in Kigali mentioned that the scholarships will help students to add more knowledge to their studies.

“These scholarships will give students from the region the 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 Rwanda Government for offering these scholarships to support students from Rwanda and the region where we want to make an impact. CMU is the 1st top ranked U.S. research institution to offer graduate degrees in Africa with an in-country presence and resident faculty. (Xinhua)