The University of Otago has announced two new undergraduate scholarships and increased the values for eight of the scholarships currently offered. The University of Otago New Frontiers Scholarship and the University of Otago Vice Chancellor’s Scholarship, were approved in a council meeting last month.
The New Frontiers Scholarship, which aims “to support academically excellent students who enrol in their first year at the University of Otago”, focuses on student achievement at NCEA Level 2 or NCEA Level 3. Students who endorse with excellence at either of these levels, or meet equivalent standards, will be eligible for $2500 towards their tuition fees or residential hall. Students who endorse both levels with excellence will be eligible for $5000.
The scholarship will not be available to students enrolled in the Health Sciences first year, or those studying an intermediate year of a degree not offered at Otago (e.g. Engineering).
The Vice Chancellor’s Scholarship aims “to provide support for specific students at the discretion of the Vice Chancellor”. The value of the scholarship is unspecified, and awards are based on “consideration of academic merit, life and financial circumstances”.
A letter proposing the scholarships to council said the reason for the new scholarships and the increased value of current scholarships, is so that Otago scholarships “remain competitive when compared to the scholarships now being offered by other universities”.
The University of Otago Leaders of Tomorrow Scholarship has had its minimum value increased from $5000 to $6000. If the student is the dux of their secondary school, the scholarship increases to $9000.
The Academic Excellence Scholarship now includes a full waiver of first-year tuition fees and free accommodation at a university-affiliated residential hall. Recipients will now also receive $10,000 in their second and third years.
The University of Otago Performance Scholarship has been increased from $5000 in one year to $16,000 over three years. The Dux, Donna-Rose Disability Support, and Otago Alumni scholarships have all increased from $5000 to $6000.
The University of Otago Maori and Pacific Peoples’ Scholarship has been increased to $10,000, and recipients based outside Dunedin will have a guaranteed place in a residential college.
Entrance scholarships will now also be available to international students, provided they have completed NCEA Level 2 and 3.
