SA_Scholarships & Loans

No, requirement of English language to apply for the Chevening Scholarship was removed in 2020. However, as other points of the eligibility criteria for the Chevening Scholarship, students will be required to have received at least 1 offer from their three choices, which may require them to have proof of English proficiency. 

Chevening scholarship's shortlisting process from the date of the application deadline to the date of conditional selection of the recipients may take somewhere around 8 months applications to come up to the final list. 

FCDO expects Chevening scholars to prioritise their studies. However it also recognises the value of gaining work experience in the UK to enhance your career and overall experience. For this reason, ensure that any work you do complies with your visa conditions and does not interfere with your academic studies and performance.

If you are unsure about your visa permissions for work, contact the welfare and immigration team of the Chevening Scholarship with a copy of your visa and passport for clarification. 

There is no scholarship that can be tagged as the "the easiest one to get". Getting a scholarship depends entirely on your profile, your academic documents, and your timely submitted and completely filled application. 

To get a fully funded scholarship, you need top grades, strong test scores, compelling essays (SOP/LORs), relevant experience and proactive research into specific, prestigious programs like Fulbright and Chevening, applying early with all required documents like transcripts and English tests for full tuition and living cost coverage. 

Primary fully funded option is Manaaki New Zealand Government Scholarship. This covers full tuition, a living stipend, and airfare. Also, Indian students can apply for University-specific Ph.D. scholarships (like at Otago or Auckland), which often provide full funding for research candidates.

First step to apply for a fully funded scholarship is to identify which of the scholarships cover your tuition 100%. Next up is reading all the conditions of the scholarship including its eligibility conditions. Make sure to match your qualifications with them and also make sure that your chosen course is also covered in the eligible courses. 

Read complete application process suggested on the scholarship page and follow as they suggest. Prepare your documents and apply within the application window.  

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) offers loans to smaller banks like SBI and ICICI bank. Repo Rate is ROI that these smaller banks have to pay when they borrow money from RBI. IT changes time to time.

There is no fixed rate of interest for PM Vidya Lakshmi education loan. ROI completely depends on the bank loan scheme and profile of a candidate. If your CIBIL score is 700+ ROI can be less.

ICICI education loan ROI is 9.25% to 10.25% in December 2025. It can be simply calculated with formula "Repo Rate + 3.75% onwards". Current Repo rate announced by RBI is 5.5%