Overview
Every year CWIT offers two long term awards. These scholarships are for artists (all disciplines) and usually cover 10 months (the taught MA programme). The scholarships are very competitive and each year the grants panel has a tough job trying to identify the people who are likely to benefit the most. The scholarships are for artists and heritage professionals aged between 28–38 years and enables them to gain expertise in their chosen fields through postgraduate study (one year course) at a UK university. Please check the eligibility criteria (below) before applying.
The Charles Wallace India Trust has created a multi-year partnership with the University of Oxford, Ruskin School of Art. CWIT and the university will jointly fund a scholarship for an emerging artist (who is an Indian national and residing in India) to do a one-year Masters degree in Fine Art (MFA) at the Ruskin School of Art. The current plans are for annual scholarships to be awarded in (2023) 2025 and 2027.
The Ruskin School of Art will select the next awardee in 2025 so if you are interested in applying for a MFA degree we suggest that you contact them directly.
You can also email graduate@rsa.ox.ac.uk and ask them about the Oxford-Charles Wallace India Trust Scholarship.
Please do not contact CWIT or the British Council about this opportunity.
Very occasionally, a grant may be awarded to an individual who has designed their own professional development programme (through one or more modular courses), outside of a university setting and these are usually for between three to six months. We encourage Artists and Makers who wish to explore new techniques for example in the field of ceramics, to apply in this way.
CWIT grant includes: accommodation and living costs in the UK and a contribution of £700 towards the international travel costs.
CWIT grant does not include: travel costs within India; UK visa costs; or the costs of obtaining a valid IELTS certificate. Successful candidates will also need to arrange the appropriate level of insurance cover for travel and medical emergencies.
Members of our Grants Panel
Ruskin School of Art
Eligibility
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The applicant should:
Be an Indian citizen living in India
Be aged between 28 and 38
Have not received a CWIT grant within the last five years
Have a first degree, diploma or professional qualification in their specialisation. CWIT prefers applicants with significant working experience
Fields Of Study
CWIT covers the following Arts and Heritage Conservation fields of study:
Arts
Visual Arts
Performance, e.g. Dance, Drama, Music, Directing
Film - including Script Writing and Direction
Photography
Design (but not Architecture)
Curating
Art History
Heritage Conservation
Conservation architecture
Management of heritage projects or sites
Conservation of materials such as timber, stone, metal (including metal structures, armour and artefacts), paintings, photographs and film.
Management of museums and collections
Engineering, in relation to conservation of heritage buildings and structures
The Trust does not currently support post graduate study in nature conservation.
How To Apply
Each year, applicants are shortlisted on the basis of their applications and invited to participate in an online interview. The panel of Indian experts are chaired by CWIT. Results of the interviews are announced in April.
Your application form should include a Statement of Purpose, stating clearly which course you plan to follow, what you want to do in the UK and how you plan to put this into use on returning to India.
You will also need:
An IELTS Certificate (essential for unconditional acceptance for most UK courses).
Evidence of unconditional acceptance on the course for which you have applied, or evidence of progress towards acceptance.
Portfolio submission where appropriate in an online link.
Applications are now open.
The General Data Protection Regulation came into force in May 2018 and requires organisations to state their policies regarding the protection of personal data. The Charles Wallace India Trust (CWIT) holds the personal data of all applicants seeking grants eg their names, addresses, telephone numbers and next of kin.
CWIT shares this personal data with the British Council which manages the application process for the Scholarships or long-term grants. You can read the Privacy policy of the British Council here. We also hold UK bank account details for scholarship awardees to whom we arrange to pay monthly living grants. These are shared only with our bankers when we issue instructions to set up Standing Orders, and not with the British Council.