Rhodes Scholarship

The criteria which Mr. Rhodes set forth in his Will still guide Committees of Selection in their assessment of applicants. The Will contains four standards by which prospective Rhodes Scholars should be judged:

• literary and scholastic attainments;
• energy to use one's talents to the full, as exemplified by fondness for and success in sports;
• truth, courage, devotion to duty, sympathy for and protection of the weak, kindliness, unselfishness and fellowship;
• moral force of character and instincts to lead, and to take an interest in one's fellow beings.

Because Rhodes Scholars are selected for their potential over a lifetime, importance is properly attached to their capacity to meet the demands for physical fitness imposed by an active career. Satisfying the second standard does not require evidence of outstanding achievement in organized sports. All applicants, however, should be able to demonstrate the physical vigor which will enable them to make an effective contribution to the world around them. Moreover, American and other foreign students who are prepared to participate in sports played in the English amateur tradition have typically derived additional benefits from their Oxford experience. Many lifetime international friendships have been formed as by-products of the athletic competition among Oxford's colleges. er and instincts to lead, and to take an interest in one's fellow beings.

In the United States, applicants for Rhodes Scholarships must be U.S. citizens, aged eighteen or over but not yet twenty-four on October 1 in the year of application. They must also have academic standing sufficient to assure completion of a bachelor's degree before going into residence in Oxford the following October in the event of election to a Scholarship. No allowance is made for the expenses of a married applicant's spouse. Moreover, spouses who are not British citizens will find it very difficult to obtain permission to undertake paid work in England.

Additional details about Oxford and the Rhodes Scholarship selection process can be found in the FAQ section of the United States Rhodes Scholarship web site: www.rhodesscholar.org. Serious candidates are strongly urged to read this question and answer discussion carefully.

Applications are typically due in October