RIYADH, 18 June 2003 — Kholood Al-Qahtani of Arab News and Anees Al-Qedaihy of Asharq Al-Awsat were among the 16 winners of this year’s Chevening Awards scholarship, it was announced here yesterday.
An additional scholarship was announced for the first time this year to commemorate the golden jubilee of Queen Elizabeth’s reign. The winner of the Jubilee Scholarship award was Adel Al-Soraia, a young Saudi who teaches English at the Al-Onaiza Secondary Industrial Institute in Qassim Province.
The awards were announced by Dominic Asquith, deputy chief of mission at the British Embassy. The function, held at the ambassador’s residence, brought together the winners as well as their sponsors: The Saudi British Bank, BAE Systems and British Airways.
The Chevening Scholarship scheme is administered by the British Council, whose director, Alan Smart, was also present.
Welcoming the award winners, Asquith said the last eight months had been a trying period, since the candidates had to be screened and interviewed as part of the selection process.
Asquith said the Jubilee Scholarship Scheme was funded by the British business groups in Riyadh, Jeddah and the Eastern Province. It would be an annual scholarship award.
Geoff Calvert, managing director of the Saudi British Bank (SABB), told Arab News that since the inception of the scholarship scheme in 1997, the bank had sponsored 26 Saudis, including four this year. “An important aspect of our support is that we sponsor the Saudi students, including those from other banks,” he said.
Kholood Al-Qahtani, an editor at the Arab News head office in Jeddah, said she would be studying for an MA in journalism at Cardiff University.
Rana Fatani, another award winner, described her success as “super-amazing.” Rana currently works as a recruitment information coordinator at King Abdul Aziz Medical City in Jeddah. She will study for an MA in Human Resources Management at the University of Manchester. “I always wanted to do this, and the award is going to go a long way to helping me reach my goals,” she said.
Anis Al-Qedaihy of Asharq Al-Awsat will be doing a master’s degree in journalism at the University of Westminster. “This is a great opportunity for me and will help me grow professionally,” he said.
Each scholarship is of one-year duration.
Adel Al-Soraia, who has been working as an English teacher at the Al-Onaiza Secondary Industrial Institute since 1999, will be doing an MA in English Education from a British university.
