Just to avoid confusion, the Shell Corporation offers scholarships in many countries and different regions, but the scholarship that we will be talking about is the Malaysia Scholarship Programme. It is highly restrictive to a small number of students, so don’t be surprised if you don’t fit the bill here. Even if you don’t, don’t be discouraged since there are a huge number of scholarships that are available to all international students. To give you a nudge to the right scholarship, please visit our post concerning Berea Scholarship if you can’t apply due to the eligibility requirements. Without further ado, let’s see the listed application requirements for Shell Scholarship!

Eligibility Requirements of Shell Scholarship

Unlike previous posts, I will not just put a list of eligibility requirements and expect you to understand it. Instead, I will delve deeper by explaining each eligibility requirement the way that I understood it. I will try my best to explain the terms that you might not understand at first, so please bear with me through the explanation process. To save your time and mine, be sure to look at other scholarship posts if you don’t meet all of the eligibility requirements listed below.

  • Show Strong Leadership Skills and Active Participation in Extracurricular Activities
  • Doesn’t Currently Hold Other Scholarships / Loans
  • Show Strong Academic Achievements By Either/Or
    • Minimum 8 As in SPM (A/A+)
    • Excellent O-Level Grades at IGSCE (A*/A)
  • Be Eligible to Work in Malaysia
  • Be Less Than 19 Years of Age
  • Be Pursuing One of the Listed Fields of Study

As previously mentioned, eligibility requirements for Shell Scholarship are highly restrictive, and if you have found any of the eligibility requirements that you might not fit in, be sure to double-check by reading the in-depth information that I have posted down below. Just by looking at the eligibility requirements, you might have several questions concerning the academic achievements or the required fields of study, so be sure to stick to the end before giving up on Shell Scholarship.

1. Show Strong Leadership Skills and Participate in Extracurricular Activities

This is a typical requirement for many full-ride scholarships since this requirement compasses several major areas. First of all, you need to learn how to lead and to overcome difficulties when you are faced with one. Sometimes, leadership skills can be shown in being put in a position of authority among your peers, but don’t be discouraged if you have never been elected to a position of authority. You can also show leadership skills through service since most leaders started at the bottom level before climbing up, so be sure to include your community service if you have been an active participant.

The second key requirement is being able to participate outside your academic curriculum. Your school is an academic institution that opens the way of knowledge and learning, but it is also a place full of extracurricular activities. You can participate in sports, play an instrument, or participate in a group of your interest. If your school does not offer extracurricular activities, you can even participate outside of school and pursue your dreams elsewhere. Most companies look for students who are actively involved inside their classrooms and during their personal life as well.

2. Doesn’t Currently Hold Other Scholarships / Loans

If you are already receiving funding from another source or any type of financial aid, you are disqualified from this scholarship. This doesn’t mean the funding from your parents, but it categorizes financial support from external organizations such as private foundations or local businesses. In addition, you are disqualified for this scholarship if you are in debt. Being in a loan is a synonymous term for being in debt since you are borrowing money and need to pay it back. If you want to apply for this scholarship, you shouldn’t be receiving external funding and also not be in debt.

3. Show Strong Academic Achievements

These academic achievements can be shown in two different types of curriculum, and they are either SPM or at O-Level IGCSE. Let’s cover the first curriculum, which is also known as SPM. Offered in the country of Malaysia, SPM is a nation-wide examination that all high school students must take in order to graduate from high school, but you don’t get to pass this requirement even if you have already taken this test since there is a grade requirement. For SPM, you need to get a minimum of 8As ( A or A+) in order to pass the academic requirements of the Shell Scholarship.

If you are not planning to take SPM anytime soon, you have an alternative approach, which is getting an O-Level grade at IGCSE. The first hard term that we are faced with is an O-Level grade, which has a similar meaning as a passing grade. A passing grade of O-Level (Ordinary Level) Courses is C or higher, but you would not pass the academic requirements of Shell Scholarship with an ordinary grade since Shell Corporation is looking for outstanding applicants. In order to pass the academic standard, you need to have a grade of A or A*, which is the top two grades of IGCSE.

The next term is IGCSE, which is short for the International General Certificate of Secondary Education. IGCSE is also a national examination that is taken by high school students who are close to graduating, and IGCSE is mostly offered by international schools and schools in United Kingdom. In addition, a small number of schools in the United States also offer these exams, but it is highly unlikely since most institutions in the US accept SAT or ACT scores. As mentioned before, you need a really high grade also in IGCSE if you want to pass the academic requirements of the Shell Scholarship. In order to pass the requirement #3, you need to get a high grade in one of the two national examinations listed here. Before we spend too much time in the academic requirement, let’s speed on through the rest of the application requirements.

4. Be Eligible to Work in Malaysia Prior to Application

Since this scholarship is offered in Shell Malaysia, you will be offered a position in addition to the scholarship benefits if you do receive this award. Because of this offered position in Malaysia, you need to be eligible to work in Malaysia before you submit your application documents. The applicants of Shell Scholarship split into two groups, which are applicants with Malaysia citizenship and foreign students without Malaysia citizenship. You can pass this eligibility requirement even if you don’t have Malaysian citizenship.

If you are an applicant that is not born in Malaysia (most international students), you have to graduate from a university in Malaysia in order to be eligible to work. Even though it might be inconvenient for you, it is a small thing to worry about since Malaysia allows international students in local institutions to work after college graduation. If you are a Malaysian, then you don’t have to worry about the work permit since you are already eligible to work due to your citizenship status

5. Be Less Than 19 Years of Age

Now, this probably is the limiting requirement for most applicants since Shell Scholarship is only available to high school students who are either graduating or nearly ready to graduate. Awarding high school students with an undergraduate scholarship, Shell Corporation is trying to maintain its business by scouting out talented applicants who could be an asset to their corporation. It’s a win-win situation for talented students since you are not required to stay in the Shell Corporation for the rest of your life, but you can use the work experience at Shell to apply for a higher position that might be your dream job.

6. Be Pursuing One of the Following Fields of Study

Since Shell Corporation needs talented people in several specific areas, you need to be planning to pursue one of the following fields of study in order to apply, and if you are intending to pursue in any one of the listed fields, then you are good to go.

  • Engineering: Mechanical, Civil, Chemical, Petroleum, Electrical & Electronics, Environmental, Sustainable
  • Sciences: Geology, Geosciences, Geomatics, Geophysics, Data Science
  • Commercial: Business & Management, Digital Marketing

Even though you have passed all of the previous requirements, you might be at a crossroads if your intended field of study is not listed here. Think again, and if you really want to pursue your dream, then go ahead. However, for students who are willing to pursue any of the above-listed fields, then you have passed the final eligibility requirement of Shell Scholarship.

Benefits of Shell Scholarship

Even though it is not listed specifically in the Shell Scholarship Homepage, every Shell Scholarship Recipient is sponsored by the Shell Corporation, which means Shell will financially support your studies locally or overseas during your whole undergraduate education. The sponsorship will probably include full coverage of your educational fees (tuition and mandatory fees), room & board (accommodation and food), and personal expenses (transportation, personal laptops, and more). I don’t know why that Shell Corporation didn’t list specific benefits of its scholarship, but it says that Shell will sponsor the scholarship recipient, so I think that it will be similar to a full-ride scholarship.

In turn, every Shell Scholarship Recipient is required to serve in the Shell Corporation for a certain period of time after their college graduation. Since you have been provided full-funding during your college academic career, you are expected to pay them back through hard work and years of service.

Check Also: Available Programs for International Students

How to Apply for Shell Scholarship

After making sure that you are indeed eligible for Shell Scholarship, you have finally approached the first step, which is applying for this scholarship. Since this scholarship is offered by a private organization (Shell Corporation), it does have a time limit since this is one of the most prestigious scholarships offered in Malaysia, so make sure to check the application deadline first before getting too excited. The first step of the application process begins with an online scholarship application. This step ensures that you have indeed passed all the eligibility requirements, and it also eliminates other applicants who might not be qualified for this scholarship.

After getting their list of prospective applicants, you will be required to take an online practice test and a video interview. All the specifics regarding the online test and the video interview are listed on the homepage, so be sure to check that out if you have any lingering questions. Last but not least, the final step of the application procedure is a final interview with the Shell Scholarship Board of Trustees. To sum it up,

  • 1st – Online Scholarship Application
  • 2nd – Online Tests
  • 3rd – Video Interview
  • 4th – Final Interview

This is it! We hope this helps, and the link to the Shell Scholarship Website is listed here. Good luck, and I will see you soon on my next post! Make sure to also check out the Available Programs for International Students!

 

About the Author: Hyun Lee

Hyun is the founder at Global Scholarships. He has received a full-tuition scholarship at Birmingham-Southern College as well as $1,000 Burger King Scholarship for his undergraduate degree and has been offered a fully funded scholarship consisting of tuition, living stipend, and health insurance for computer science Ph.D. program at North Carolina State University. Read more about his scholarship journey here.

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