The Oppenheimer Memorial Trust Scholarship

Here at Career Wise we have a number of fantastic bursary and scholarship schemes covering a range of disciplines. For each scheme, we work closely with our clients to ensure we recruit the best candidates and we provide ongoing support to our students to make sure they thrive at university. After a well-deserved break over the festive season, we return this week with our first blog post of 2018. To provide a bit of inspiration for the year ahead, we thought this would be an ideal time to profile one of our most prestigious scholarship schemes, sponsored by The Oppenheimer Memorial Trust (OMT).

The Oppenheimer Memorial Trust Scholarship scheme administered by Career Wise

Before we tell you more about the OMT scholarship scheme and how you can apply, it’s important to clear up the distinction between a bursary and a scholarship as the terms are often used interchangeably. At Career Wise, we administer both bursaries and scholarships, which are sponsored by a range of different organisations. Bursaries and scholarships both involve an organisation, which can be a private company, government department or non-profit entity, giving financial support for students to complete a tertiary degree. The major difference is that scholarships are usually sponsored by non-profits or charitable trusts and do not typically involve a work obligation or employment contract. They are awarded based on financial need and academic merit and recipients are free to explore any work opportunities after graduation. The Oppenheimer Memorial Trust is the charitable trust of the Oppenheimer family, established in honour of Sir Ernest Oppenheimer, a successful diamond and gold entrepreneur, philanthropist and financier who founded the Anglo American Corporation. The Trust has a long tradition in investing in education. Career Wise entered into a partnership with the Trust in 2000 to administer the Trust’s undergraduate scholarship programme. Since then, we have successfully guided some 200 OMT scholars through their university careers across a range of disciplines and institutions. The OMT scholarship is a full scholarship, which means it covers all tuition and living costs, and as an OMT scholar you will enjoy the full support of a Career Wise bursary manager. Applications are open to Grade 12 and current university students who have demonstrated strong academic ability (with an overall average of at least 75%) and are in financial need.  In addition applicants should have proven leadership skills and/or a record of extra-curricular activities.  Unlike many other bursary and scholarship schemes, the OMT scholarship allows you to study any discipline and you are not limited to specific degrees or faculties.

Oppenheimer Memorial Trust Scholarship application process

The first step to becoming an OMT scholar is to ensure your academic results are strong, you can demonstrate your leadership skills and that you’re a well-rounded student with an interest in extramural activities. There is also an obligation to demonstrate financial need. There is a lot of competition to become an OMT scholar and it’s important to make sure your application stands out beyond just your academic results. You will need to apply to your chosen institution and degree and have provisional acceptance in order to submit your OMT application. If you need a refresher on how to apply to university, check out our first blog post (How to apply for a bursary). Once you have proof of your application, you’ll need to visit this bursaries and scholarships page (click here) and make sure you read all the details regarding the OMT scholarship scheme. Like the majority of our bursaries, you will need to complete the Career Wise online application, which you can easily access via our online portal (click here). The registration process is very straightforward and, once again, it’s worth taking another look at our first blog post (How to apply for a bursary) if you need some help. The most important thing is that you have a reliable email address and cell phone number and that you re-visit the site to keep up to date with your application. Once we receive your application we will consider you for the OMT scholarship as well as for other suitable bursaries and scholarships offered by our clients. Best of luck!