Applications for The Kellner Family Foundation’s grant award for Czech students at foreign universities opens on 1 February

Online applications can be submitted between 1 February and 30 April 2021. The Foundation’s Board of Trustees will make their decisions in June. Over the last 11 years, the Foundation has awarded almost CZK 100 million to 193 graduates from secondary schools across the Czech Republic. 

The application process for The Kellner Family Foundation’s 12th grant award will open on 1 February 2021. Candidates should complete the online form and upload all the necessary documents in order for the Foundation to assess their application. Candidates can log in on separate occasions to upload their documents, but all documents must submitted by the deadline of 30 April. 

The Foundation’s Board of Trustees will award the grants based on the recommendations of an expert panel by 30 June. The panel will consider the applicant’s academic achievements, university and the subject they are studying, as well as the student’s plans for the future and their economic background. Petra Dobesova, a member of the Board of Trustees for The Kellner Family Foundation has said, “A student’s subject is not a limiting factor in applying for a grant. However, we are increasingly inclined to aid those who decide to enrol at foreign universities on bachelor’s programmes that are only offered by a limited number of Czech institutions or not at all. These are disciplines that are very much in demand in our country and are usable in the Czech market.”. This is one of the reasons why, in recent years, the recipients of grants are frequently students of mathematics, the natural sciences (chemistry, biology, and physics), medicine, their related disciplines, or other interdisciplinary subjects.

The Foundation seeks to motivate successful applicants by awarding grants for one academic year. But, in most cases grants are awarded consistently throughout a student’s course of study. “As with previous years, we are planning to allocate CZK 10 million to successful applicants. As a result of Brexit and the related increase in the costs of studying, we expect a lower interest in UK universities and an increase in the number of candidates wanting to study in Ireland, the Netherlands, Denmark, and other EU countries,” says Petra Dobešová. Students can use the Foundations’ grants for both school fees and to cover other costs incurred while studying. 

Successful applicants agree to work in the field that they studied when they received the grant for at least three of the 15 years following graduation. They can put their experience to use in or for the benefit of the Czech Republic. 

This academic year, 53 students have received support from the Foundation. Of those, 16 are new grantees and 37 are continuing their studies. They are enrolled at 36 universities in Europe, the USA, and Asia and predominantly study natural and medical sciences and engineering subjects, although some study economics and art. The Foundation posts the profiles of all grantees on the Universities website, where blogs that the grantees have written, describing their experiences at university can also be found.

**

On the Universities project
Attending a foreign university does not have to an overambitious dream. For students who are talented, motivated and hard-working, but lack sufficient funds, The Kellner Family Foundation has developed the Universities project, through which it provides financial grants to students at prestigious foreign universities.

Candidates for the Universities project’s grants must submit their applications to the Foundation’s Board of Trustees by the end of April each year. Detailed information on applying can be found here: How to apply for a grant

The Foundation’s Board of Trustees decides on grants on the basis of selections and recommendations made by a panel composed of the Foundations’ officers and representatives of academia. In the second round of the selection process, the panel will meet with the short-listed students for personal interviews in June, either in person or online, depending on the circumstances.