Rothermere fellowship deadline approaching

Students interested in applying for one of Memorial’s most prestigious scholarship still have a few weeks to fine tune their application form.
The deadline for the three-year Rothermere Fellowship, valued at approximately $38,000 per year, is Nov. 30.

Made possible by the generosity of the Rothermere Trust, the fellowship has opened doors for dozens of students who continue their post-secondary education in the United Kingdom since first awarded more than 50 years ago in 1956.

One such student was Raymond Critch, now Dr. Raymond Critch, a per-course instructor in the Faculty of Arts' Department of Philosophy and law and society program. He is also a Memorial staff member in the Off-Campus Housing Office.

Winning the Rothermere in 2007 allowed Dr. Critch to attend the University of Edinburgh for his doctoral studies in philosophy. He pursued the question of whether people are more altruistic towards others than has generally been assumed in modern political philosophy.

One of the highlights of Dr. Critch’s three-year fellowship (he subsequently spent a post-doctoral year at the University of Vienna) were the conferences he attended in locations such as Budapest, Copenhagen, Milan and London.

“Thanks to the Rothermere, I got to do philosophy for three years without having to do anything else. I got to explore the ideas I had wanted to explore for years under the guidance of some amazing academics,” said Dr. Critch.

Aside from missing living on Edinburgh's Royal Mile and enjoying pubs and Indian food, Dr. Critch is happy to be back home in Newfoundland.

“Now I’m back teaching issues in ethics here at Memorial – it’s exactly what I went over to Scotland hoping to become equipped to do.”

The Rothermere Fellowship was established by Lord Rothermere, Memorial University’s first chancellor, and includes university fees and certain other expenses such as return air travel to the U.K. One award is made each year by the Rothermere Fellowships Trust.

In order to be eligible for the fellowship, candidates shall have completed a bachelor’s degree at Memorial and have completed or be about to complete a master’s degree either at Memorial or at another university in North America.

Further information on the fellowship is available at www.mun.ca/rothermere/.

.