The Petroleum Trust Development Fund (PTDF), on Monday, screened applicants for its overseas scholarship programme for Master’s and Doctorate degrees.
The screening, which held simultaneously across the six geo-political zones of the country, was aimed at selecting qualified candidates in oil and gas industry-related fields for the scholarship.
Speaking with journalists during the screening at the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT), Rivers State, the General Manager, Projects Department, PTDF, Mrs Ifeoma Nwokike, stated that the scheme was to bridge identified skills gap within the oil and gas sector.
Nwokike said: “The overseas scholarship scheme is done by PTDF to bridge identified skills gap within the oil and gas industry. Our mandate is capacity building in the oil and gas industry and we have been mandated to train Nigerians in the different skills and vocations in the oil and gas industry.
“So we give these scholarships to train Nigerians in top universities abroad so that they can come back and contribute to the oil and gas industry in the identified skills gap. The overseas scholarship scheme is well thought out and we have been able to fill the gaps over the years.”
She informed that 600 candidates were participating in Port Harcourt, which is the South-South zonal centre, adding that the number of candidates to be awarded the scholarship will be dependent on funding available.
The general manager said: “We train the best of Nigerians and PTDF scholars are known everywhere in the world. Our funding will determine the number of candidates that will be picked for the scholarships. The gaps are in engineering, geosciences, environmental studies and renewables.”
On his part, the Team Lead, Overseas Scholarship Interview Programme, Port Harcourt Centre, Ere Iyalla, said criteria for qualification included; good WAEC result, research proposal, statement of purpose and how it fits into the needs of the industry and professional memberships.
Speaking with LEADERSHIP, one of the candidates, Caleb Nwobasi, noted the transparency in the screening process.
Nwobasi, who is pursuing an opportunity for Master’s Programme in Civil Engineering and Management at the University of Glasgow, said: “I believe the process was fair and transparent, I believe there will be no backyard thing. This is my second time of applying, I applied two years ago and I wasn’t lucky. This year, I had to put more efforts, ensured all the relevant documents required are available so there will be no lapses.”
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