University of Galway Welcomes DIKTI Scholars

University of Galway is partnering with the Directorate General of Higher Education, Research & Technology, within the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research & Technology in Indonesia (DIKTI) on a Bridging Programme for junior lecturers in Indonesian universities leading to fully funded 4-year PhD scholarships.

Deputy President & Registrar Professor Becky Whay welcomed the 2024-25 cohort of 15 Indonesian lecturers to our campus on Monday. These candidates were selected from over 150 applications based on their potential and the compatibility with our research strengths in a range of disciplines across Health Sciences, Education, Geography, Nursing, Economics, Computer Science and Mathematics.

As part of the scholarship, the candidates will be participating in a 7-week pre-doctoral Bridging Programme with the University's English Language Centre (ELC). While previous iterations of the Bridging Programme in 2019 and 2021 provided a pathway for Indonesian scholars to study in any of the Irish universities, the latest partnership is exclusively with University of Galway.

Professor Whay commented, “This is significant step in the University’s effort to attract talented Indonesian PhD students and reflects the important role that pathway options like the Bridging Programme can play in developing and maintaining effective partnerships.”

There are over 4,000 public and private universities in Indonesia with approximately 17,000 lecturers holding a Master’s level degree. DIKTI has been investing in the development and training of lecturers to improve the quality of higher education in the country for the past 15 years and have sent over 2,500 lecturers abroad to undertake a PhD. Ireland’s reputation as leaders in doctoral education in Europe has proved very attractive for international PhD candidates and an excellent fit for the capacity building needs of Indonesia.