The Rhodes Scholarship: A Legacy of Excellence and Controversy

The Rhodes Scholarship stands as one of the world's most prestigious academic awards, offering exceptional students the opportunity to pursue postgraduate studies at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Established in 1902, it is also the oldest international scholarship program. The scholarship attracts thousands of applicants each year, awarding approximately 32 scholarships to students from the United States annually.

Historical Context and Objectives

The Rhodes Scholarship was founded by Cecil Rhodes, a British businessman and politician, who bequeathed his fortune to establish the scholarship program. Rhodes's vision was to foster unity within the British Empire and strengthen diplomatic ties between Britain and the United States of America.

Numerous international scholarship programmes were very much underway by 1900. Since the 1880s, governments, universities, and individuals in the settler colonies had been establishing travelling scholarships to home universities. By 1900, the travelling scholarship had become an important part of settler universities' educational visions. It served as a crucial mechanism by which they sought to claim their citizenship of what they saw as the expansive British academic world.

Selection Criteria and Global Reach

The Rhodes Trust administers and awards the Rhodes Scholarships from Rhodes House in Oxford. The selection process emphasizes intellectual distinction, leadership potential, and a commitment to service. Candidates are evaluated on their literary and academic achievements, athletic involvement, character traits such as truth and courage. In 2018, the criteria were revised to emphasize using one's talents and caring for others.

The scholarship's basic tenure is two years, but it may be held for one or three years. The Rhodes Trust covers university and college fees. Rhodes Scholars may study any full-time postgraduate course offered by the university, whether a taught master's program, a research degree, or a second undergraduate degree.

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As of 2018, the Rhodes Scholarship is open to postgraduate students from anywhere in the world. Scholars are selected from over 20 Rhodes constituencies (64 countries) worldwide. In 2015, the Rhodes Scholarship extended into new territories, first with the announcement of a number of scholarships for China, later with the announcement of one to two scholarships per year for the United Arab Emirates.

Notable Rhodes Scholars

The prestige of the Rhodes Scholarship stems in part from the accomplishments of its alumni, who have gone on to illustrious careers in various fields. Here are some notable Rhodes Scholars:

Cory Booker: The junior senator from New Jersey since 2013 and former mayor of Newark, studied history at Oxford on a Rhodes scholarship.
Bill Bradley: A basketball star at Princeton University and Olympic gold medalist, delayed his professional basketball career to study at Oxford on a Rhodes scholarship. He later served as a New Jersey senator.
Pete Buttigieg: The former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, and current Secretary of Transportation in the Biden Administration, earned a master's in philosophy, politics, and economics from Oxford.
Bill Clinton: The 42nd President of the United States, studied law at Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar.
Ronan Farrow: An American journalist and son of Woody Allen and Mia Farrow, graduated from Oxford with a doctorate in political science. He won a Pulitzer Prize for his investigative reporting on Harvey Weinstein.
Howard Florey: An Australian pharmacologist, won a Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine for his work isolating and purifying penicillin. He received his medical training at Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar.
James William Fulbright: After earning a bachelor's degree from the University of Arkansas, James William Fulbright studied political science at Oxford on a Rhodes scholarship. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 1943 and credited his time at Oxford for helping him gain valuable perspective when considering international relations in legislation. He later served in the Senate from 1945 to 1974.
Edwin Hubble: The namesake of the Hubble Space Telescope, earned a law degree at Oxford on a Rhodes scholarship before pursuing a career in astronomy.
Bobby Jindal: The former governor of Louisiana, studied at Oxford on a Rhodes scholarship.
Kris Kristofferson: An American singer, songwriter, and actor, studied the works of English poet and painter William Blake and earned a master's degree from Oxford.
Terrence Malick: Known for directing critically acclaimed films, was awarded a Rhodes scholarship in 1966 after graduating from Harvard.
Susan Rice: A former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations and National Security Advisor, earned master's and doctoral degrees in international relations from Oxford.
Myron Rolle: A former NFL player, put his football career on hold to study medical anthropology at Oxford.
David Souter: A former Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, attended Oxford on a Rhodes scholarship.
Bonnie St. John: The first African American to win a Winter Olympics medal, earned a master's degree from Oxford.
George Stephanopoulos: A political commentator and anchor, earned a master's degree in theology from Oxford.
Heather Wilson: An 11-year veteran of the Air Force, earned master's and doctoral degrees from Oxford on a Rhodes scholarship.

Controversies and Criticisms

Despite its prestige, the Rhodes Scholarship has faced controversies since its inception.

Exclusion and Discrimination

Initially, the scholarship was limited to male students within the Commonwealth of Nations, Germany, and the United States. It wasn't until 1977 that the Sex Discrimination Act led to the inclusion of women. Protests for the inclusion of non-white scholars began in the 1970s, but it was not until 1991 that Black South Africans were awarded the scholarship due to the political changes in the country.

Cecil Rhodes's Legacy

Criticism of Cecil Rhodes's colonialist legacy has spurred movements calling for a reevaluation of the scholarship and its ties to Rhodes's views. Rhodes was a British imperialist tycoon known for his colonization of Africa. Rhodes’ fortune and legacy comes with a death toll of over 20,000, stemming from his violent takeover of Zimbabwe and Zambia (which he then proceeded to name after himself in an extraordinary display of audacity and sheer narcissism).

Career Choices of Rhodes Scholars

The tendency of a growing number of Rhodes Scholars to enter business or private law, as opposed to public service for which the scholarship was intended, has been a source of frequent criticism. Writing in 2009, the Secretary of the Rhodes Trust criticised the trend of Rhodes Scholars to pursue careers in finance and business, noting that "more than twice as many [now] went into business in just one year than did in the entire 1970s", attributing it to "grotesque" remuneration offered by such occupations.

Public Criticism

Public criticism has also focused on the alleged hypocrisy of applying for and accepting the Rhodes Scholarship while criticizing it. Reacting to this criticism, Qwabe replied that "all that [Rhodes] looted must absolutely be returned immediately. I'm no beneficiary of Rhodes. A group of 198 Rhodes Scholars of various years later signed a statement supporting Qwabe and arguing that there was "no hypocrisy in being a recipient of a Rhodes scholarship and being publicly critical of Cecil Rhodes and his legacy-a legacy that continues to alienate, silence, exclude and dehumanize in unacceptable ways.

Changes and Adaptations

Over the years, the Rhodes Trust has made several changes to the scholarship program. An early change was the elimination of the scholarships for Germany during the First and Second World Wars. No German scholars were chosen from 1914 to 1929, nor from 1940 to 1969. A change occurred in 1929, when an Act of Parliament established a fund separate from the original proceeds of Rhodes's will and made it possible to expand the number of scholarships.

In 1970, the trustees established the Rhodes Visiting Fellowships. Unlike the regular scholarship, a Visiting Fellow was expected to have a doctorate or comparable degree, and to use the two-year funded study to engage in independent research.

In 1975, Parliament passed the Sex Discrimination Act of 1975 that banned discrimination based on sex, including in education. In South Africa, the will of Cecil Rhodes expressly allocated scholarships to four all-male private schools. In 1992, one of the four schools partnered with an all-girls school in order to allow female applicants.

Beginning in 1970, scholars began protesting against the fact that all Rhodes Scholars from southern Africa were white, with 120 Oxford dons and 80 of the 145 Rhodes Scholars in residence at the time signing a petition calling for non-white scholars to be elected in 1971. Public criticism of the scholarship has also focused on Cecil Rhodes's white supremacist views.

The Rhodes Scholarship Model

The Rhodes Scholarship model has inspired successor scholarships in many countries. In structure and selection criteria, the scholarship is similar to the John Monash Scholarship, Schwarzman Scholarship, Knight-Hennessy Scholarship, Weidenfeld-Hoffmann Scholarship and Leadership Program, Gates Cambridge Scholarship, Marshall Scholarship, Yenching Scholarship, Fulbright Program, Erasmus Mundus scholarship, and Chevening Scholarship.

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