4 Pinoys get PhD scholarships from British Council, CHED

Seal of the Commission on Higher Education (Philippines) (Photo By Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) – Commission on Higher Education, Public Domain)

MANILA — Four Filipinos will undergo a three-year doctorate course in the UK, sponsored by the British Council and the Commission on Higher Education (CHED).

The sponsorship program is under the Newton Fund, or more commonly known as Newton Agham Program in the Philippines.

Now on its fourth year in the Philippines, the Newton Agham is a program of the British government and its partners in the Philippine government, the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), CHED and the Department of Agriculture (DA).

It is a collaboration between UK and the Philippines in terms of science, innovation and research.

The four scholars, their research topics and the school where they will take their PhD courses are the following:

* Paul Baniqued (University of Leeds)”Development of an ECG-driven soft robotic hand exoskeleton for neurohabilitation”

* Stephen Doliente (University of Bath) “Biomass value chains and the environment-food-energy-water nexus: whole-systems analysis and optimization

* Zyra Evangelista (University of Glasgow)”Assessing campus climate and its relation to the academic integration and well-being of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender university students in the Philippines and the United Kingdom”

* Joan Pauline Talubo (University of Surrey)”Assessing the spatial resilience of an island community in the Philippines through companion modeling for disaster risk and recovery planning”

The PhD scholarship program in the UK aims to help the awardees develop their skills and knowledge in their area of expertise.

CHED chairman Patricia Licuanan said she hopes this opportunity will not only contribute to scientific development, but will also boost the pride of Filipino scientists in their works.

“I also hope that more Filipinos will be encouraged to pursue careers in science and technology,” she said.

Meanwhile, CHED and the British Council also awarded grants to two institutions/researchers:

* Dr. Aurora Zoleta-Nantes from Aurora State College of Science and Technology (University of Reading) for the research topic “Local approaches to supporting agricultural productivity and managing impacts of climate variability and change in indigenous communities in Aurora Province, Philippines”

* Dr. Leah de la Rosa from University of Santo Tomas (University of Reading) for the research topic “Eco-social assets, green infrastructure and the connections between them in rapidly changing cities”

Under the Newton Agham’s British Council-CHED Institutional Links, Nantes and de la Rosa received two-year grant for seed funding to develop research and innovation collaborations.

The British Council-CHED Institutional Links targets to strengthen exchange of expertise between academic groups and institutions.