Up to 25 Laidlaw Scholars are selected at every participating University based on their leadership potential, academic excellence and ambition to succeed in their chosen field.

To apply for the programme you must:

• Identify a research project in which you are interested. Many institutions also offer a list of topics which academics at the University have identified as suitable for them to supervise - visit your University’s information page or reach out to the programme administrator.
• Design your research project, following discussions with your chosen supervisor; your project can be original or related to research that is on-going in the University. If part of a larger research programme your project must be designed to make a specific contribution.
• Write a research proposal. Your proposal will be assessed by an internal reviewer for the quality of the candidate, project content, and proposed environment hosting the study.
• The research proposal should cover:

– The research question

– A summary of the project in clear terms which can be understood by a non-expert in the field

– The objectives of the research

– The outputs, outcomes and the impact you think the research could have

– Interdisciplinary aspects of the research project

– International dimension of the research if any

• Complete a personal statement explaining why you are applying, why you think you will make a great scholar, your leadership ambitions & career aspirations post-university, and how you would like to spend your leadership-in-action summer (for example, how you intend to put your research into practice or which non-profit organisations you are interested in working with).