Yenching Academy Scholars Program, Peking University

ELIGIBILITY

The Yenching Academy enrolls approximately 125 new students from both China and abroad, to study, live, and learn together. Approximately 15-20% of students are recruited from Mainland China, while 80-85% are international students and students from Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan. As of August 15, 2016, the Academy is accepting applications from international candidates and candidates from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan for the cohort that matriculates in September 2017.

Applicants should have:

• A minimum of a Bachelor’s degree in any field, awarded no later than August 31 of the year in which they wish to enroll;
• An outstanding academic record;
• English proficiency;
• A record of extracurricular achievement, community engagement and social responsibility;
• Leadership potential.

Successful applications will show how the Yenching Academy program is relevant and valuable for the applicant’s career plans.

Preference is given to candidates who are 25 years old or younger as of August 31 in the year in which they wish to commence the program. For students from countries where military service is mandatory, the age preference is 27 years old or younger.

Application Procedure 

International students and students from Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan, should apply through the Yenching Academy online application portal. Please note that candidates from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan will need to apply both through the Yenching Academy online application portal and through the Peking University Graduate Admissions website. Students from Mainland China, as well as candidates who hold the People’s Republic of China citizenship, will be admitted on the basis of rules specified by the Ministry of Education of China. According to these regulations, candidates must qualify for exemption from the graduate entrance examination based on their Mainland Chinese university’s recommendations. For details, please see here.

Applicants will be asked to create an account on the Yenching Academy admissions portal and submit the following materials in English:

• Completed online application;
• Curriculum vitae / Resumé;
• Personal statement;
• Most recent official transcript(s);
• Two letters of recommendation;
• International English proficiency test score (IELTS/TOEFL/Cambridge/CEFR).

Candidates will be able to access more details about the required documents after creating an account on the admission portal.

The Yenching Academy works with a number of partner universities around the globe, which conduct internal application processes and then nominate outstanding candidates to the Academy for consideration. Applicants who are students or alumni of parner universities are required to apply through both their universities’ internal processes and the Yenching Academy admissions portal. Please see the Partner and Cooperating Universities tab for more details.

Application Timeline 

The application system opens to international applicants for the 2017-2018 cohort on August 15, 2016. There will be three deadlines for applicants, based on the locations of the schools that they currently attend or recently attended. (Those whose applications are not affiliated with a particular university have the option to apply by the deadlines associated with their nationalities.) Application deadlines are as follows:

• Universities following a Southern Hemisphere academic calendar: October 15, 2016;
• Universities in Canada or the United States: December 15, 2016;
• All other applicants: January 31, 2017.

Finalists will be interviewed via Skype, or, in rare cases, in person. Some acceptance offers will be made on a rolling basis for those we are certain fit our various requirements, as well as our geographic diversity guidelines for international students, which are approximately 30-35% Europe, 25-30% U.S./Canada, and 30-35% rest of the world. A large percentage of acceptance decisions will only be made, however, after reviewing all applicants after the final deadline. Final admissions decisions will be made by March.  

Successful applicants unable to attend the Yenching Academy due to an unforeseen and unavoidable conflict may apply for a deferral. Deferrals will not be granted for those who choose another program, job or internship. 

Official Link: http://yenchingacademy.org/application#

Deadline: January 31, 2017