Schott Glass India has launched its first scholarship programme aimed to foster deserving students of pharmacy in India. In the first installment of the Schott Fiolax Scholarship Programme, six scholarships have been awarded to meritorious students pursuing Bachelors (B. Pharmacy) and Masters (M. Pharmacy) Degrees in Pharmacy in Mumbai.
The process of selecting candidates for Schott Fiolax Scholarship Programme was completed in September 2014, with a final list of five meritorious B. Pharmacy students: Pradnya Bapat, Pooja Hegde, Saili Narwankar, Ashwini Ashtekar and Varshida Kadam; and M. Pharmacy student, Saloni Jain.
The initial programme, which had proposed scholarships worth Rs.25,000 each for four candidates, was broadened to provide sponsorships to total six students. Encouraged by the great response of applicants, Schott will now extend the programme to top institutions of Baroda (Gujarat) from next year.
The shortlisted six candidates were awarded gift cheques of Rs.25,000 each by Sundeep Prabhu, vice president- sales and marketing, Schott Glass India Pvt. Ltd., on December 2, 2014. The winners will also be given an exclusive tour of Schott Glass India’s tubing plant in Baroda in January next year.
“We are proud to help in facilitating a sound studying environment for these deserving candidates who have really shown their dedication in the field of pharmacy,” said Sundeep Prabhu. “I am further honored to know that all the candidates of this first batch of scholarships are young women. We're thrilled to support these outstanding students, who will undoubtedly have a major role to play in the field of pharmacy in India.”
The application process took a total of six months to complete, with more than 100 applicants who were able to clear the challenging eligibility criteria of passing 2nd year with more than 70 per cent in case of B. Pharmacy students and on the basis of outstanding research for M. Pharmacy students.
15 students were shortlisted as applications were further weighed in a step by step process. After evaluation of their academic qualifications which had 70 per cent weightage, students were asked to prepare a two page write up about a selected topic submitted to their Principals for the next 20 per cent. The final 10 per cent evaluation was done based on a personal interview with Schott’s elected three-member panel in which students were assessed on basis of their aspirations, academic understanding and industry knowledge.
The Schott Fiolax Scholarship Programme was well appreciated by the faculty members of Pharmacy College at Mumbai University. “The Schott Fiolax Scholarship Programme for undergraduate and post-graduate students in pharmacy will motivate and inspire the meritorious students pursuing pharmacy education. I was happy to be part of the screening process. The evaluation process not only took into account the academic credentials of the candidates but also evaluated the vision and independent thinking of the students. I wish the very best to all the deserving awardees and take this opportunity to thank Schott Glass Ltd. in constituting this scholarship programme", said Dr Anuradha Majumdar, a faculty at Bombay College of Pharmacy.
Schott Glass India Pvt. Ltd is a 100% subsidiary of the German technology group Schott AG. Schott offers pharmaceutical glass tubing products & services as well as pharmaceutical containers to customers world-wide from its production sites all around the globe. Schott’s India plant in Jambusar, present since 1986, now functions as a production hub for Schott pharmaceutical tubing in Asia.