Welcome for new international Scholars

The aim was to greet the international students who have just arrived in Cambridge with scholarships from the Trusts. It is hoped that the occasion enhanced the students’ sense of a community of scholars in Cambridge, in addition to their many other overlapping communities here, and gave them further information about the work of the Trusts and about life in Cambridge in general. Judging by the level of conversation throughout the morning, it seems likely that many new friendships were forged at the same time.

The students, who gathered in a suite of rooms at the Doubletree by Hilton Hotel, were able to chat informally with the Trustees and staff, with some of the Trusts’ funding partners, and with senior representatives of the University.

In his welcome address Sir Martin Harris, Chair of the Trustees, expressed his delight in seeing so many new scholars in Cambridge, as a result of their own academic efforts and with the support of the Trusts. He hoped that the scholars would make the most of the Cambridge experience that lay ahead of them.

Michael O’Sullivan, the Trusts’ Director (pictured), congratulated all those present on their success in being awarded highly-competitive scholarships. He pointed out that the University’s mission - contributing to society through the pursuit of education, learning, and research at the highest international levels - is implemented by the work of the Trusts and by the scholars themselves.

He went on to thank the Trusts’ major donors, including the University itself, Trinity College and Cambridge Assessment, and paid tribute to the Trustees for their care and dedication in guiding the work of the Trusts.

Professor John Rallison, the University’s Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Education and a recently-appointed Trustee of CCT and COT, spoke about the role of international students in Cambridge and their vital importance to the University’s lifeblood and culture. He said that the University was at its strongest when people talked together – whether in formal settings such as the Part III Mathematics lecture he was giving later that morning, or in informal conversations between students. He stressed that the scholars would learn much from each other during their time in Cambridge, and that the University facilitated such interaction.

The success of Saturday’s event is likely to make this an annual feature in the Trusts’ calendar.