A prestigious international scholarship program enabling outstanding young people to study at the University of Oxford.
Applicants are chosen on the basis of the criteria set down in the Will of Cecil Rhodes. These criteria are high academic achievement, integrity of character, a spirit of unselfishness, respect for others, potential leadership, and physical vigor. These basic characteristics are directed at fulfilling Mr. Rhodes’s hopes that Rhodes Scholars would make effective and positive public contributions throughout the world as well as demonstrate exceptional academic accomplishment and promise. As he wrote, Rhodes Scholars should “esteem the performance of public duties as their highest aim.”

Applicants may apply either through the state where they are legally resident or where they have attended college for at least two years. There are 16 district committees across the United States; each chooses two Rhodes Scholars from a small pool of those invited for two-day interviews in November. As part of the initial application, candidates must be endorsed by their college or university.