Live Your Dreams

Animal behaviour, law,  publishing, fine art, anthropology, journalism, international relations, development studies, contemporary literature and culture—the ten winners of the British Council’s IELTS Awards couldn’t be pursuing more diverse courses. The absence of engineers and doctors on this list makes us hope that India is growing out of its archaic preference for these professions, but the sample size is just too small to draw any definitive conclusions.  

Sharon Memis, Director, West India, British Council, tells us of the Council’s mission to “spread knowledge and understanding of the UK, whilst helping young people achieve their dreams. The idea is to create global citizens who believe in themselves and whose fantastic ambitions will build a better world”. The winners, who hail from different Indian cities, are heading to different parts of the world, including Italy, Switzerland, the US and Canada. Clearly, the British Council isn’t at all biased about whose dreams it helps realise. “The diversity of the winning students wasn’t intentionally programmed into the selection process. They just happened to be the best,” says Sarah Deverall, who’s responsible for the test administration in India.   

Of the 1,000-odd applicants for the sixth annual IELTS Awards in India, the winners are Ahmedabad boy Arijeet Ghosh, who has signed up for a Masters in Law at University College London, UK; Hyderabad-based Chakshudaa Masih, who will be pursuing a Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Animal Behaviour at the University of Chester, UK; Mumbaikar Shweta Dabholkar, who will be pursuing an MSc in Anthropology and Development at the London School of Economics, UK; Bangalorians Navya Hebbar (who will be studying Journalism at the University of Sheffield, UK) and Sindhu Thirumalaisamy (who will be working on a Masters of Fine Arts in Visual Arts at the University of California, US); Gurgaon girl Aamena Ahmad, who has taken on a Masters in Development Studies at The Graduate Institute Geneva, Switzerland; Namita Rajesh, from Faridabad, who is doing an MA in International Relations and International Economics at John Hopkins, Italy; Susmita Dey, from Noida, who is pursuing a Masters in Publishing at Simon Fraser University, Canada; Rajrupa Das of Kolkata, who has opted for a Masters in Modern and Contemporary Literature and Culture at the University of York, UK; and Raj Verma from Pune, who’s intent on a PhD in Law at Newcastle University, UK.
Applying for this award involved scoring at least 6.5 on the IELTS to start with. Submission of an essay on one of three topics helped narrow down the applicants to 40. They were further shortlisted to 10 based on personal interviews and discussions.

What do the winners have in common? They all scored extremely well on the IELTS, which they tell us was a breeze, probably because they all come from English-medium schools. Navya from the Bishop Cotton Girls’ School, Bangalore goes as far as to say, “the IELTS was much easier than my school’s grammar exam”. All of them are unified in the belief that the preparation material that the British Council offers is more than enough to score well. Though Raj and Arijeet point out, “It’s easy if you’ve been studying English since you were in the kindergarten. It might not be so easy for someone who has grown up studying in another language; they may need to get the help of coaching classes”. The winners all seem extremely well-spoken and passionate about their chosen paths.
The `3,00,000-per-head award will cover anywhere been 1/6th to 1/3rd of their tuition costs, but the winners seem to agree that it’s not the money that matters so much as the sheer joy of winning and the prestige associated with it. “It makes you feel like you’re worth something,” shares Arijeet. “It makes you feel capable, deserving and sets you apart. This will open more doors for us,” believes Shweta, who hopes to work for the UNESCO and thinks it will be easier to get research grants in the future.

Sindhu was surprised to receive an IELTS British Council Award to study in the US, as her research had revealed that most previous winners were UK-bound. She hopes to build strong networks to secure funding for art, during her time abroad, and return to work in India. She’s not the only one; practically all the winners we spoke to expressed the desire to return to India and make a difference here. Here’s looking forward to a bright future.                         
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