FAVOUR ISHEMVER, Abuja
The Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF) has commenced the selection interviews for shortlisted candidates under its 2026/2027 Overseas Scholarship Scheme, with the exercise scheduled to run from April 7 to April 17, 2026, across six centres nationwide.
The interviews, which are being conducted simultaneously across Nigeria’s six geo-political zones, are taking place in Abuja (North-Central), Bauchi (North-East), Kaduna (North-West), Rivers (South-South), Enugu (South-East), and Oyo (South-West).
Speaking at the commencement of the exercise, Deputy General Manager, Education and Training at PTDF, Dr. Beldo Mustafa, said the process marks a critical stage in selecting qualified Nigerians for postgraduate studies abroad.
“We are here to commence the interview process for the 2026–2027 Overseas Scholarship Scheme. We have just finished briefing the panelists, and the interviews have started as scheduled,” he said.
Dr. Mustafa disclosed that the scheme attracted an overwhelming response, with over 38,000 applications received nationwide. However, only 5,885 candidates were shortlisted for the interview stage based on stringent selection criteria.
According to him, PTDF maintains international partnerships with countries including Germany, France, Malaysia, and the United Kingdom, where successful candidates will undertake their studies.
Providing further details on the interview arrangement, he explained that six centres were carefully selected to ensure nationwide coverage.
“We have six centres across the geopolitical zones. In the North-East, we have Bauchi; South-East, Enugu; North-West, Kaduna; North-Central, Abuja; South-South, Rivers; and South-West, Oyo,” he stated.
Dr. Mustafa emphasized that candidates are not restricted to their zones of origin when choosing interview venues.
“You can actually do the interview anywhere you want. You could be from the South-East and come to the North to do it, or vice versa,” he added.
On the issue of fairness and inclusivity, he assured that the selection process strictly adheres to the federal character principle to ensure equitable representation across all states.
“The final selection is based on federal character. For instance, if we are given three MSc slots per state, each state will have three successful candidates. However, oil-producing states may receive additional slots,” he explained.
He further revealed that the Federal Character Commission is actively monitoring the process to ensure transparency and fairness.
“The Commission sends its officials to monitor the exercise and ensure that the process is credible and that every candidate is treated fairly,” he said.
Addressing concerns over the significant gap between the number of applicants and shortlisted candidates, Dr. Mustafa noted that only those who met clearly defined parameters were invited.
“We have our criteria and parameters. You must meet those requirements before being shortlisted. For instance, we cannot invite everyone if we are selecting a fixed number per state,” he explained.
He outlined some of the criteria to include academic qualifications such as First Class, Second Class Upper (2:1), and in some cases Second Class Lower (2:2), alongside relevant work experience.
“Even O’Level results are graded. If you have distinctions in certain subjects, you earn higher marks. It is the total score that determines whether you are shortlisted,” he added.
On the number of eventual beneficiaries, the PTDF official said it would depend largely on available funding.
“I cannot give a specific number at this stage. The final figure will be determined by management based on the budgetary provisions,” he said.
Dr. Mustafa also clarified that while the scholarship primarily focuses on petroleum-related studies, the scheme accommodates relevant supporting disciplines.
“We focus mainly on petroleum studies, but we also have supporting programmes such as management and petroleum law. All these are relevant to the sector,” he noted.
The PTDF Overseas Scholarship Scheme remains one of Nigeria’s flagship human capacity development initiatives in the oil and gas sector, aimed at building a highly skilled workforce to drive the nation’s energy industry.
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