Queen's Scholar (British Malaya and Singapore)


In British Malaya, a Queen's Scholar was a holder of one of various scholarships awarded by the Government of the Straits Settlements to further their studies in the United Kingdom.
The first scholarships, originally known as the Higher Scholarships, were founded in 1885 by Sir Cecil Clementi Smith, the Governor of the Straits Settlements, in honour of Queen Victoria. The main objectives of introducing Higher Scholarships was to allow promising boys an opportunity to complete their studies in the United Kingdom, and to encourage a number of boys to remain in school and acquire a useful education. From the period 1885-1890, Higher Scholarships were only awarded to the top boys in the Straits Settlement. Thereafter, the Higher Scholarships were renamed the Queen's Scholarships and was opened up to all British subjects of either sex. Recipients of the Queen's Scholarships would proceed to study at either Cambridge or Oxford universities.
The Queen's Scholarships were discontinued in 1911 but restored in 1931. In 1940, the selection of Queen's Scholars was transferred to a Board of Selection appointed by the Senate of Raffles College in Singapore. The Queen's Research Fellowships were also introduced for outstanding graduates of Raffles College and King Edward VII College of Medicine to study postgraduate courses in selected universities in the United Kingdom. In 1959, the Queen's Scholarship was replaced by the Agong's Scholarship in Malaysia and the Singapore State Scholarship, now the President's Scholarship. in Singapore.

List of British Malayan Queen ScholarsThe Straits Times Singapore 22 Nov. 1886: 2. Print; "Queen's Scholars Since 1885." The Straits Times Singapore, 16 Nov. 1948: 4. Print: The Straits Times cited "apaper entitled 'The Queen's Scholarships of Malaya 1885-1948' written by Dr. Wu Lien Teh and Dr. Ng Yok Ying, read at a meeting at Raffles College, Singapore," from which their list of names was extracted. The list was divided into the following sections - (1) From 1885 to 1903, (2) From 1904 to 1909, (3) From 1924 to 1930, (4) From 1931 to 1939, (5) Queen's Scholars of the Malay States (1901-1939), (6) Queen's Scholars and Fellows elected since the new regulations came into force in 1940 - "S" signifies Scholarship and "F" signifies Fellowship, and (7) Malay Queen's Scholars elected during the period 1935-1938; "Official List Of Queen's Scholars." The Straits Times Singapore 23 Jul. 1940: 11. Print; "Singapore Captures All 1942 Queen V Scholarship & Fellowship Awards." The Straits Times Singapore 30 Nov. 1941: 5. Print; "Proof of Citizenship." The Straits Times Singapore 8 Oct. 1949: 4. Print; "Scholar Waits 10 Years." The Straits Times Singapore 27 Jan. 1950: 4. Print; "Students for Britain." The Straits Times Singapore 9 Aug. 1950: 4. Print; "Off to higher studies in U.K." The Straits Times (Singapore) 11 Aug 1950: 7. Print; The Singapore Free Press 8 Jul. 1952: 5. Print; "17 Going to Britain on scholarships." The Singapore Free Press 20 Aug. 1952: 5; "Queen's Scholar is 9th of 10 orphans." The Straits Times {Singapore] 29 Jan. 1953: 7. Print; "He Will Spend His Holiday Talking." The Straits Times Singapore 11 Jun. 1953: 7. Print; "Queen's Scholar returns." The Straits Times Singapore 22 Aug. 1953: 7. Print; "New degree for Scholar." The Straits Times {Singapore] 2 Feb. 1954: 4. Print; "Singapore gets a new District Judge." The Straits Times Singapore 21 Apr. 1955: 4. Print; "Doctor weds a doctor." The Straits Times Singapore 19 Jun. 1955: 11. Print; "Queen's scholar is back." The Straits Times Singapore 17 Aug. 1955: 7. Print; "28 fly by Govt. charter plane to Britain." The Straits Times Singapore 23 Sep. 1955: 5. Print;"This Queen's Scholar Told To Stay." The Straits Times Singapore 24 Nov. 1955: 9. Print; "The Queen's Scholar." The Straits Times Singapore 4 Mar. 1956: 3. Print; "Queen's Scholar for Oxford. The Straits Times Singapore 24 Aug. 1956: 7. Print; "Queen's scholar leaving for Cambridge." The Straits Times Singapore 28 Aug. 1956: 5. Print; "Scholarships For Sikhs." The Straits Times Singapore 6 Feb. 1957: 7. Print.