INSPIRE Scholarship 2020-21: Application Form, Eligibility, Rewards, Last Date

INSPIRE Scholarship Scheme: Full form of the INSPIRE is Innovation in Science Pursuit for Inspired Research.

The government of India and The Department of Science and Technology (DST) launched the INSPIRE Scholarship for Higher Education (SHE) program to help meritorious scholars undertaking bachelor’s and master’s courses in Natural and Basic Sciences. This scholarship scheme is given to 12,000 scholars every year. The total amount of the scholarship is Rs.80,000 yearly for pursuing any subject of Basic Sciences or Natural. The applicant planning on applying for the INSPIRE 2020 Scholarship should fill-up the Application form. And submit it before late December.

This is important for the candidate that they must register themselves first and have to give the information in the registration form which is valid and correct. But, before registering themselves, candidates must ensure that they meet the INSPIRE Scholarship 2020 Eligibility. Further, get the full information regarding INSPIRE 2020 Scholarship Eligibility Criteria, Registration form, Cut Off, & Performance Report, etc. here.

INSPIRE Scholarship Scheme

INSPIRE Scholarship Scheme:  Training and Generation of a human talent pool capable of using and promoting first laws in science is both a pre-condition. And an essential part of such an innovation foundation. An India distinct model for extracting talent for research and innovation, Natural sciences & for a career in Basic is needed. An innovative agenda titled Innovation in Science Pursuit for Inspired Research (INSPIRE) has been established by the Department of Science & Technology (DST) to extract talent for the enthusiasm and study of science at an initial age. And to support the country develop the demanded critical resource pool for strengthening and developing the S&T system and R&D base by a long-term vision.

INSPIRE Scholarship Scheme provided by INSPIRE

Scheme for Early Attraction of Talent (SEATS)

It strives to attract talented youth to study science by implementing INSPIRE Award Scholarship of Rs.5000 to one million young students of the age group 10-15 years, ranging from Class VI to Class X standards, and also by providing summer camps for about 50,000 science students of Class XI with global leaders in science to feel the joy of innovations on a yearly base through INSPIRE Internship.

Scholarship for Higher Education (SHE)

It seeks to improve rates of addition of skilled youth to extend higher education in science- intensive programs, by giving scholarships and mentorship. This scheme allows 10,000 Scholarship every year at Rs.0.80 lakh per annum for the skilled youth in the age between 17-22 years, for allowing Bachelor and Masters level education in natural sciences. The main a component of the scheme is the mentorship support given to every student.

Assured Opportunity for Research Careers (AORC)

It intends to engage, attract, connect, and nourish young scientific Human Resources for developing the R&D foundation and base. It has two sub-components. In the first part i.e. INSPIRE Fellowship 2020 (age group of 22-27 years), it awards 1000 fellowships every year, for carrying out a doctoral degree in both basic and applied sciences including engineering and medicine. In the second component i.e. The INSPIRE Faculty Scheme gives the guaranteed opportunity each year for 1000 post-doctoral researchers in the age between 27-32 years, within contractual and security track positions for 5 years in both basic and applied sciences areas.

INSPIRE Scholarship Eligibility

To apply for Scholarship for Higher Education (SHE), the applicants must qualify class 12 and proceeding courses in Natural Sciences at the B.Sc. or Integrated M.Sc. level. The complete information about the INSPIRE Scholarship Eligibility is given below:

1. The applicant should be between the Age of 17-22 years.
2. The candidates should be among the top 1% of the successful students in terms of overall marks in their 10+2 board exams.
3. The candidate should have registered in courses of Natural and Basic Sciences at the level of BSc, BS, and Integrated MSc/MS, in the same year of qualifying class 12th.
4. The applicants who are the top 10000 rankers in AIEEE (top 20000 rankers), Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) IIT, and passed CBSE-Medical (AIPMT) and decided to study Natural/Basic Sciences are eligible.
5. The applicants who got admission to the National Institute of Science Education and Research (NISER), Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research (IISER), Department of Atomic Energy Centre for Basic Sciences (DAE-CBS) in the Mumbai University for pursuing programs in Basic Sciences/Natural commencing to B.Sc. and M.Sc. degree are also eligible.
6. The candidates who are KVPY (Kishore Vaigyanik Protsahan Yojna), National Talent Search Examination (NTSE), Olympiad Medallists, and Jagadish Bose National Science Talent Search (JBNSTS) student and are seeking courses in Natural/Basic Sciences commencing to B.Sc. and M.Sc. degree are eligible.

INSPIRE Eligible Subjects

Candidates should be registered in a valid and regular degree level program in Natural/Basic sciences inside the scope of INSPIRE Scholarship at any UGC identified College or University or National Institute in India.

The subjects in the Basic & Natural Sciences in the field of INSPIRE Scholarship for persevering BS/Int. MSc/Int. MS/B.Sc./ Course in Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Statistics, Geology, Astronomy,  Zoology, Microbiology, Geophysics, Biochemistry, Anthropology, Electronics, Astrophysics, Botany, Atmospheric Sciences, Geochemistry, Ecology, Oceanic Sciences, Biology, Physics, Marine Biology, and Genetics.

All the subjects that appear under the field of Higher Education in the INSPIRE Scholarship are named in the given table below.

Documents Required for INSPIRE Scholarship

Through the INSPIRE Scholarship 2020 online form filling, the aspirants need to upload the scanned images of the below-mentioned documents. The picture type and size should be as per the specification. The blurred or dark picture will be denied by the concerned administration. List of all the important documents given below that a candidate needs to upload while filling his/her INSPIRE scholarship application form.

INSPIRE Scholarship Status for Application Form

INSPIRE Scholarship Status given below: We are providing the steps of filling the Application form for the INSPIRE Scholarship. The steps of filling up the Application form from the points given below.

In the beginning, the candidate must register as a new user on the INSPIRE Scholarship Portal. 

• The candidate gets a user ID and password on their registered email ID where they need to click on the activation link to activate his/her account.
• The candidate should have the scanned copies of all the needed documents as separate files before filling the application form.
• By using the INSPIRE scholarship portal the candidate should log in to his/her username and password.
• Then, the applicant should fill in all the details like enrolment, information personal particulars at B.Sc. and Integrated M.Sc. level,  contact details, a national level competitive exam details, senior secondary performance information, and other details in the scholarship application form.
• Furthermore, All the scanned pictures of all the required documents uploaded by the candidate in support of the INSPIRE online scholarship application form.
• The aspirant needs to evaluate the entered details before the submission of the form by pressing on the Print Preview button. The candidate must ensure that all the specifications and uploaded documents are accurate. Now, the candidate needs to click on the Submit button to submit the application.
• For the final submission of the INSPIRE online scholarship application form then, the applicant must take the print out of the submitted application for future reference.

Terms & Conditions

There are some terms & conditions that aspirants require to obey in order to apply for this scholarship. The list of terms and conditions that an applicant needs to keep in mind while applying for the INSPIRE Scholarship is given below.

1. INSPIRE- Students are awarded by (SHE) for five years, starting from the 1st year B.Sc., BS, Integrated MS/M.Sc, or till the fulfillment of the course, whichever occurs earlier.
2. Applicants need to submit completed applications as the incomplete application form is entitled to be rejected.
3. Subjects such as Engineering, Medicine, Military Science, Defence Studies, Agriculture, Psychology, Seed Technology, Anthropology, Home Science, Geography, Economics, Education (including B.Sc.-B.Ed. dual degree course), Biotechnology, Computer Science, Computer Applications, Bio-informatics, Instrumentation, Information Technology, Physical Education, courses in Distance Education mode at the Open Universities and other professional courses are not supported under SHE scholarship.
4. A regular Savings Bank Account in any branch of the State Bank of India (SBI) only should be opened by the INSPIRE student. The account needs to be in the name of the candidate and it should not be a joint account.
5. Shortlisted applicants need to submit their year-wise performance report (which is signed by the Head of the Institution) and mark sheet of their BS, BSc, Int. MS/MSc course for the release of the scholarship. Head of the Institution refers to Vice- Chancellor/Registrar/Dean of Science in the case of Universities and Principal/Vice-Principal/Proctor/Officer-in-Charge in case of colleges.
6. The Head of the Institution should surely mention in the performance report of the INSPIRE Scholarship If the scholarship can be extended or not in that academic year.
7. At the initial time, the scholarship is issued only after the approval of the INSPIRE Scholarship Performance Report and mark sheet of 1st year B.Sc, BS, Int. MS./M.Sc If the academic performance of the applicant is satisfactory, two years of scholarship, that is, INR 1,20,000 is released through the applicant’s 2nd year of B.Sc, BS, Int. MS/M.Sc.
8. Applicants availing any other scholarship from other sources are not fit to receive this scholarship.

Awards & Benefits of INSPIRE Scholarship

1. INR 80,000 to the selected student.
2. The yearly scholarship of INR 60,000 @ INR 5000 per month.
3. Every year INR 20,000 undertaking the mandatory summer research project.

Inspire Scholarship Dates

The official dates will be also available once they are published by the authorities. Meantime, go through the trial schedule of Inspire Scholarship 2020 from the tabular format below.

Contact Details

• Email ID: inspire.prog-dst@nic.in
• Contact Number: 0120-4619405, 0120-4619406 (Helpline no. for Inspire Scholarship)
• Address: INSPIRE Program Department of Science and Technology, Technology Bhavan, New Mehrauli Road, New Delhi  – 110016

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q1. What is the eligibility criteria for the Inspire Scholarship?

Ans. Students of Science stream can apply. The eligibility criteria is:

• The applicant should be between the Age of 17-22 years.
• The candidates should be among the top 1% of the successful students in terms of overall marks in their 10+2 board exams.
• The candidate should have registered in courses of Natural and Basic Sciences at the level of BSc, BS, and Integrated MSc/MS, in the same year of qualifying class 12th.
• The applicants who are the top 10000 rankers in AIEEE (top 20000 rankers), Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) IIT, and passed CBSE-Medical (AIPMT) and decided to study Natural/Basic Sciences are eligible.
• The applicants who got admission to the National Institute of Science Education and Research (NISER), Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research (IISER), Department of Atomic Energy Centre for Basic Sciences (DAE-CBS) in the Mumbai University for pursuing programs in Basic Sciences/Natural commencing to B.Sc. and M.Sc. degree are also eligible.
• The candidates who are KVPY (Kishore Vaigyanik Protsahan Yojna), National Talent Search Examination (NTSE), Olympiad Medallists, and Jagadish Bose National Science Talent Search (JBNSTS) student and are seeking courses in Natural/Basic Sciences commencing to B.Sc. and M.Sc. degree are eligible.

Q2. What are Benefits of this scholarship?

Ans. The benefits of this scholarship are:

• INR 80,000 to the selected student.
• The yearly scholarship of INR 60,000 @ INR 5000 per month.
• Every year INR 20,000 undertaking the mandatory summer research project.