Announcing 11 Candidates for the 2025 Women in STEM Scholarship

The Vietnamese female scholar receiving the 2025 scholarship is Trang Ngo, majoring in Behavioural Science and Data at the University of Warwick, UK.

For the ASEAN-UK SAGE scholarship programme, each scholar will receive a full scholarship to complete a master's degree programme at prestigious universities in the UK, starting from September 2025.

The ASEAN-UK SAGE Women in STEM Scholarship Programme further affirms ASEAN’s commitment to gender equality and women’s empowerment, and supports the goal of creating opportunities for women to participate more in STEM fields. The programme also contributes to the ASEAN-UK Plan of Action 2022-2026, particularly in strengthening cooperation between UK and ASEAN educational institutions, lecturers and students through scholarship initiatives.

Launched in 2024, the scholarship aims to address gender disparities in access to science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education and careers across ASEAN countries and Timor-Leste, and empower the next generation of women in STEM.

On this occasion, ASEAN Secretary-General Dr. Kao Kim Hourn acknowledged that the 11 female candidates from the region receiving scholarships this time highlighted the shared commitment of the UK and ASEAN to gender equality and women’s empowerment in STEM. “By supporting girls and disadvantaged communities to access education and improve learning opportunities, we aim to close the gender gap and promote a more inclusive and innovative future,” said Dr. Kao Kim Hourn.

Meanwhile, UK Development Director for Indonesia and ASEAN, Amanda McLoughlin, affirmed that as an ASEAN dialogue partner, the UK is proud to support outstanding women in STEM through the SAGE ASEAN-UK Scholarship programme. Investing in women’s education is not just about equality. It is about unlocking economic potential and promoting inclusive development across ASEAN, thereby helping to build the skills and leadership capacity needed for a more prosperous and equitable region.

At the same time, Ms. Summer Xia, Director of the British Council for Southeast Asia, expressed her delight at the announcement of the second course of this scholarship program and looked forward to witnessing the impact that the 11 selected candidates will create when starting their master's program in the UK, gradually contributing to improving the learning foundation for girls, supporting out-of-school girls and disadvantaged groups, and addressing gender barriers to digital skills and employment.