On Jun. 17, 2020, Bvlgari, the Italian luxury brand, announced plans to support research into COVID-19 and vaccine development at Oxford University. The new relationship comes as part of the brand’s commitment to better preventing pandemics now and in the future, through philanthropic donations. This gift will support Oxford research in two key areas; by purchasing boundary-pushing scientific equipment that will help to speed up vaccine development, and financing the studies of some of the world’s most talented researchers engaged in the field.

Lack of available scholarships and financial constraints have recently been cited as the most common reasons why some of the most talented students choose to not take up their DPhil (PhD) offers from Oxford.

The Bvlgari Scholarship will financially support two students at postgraduate level, within the vaccine development group, the Oxford Jenner Institute, enabling the University to continue to attract the next generation of top talent to power Oxford’s world-leading position in vaccine research, regardless of their nationality, ethnicity or financial background.

The Oxford Vaccine Group and Oxford Jenner Institute have been at the forefront of scientific endeavour to develop vaccines for diseases of major global importance for more than 30 years and are currently one of the leading research groups globally in the development of a vaccine against COVID-19. Other vaccine technologies in development at the Oxford Jenner Institute, include, vaccines against pandemic influenza, malaria, TB, influenza, HIV, S. aureus, prostate cancer and recently emerged pathogens such as MERS, the Ebola virus and Rift Valley Fever.

Beneficiaries will receive full financial support over the four-year duration of their DPhil (PhD) studies in vaccine research. The scholarships will cover the students’ course fees, the cost of IT support laboratory consumables, and an internationally competitive maintenance grant. The scholarship awardees will be based at the Oxford Jenner Institute and selected from applicants and offer holders in the Medical Sciences Division at Oxford, across the relevant disciplines of Clinical, Medical and Biological Sciences.