COMMONWEALTH MASTER’S SCHOLARSHIPS

To be considered for this scholarship, applicants must:

1. Be a citizen of or have been granted refugee status by an eligible Commonwealth country, or be a British Protected Person.
2. Be permanently resident in an eligible Commonwealth country.
3. Be available to start academic studies in the UK by the start of the UK academic Current year in September.
4. By September, hold a first degree of at least upper second-class (2:1) honours standard, or a lower second-class degree and a relevant postgraduate qualification (usually a Master’s degree). The CSC would not normally fund a second Master’s degree. If applying for a second Master’s degree, applicants must provide justification as to why they wish to undertake this study.
5. Be unable to afford to study in the UK without this scholarship.
6. Have provided all supporting documentation in the required format.
7. There is no age limit for CSC applications. Applicants are advised to confirm with their employers any age restrictions on leave entitlement they may have in place. The CSC recognises that disabled people have often faced and overcome challenges or barriers in their education journey which have prevented them achieving the academic requirement for a Commonwealth Scholarship. Disabled applicants who can demonstrate their potential to contribute to international development but who do not hold a 2:1 Undergraduate degree may be considered for a contextualised nomination through the Commonwealth Disabled People’s Forum nominator.

Stated amount: 1,772,400 The Scholarship provide-

1. Approved airfare from the Scholar’s home country to the UK and return at the end of the award (the CSC will not reimburse the cost of fares for dependants, nor the cost of journeys made before the award is confirmed).
2. Approved tuition fees: full fees are covered by agreement between the CSC and the UK university, and Scholars are not liable to pay for any part of the tuition fee.
3. Stipend (living allowance) at the rate of £1,347 per month, or £1,652 per month for those at universities in the London metropolitan area (rates quoted at current levels).
4. Warm clothing allowance, where applicable.
5. Study travel grant towards the cost of study-related travel within the UK or overseas.
6. If a Scholar has children and is widowed, divorced, or a single parent, child allowance of child allowance of £576.61 per month for the first child, and £143 per month for the second and third child under the age of 16, if their children are living with them at the same address in the UK. If a Scholar shares that they have a disability, a full assessment of their needs and eligibility for additional financial support will be offered by the CSC. The CSC’s family allowances are intended to be only a contribution towards the cost of maintaining a Scholar’s family in the UK. The true costs are likely to be considerably higher, and Scholars must be able to supplement these allowances to support any family members who accompany them to the UK. No Information Available

Information is not Available.

1. Applications to the CSC must be made using the CSC’s online application system.
2. The CSC is unable to accept any applications or documentation not submitted via the online application system.
3. Applicants are advised to complete and submit applications as early as possible, as the online application system will be very busy in the days leading up to the application deadline.
4. As well as applying to the CSC, applicants must apply to a nominating agency.
5. There are two types of nominating agency for Master’s scholarships: i. National nominating agencies – this is the main route of application. ii. Selected non-governmental organisations and charitable bodies.
6. Nominating agencies put forward candidates to the CSC for consideration. The CSC does not accept direct applications for these scholarships.
7. Each nominating agency oversees its own selection process and may have additional eligibility criteria. Applicants must check with the nominating agency for their specific advice and rules for applying, and their own eligibility criteria.
8. Nominating agencies may set their own closing dates for applications.
9. Agencies will nominate applicants to the CSC by December.
10. Applicants can expect to hear the outcome by July. We will contact all applicants by email and they should ensure all folders of their email accounts are monitored, including junk mail and spam folders. A scholarship offer may be withdrawn if an applicant is emailed but does not respond within a specified time. Supporting documentation Applications must include supporting documentation to be eligible.
11. Please note that applicants are required to collect references, on institution letterhead or an email clearly showing the sender’s details, from referees then upload them in PDF format to the application system with their other supporting documentation.
12. The references must be uploaded to the application system by the deadline for applications.
13. Applicants must upload the following documents with the application: i. Proof that they are a citizen or have refugee status in an eligible Commonwealth country: a copy of a valid passport (or national ID card) showing a photograph, date of birth, and country of citizenship. ii. Full transcripts detailing all higher education qualifications, including to-date transcripts for any courses currently being studied, with certified translations if not in English. Where any transcripts are missing or do not include all pages, the application will be considered ineligible. iii. References from at least two individuals, in PDF format, signed and on institutional letterhead or an email clearly showing the sender’s details.
14. Applications will be considered ineligible if any of the required documentation is not included by the closing date.

Applications will be considered according to the following selection criteria:

1. Academic merit
2. Quality of research proposal
3. Potential impact on the development of the candidate’s come country. For further details, see the Commonwealth Scholarships selection criteria. Applicants should note the criteria carefully and link their answers in the application form to each point listed. Other Info Tenure and placement
4. Scholarships are tenable at any approved UK university or higher education institution with which the CSC has a part-funding agreement for a specific programme of study. For the full list, see here: cscuk.fcdo.gov.uk/uk-universities
5. Scholarships are to obtain one degree; funding will not be extended to enable candidates to complete a qualification in addition to or higher than that for which the selection was made.
6. Scholarships are made in respect of full-time study only and no other course of study may be undertaken at the same time.
7. The CSC does not provide new direct financial or promotional support for the fossil fuel energy sector overseas, defined as the extraction, production, transportation, refining and marketing of crude oil, natural gas or thermal coal, as well as any fossil-fuel fired power plants.
8. The CSC funds one-year taught Master’s programmes only and does not fund MBA degrees.
9. Applicants must make clear in the application which qualification they are applying for. This will enable the CSC to consider the application in the correct category. Applications which do not make this clear may be considered ineligible.
10. Applicants are advised to list three universities and courses that they think are the most appropriate for their study, in order of preference, and to explain their reasons. This is important because the CSC will not change the university or course (or the order of preference) of a provisionally selected candidate after the point of selection, unless exceptional information becomes available that could not have been foreseen at the time of application.
11. The CSC will make the final decision on institution of study, and reserves the right to overrule any preferences indicated by the applicant. The CSC will consider the suitability of the course and its value for money when deciding on any overrule.
12. Applicants must take the necessary steps to apply for admission to their preferred universities in advance of their scholarship application. Many courses have strict admission deadlines and candidates should check admission requirements carefully when applying. If an applicant is selected for a scholarship and has not applied and been accepted for a course, it may not be possible to proceed with the scholarship.