Deadline: October 20, 2026
Applications are open for the Commonwealth Master’s Scholarships 2027/2028. Funded by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), Commonwealth Master’s Scholarships enable talented and motivated individuals to gain the knowledge and skills required for sustainable development and are aimed at those who could not otherwise afford to study in the UK.
Commonwealth Master’s Scholarships are for candidates from eligible low and middle income Commonwealth countries, to undertake full-time taught Master’s study at a UK university.
Scholarship
Each scholarship provides:
- 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).
- 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.
- Stipend (living allowance) at the rate of £1,712 per month, or £2,000 per month for those at universities in the London metropolitan area (rates quoted at current levels).
- Study travel grant towards the cost of study-related travel within the UK or overseas.
- If a Scholar has children and is widowed, divorced, or a single parent, child allowance of child allowance of £622 per month for the first child, and £154 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.
Eligibility
To be considered for these scholarships, applicants must:
- Be a citizen of or have been granted refugee status by an eligible Commonwealth country, or be a British Protected Person.
- Be permanently resident in an eligible Commonwealth country.
- Be available to start academic studies in the UK by the start of the UK academic year in September 2027.
- By September 2027, 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).
- Be unable to afford to study in the UK without this scholarship.
- Have provided all supporting documentation in the required format.
Selection Criteria
Applications will be considered according to the following selection criteria:
- Candidate merit (including academic experience)
- Quality of research proposal
- Potential impact on the development of the candidate’s home country
Application
In the application form, applicants are asked to:
- List all undergraduate and postgraduate university qualifications obtained.
- List up to 10 publications and prizes.
- Provide details of employment history and explain how the experience gained supports and is relevant to the programme to be undertaken in the UK.
- List names and positions of three referees who are qualified to comment on both their capacity to benefit from the proposed Scholarship in the UK and their ability to deliver development impact afterwards. One of the referees must be a current employer (if applicable) and at least two references must be included with the application.
- Provide a Development Impact statement in four parts.
For more information, visit Commonwealth Master’s Scholarships.
