Commonwealth PhD Scholarships 2024 for high income countries

Commonwealth PhD Scholarships 2024 for High Income countries are available each year to highly qualified students from wealthy countries who aspire to pursue a full-time doctoral degree in the United Kingdom. Applications for this scholarship are accepted annually near the commencement of the program, which is normally in September.

Commonwealth PhD Scholarships, funded by the UK Department for Education (DfE), enable outstanding and motivated individuals to achieve the knowledge and skills needed for sustainable development. They are aimed at those who could not otherwise afford to study in the UK.

Brief Description

Scholarship Sponsor(s): Commonwealth UK Department for Education (DfE)

Host Institution(s): Commonwealth Country Universities

Scholarship Worth: Funded

Number of Awards: Several

Study Level: PhD

Nationality: High income countries

Commonwealth PhD Scholarships 2024

Funded by the UK Department for Education (DfE), Commonwealth PhD 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 PhD Scholarships are for candidates from high income countries for full-time doctoral study at a UK university.

These scholarships are offered under six themes:

• Science and technology for development
• Strengthening health systems and capacity
• Promoting global prosperity
• Strengthening global peace, security and governance
• Strengthening resilience and response to crises
• Access, inclusion and opportunity

Also check this : British Chevening Scholarship for International Students 2024/2025 | Fully Funded to UK

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for Commonwealth PhD Scholarships (for high income countries), applicants are expected to meet the following conditions:

• 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 registered for a PhD at a university in an eligible Commonwealth country by the time your Scholarship starts (September 2024)
• Ensure that an institutional or departmental link exists between your home university and your proposed UK university. This link must be greater than simply a collaboration between individuals – see section on ‘Tenure and placement’ for further details. Both supervisors must provide a supporting statement which provides further details of the link to ensure your application is eligible.
• Be available to start your academic studies in the UK in September 2024
• By September 2024, 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

Also check this : Reach Oxford Scholarships 2024 for international Students to Study in UK | Fully Funded

Eligible countries

• Anguilla
• Antigua and Barbuda
• Australia
• Bahamas
• Barbados
• Bermuda
• British Virgin Islands
• Brunei Darussalam
• Canada
• Cayman Islands
• Cyprus
• Falkland Islands
• Gibraltar
• Malta
• New Zealand
• Seychelles
• Singapore
• St Kitts and Nevis
• Trinidad and Tobago
• Turks and Caicos Islands

Scholarship Benefits

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 £1,347 per month, or £1,652 per month for those at universities in the London metropolitan area (rates quoted at current levels).
• Warm clothing allowance, where applicable.
• Study travel grant towards the cost of study-related travel within the UK or overseas.
• Provision towards the cost of fieldwork undertaken overseas (the cost of one economy class return airfare to the fieldwork location), where approved.
• Paid mid-term visit (airfare) to the Scholar’s home country, unless they have claimed or intend to claim spouse and/or child allowances during their scholarship or have received a return airfare to their home country for fieldwork.
• Family allowances, as follows (rates quoted at current levels):
  • If a Scholar is accompanied by their spouse but no children: spouse allowance of £290 per month for a maximum period of nine months, if they and their spouse are living together at the same address in the UK (unless the spouse is also in receipt of a scholarship; other conditions also apply).
  • If a Scholar is accompanied by their spouse and children: spouse allowance of £290 per month and child allowance of £290 per month for the first child, and £143 per month for the second and third child under the age of 16, if their spouse and children are living with them at the same address in the UK (unless their spouse is also in receipt of a scholarship; other conditions also apply).
  • 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.

Also check this : Cambridge Trust Scholarship Awards 2024 for Postgraduate Studies | Funded to UK

How to Apply

Eligible applicants are allowed to submit their applications through the online application portal when it is open. Commonwealth Scholarships and Fellowships provide talented and motivated individuals with the opportunity to enhance knowledge and skills in their given sector, in order to contribute to sustainable development in their home countries.

Supporting documentation

Applications must include supporting documentation to be eligible.

Please note that applicants are required to collect references and supporting statements, on institution letterhead or an email clearly showing the sender’s details, from referees and proposed supervisors in the UK and then upload them in PDF format to the application system with their other supporting documentation.

The references and supporting statements must be uploaded to the application system by the deadline for applications and we are unable to accept references and supporting statements any other way or after this date.

Applicants must upload the following documents with the application:

• 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.
• 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.
• References from at least two individuals, in PDF format, signed and on institutional letterhead or an email clearly showing the sender’s details.
• A supporting statement, in PDF format, signed and on institutional letterhead or an email clearly showing the sender’s details, from a proposed supervisor in the UK from at least one of the institutions named on the application form.
• An unconditional offer, or an offer conditional only on finance, for the 2024 UK academic year for all institutions named on the application form.