Commonwealth Professional Fellowships provide an opportunity for mid-career professionals from developing Commonwealth countries to spend a period of time with a UK host organization working in their field for a program of professional development. The duration of the fellowships between one and three months this may be extended up to a maximum of six months. The fellowships cover the living expenses for the fellow as well as a return airfare to the UK. It also provides £800 funding support to the host organization, with a budget of up to £3,000 available for attendance at conferences, on short courses and other eligible costs. The CSC cannot accept any applications directly from prospective Fellows. The application will close on 18 September 2014.
Study Subject(s): Applications are sought for programs within the broadly defined fields of agriculture/ fisheries/forestry, economic growth, education, engineering/science/technology, environment, governance and public health.
Course Level: Commonwealth Professional Fellowships support mid-career professionals to spend a period of time with a UK host organization working in their field for a program of professional development.
Course Level: Commonwealth Professional Fellowships support mid-career professionals to spend a period of time with a UK host organization working in their field for a program of professional development.
Scholarship Provider: Commonwealth Scholarships Commission (CSC), UK
Scholarship can be taken at: UK
Accreditation: The plan was originally proposed by Canadian statesman Sidney Earle Smith in a speech in Montreal on 1 September 1958 and was established in 1959, at the first Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers (CCEM) held in Oxford, Great Britain. Since then, over 25,000 individuals have held awards, hosted by over twenty countries. The CSFP is one of the primary mechanisms of pan-Commonwealth exchange.
Scholarship can be taken at: UK
Accreditation: The plan was originally proposed by Canadian statesman Sidney Earle Smith in a speech in Montreal on 1 September 1958 and was established in 1959, at the first Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers (CCEM) held in Oxford, Great Britain. Since then, over 25,000 individuals have held awards, hosted by over twenty countries. The CSFP is one of the primary mechanisms of pan-Commonwealth exchange.
Eligibility: To be eligible for a Commonwealth Professional Fellowship, candidates should:
-Be Commonwealth citizens, refugees or British protected persons, and must be permanently resident in a developing Commonwealth country
-Normally have at least five years’ relevant work experience in a profession related to the subject of the application, by the proposed start of the Fellowship.
-Be available to commence their Fellowship within prescribed dates as stated on the CSC website
-Not have undertaken a Commonwealth Professional Fellowship in the last five years
-Not be seeking to undertake an academic programme of research or study in the UK. Academics are eligible to apply for the scheme, but only to undertake programmes of academic management, not research or courses relevant to their research subject.
The CSC wishes to promote equal opportunity, gender equity and cultural exchange. Applications are encouraged from a diverse range of candidates.
-Be Commonwealth citizens, refugees or British protected persons, and must be permanently resident in a developing Commonwealth country
-Normally have at least five years’ relevant work experience in a profession related to the subject of the application, by the proposed start of the Fellowship.
-Be available to commence their Fellowship within prescribed dates as stated on the CSC website
-Not have undertaken a Commonwealth Professional Fellowship in the last five years
-Not be seeking to undertake an academic programme of research or study in the UK. Academics are eligible to apply for the scheme, but only to undertake programmes of academic management, not research or courses relevant to their research subject.
The CSC wishes to promote equal opportunity, gender equity and cultural exchange. Applications are encouraged from a diverse range of candidates.
Scholarship Open for Students of Following Countries: Fellows must be from eligible Commonwealth countries (Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, Botswana, British Virgin Islands, Cameroon, Cayman Islands, Dominica, Falkland Islands, Fiji, The Gambia, Ghana, Gibraltar, Grenada, Guyana, India, Jamaica, Kenya, Kiribati, Lesotho, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Montserrat, Mozambique, Namibia, Nauru, Nigeria, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Pitcairn Islands, Rwanda, St Helena, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and The Grenadines, Samoa, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Swaziland, Tanzania, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tristan da Cunha, Turks and Caicos, Islands, Tuvalu, Uganda, Vanuatu, Zambia and Zimbabwe).
Scholarship Description: Commonwealth Professional Fellowships support mid-career professionals from developing Commonwealth countries to spend a period of time with a UK host organization working in their field for a program of professional development. Fellowships are typically about three months but can be between one and six months in length and can include limited time for attendance at short courses or conferences, as well as visits to other organizations. Programs must have a demonstrable development impact in the Fellow’s home country and the Fellow must be able to show how the knowledge and skills they will gain during the Fellowship will be disseminated after their return home.
Number of award(s): The maximum number of fellows that can be nominated by an organization in one year is six. The CSC will decide upon the actual number of Fellows chosen.
Duration of award(s): Fellowships should normally be between one and three month’s duration, although applications for longer periods (up to a maximum of six months) will be considered, but only when a strong case for the additional time has been made. The duration of the Fellowship should, however, be long enough to allow for serious development of professional skills, so the CSC will not be able to consider applications for awards of less than one month.
What does it cover? Each Commonwealth Professional Fellowship provides:
-A return economy airfare from the Fellow’s home country to the UK
-A monthly (or pro rata) living allowance for the duration of the Fellowship (currently £1,563 per month regionally, £1,938 per month for those based in the London Metropolitan area). Exceptionally, depending on the programme arranged, a peripatetic living allowance may be payable. Further details if applicable will be given at the time of offer
-An arrival allowance of up to £878.17 at current rates, including an element for warm clothing
-A fixed amount for excess baggage for return travel only, dependent on the airport destination. The Fellow will be advised of the amount close to the date of departure
-A flat rate contribution of £800 to the costs of the host organisation(s), in respect of the administration and support of the Fellow, setting up of appropriate meetings, and any materials required, as well as costs of incidental travel for the Fellow during the award
-Fees for any conferences or short courses attended during the period of the Fellowship, providing that these have been approved at the time when the application was considered by the CSC. Reasonable fees up to a maximum of £3,000 will be agreed in the context of the length of the programme, but full justification should be given for the amount being claimed. Fees should also be included in the application to cover the cost of travel for visits to other organisations in the UK, where these form an integral part of the programme
-Other fees, for which the CSC will consider requests from the nominating organisation on a case-by-case basis. However, when planning an application, nominating/host organisations should bear in mind the following restrictions:
-Induction/evaluation programmes must be in scale with the programme.
-Modest fees including catering, room hire, and facilitator hire for such programmes may be agreed; however, fees for facilitators for evaluation programmes will not be approved.
-Additional accommodation costs may be recovered from the Fellow’s stipend.
-Requests for funds for cultural events, mobile phones, laptop computer hire, professional association memberships, costs associated with visits outside the UK, and contingencies will not be approved.
-A return economy airfare from the Fellow’s home country to the UK
-A monthly (or pro rata) living allowance for the duration of the Fellowship (currently £1,563 per month regionally, £1,938 per month for those based in the London Metropolitan area). Exceptionally, depending on the programme arranged, a peripatetic living allowance may be payable. Further details if applicable will be given at the time of offer
-An arrival allowance of up to £878.17 at current rates, including an element for warm clothing
-A fixed amount for excess baggage for return travel only, dependent on the airport destination. The Fellow will be advised of the amount close to the date of departure
-A flat rate contribution of £800 to the costs of the host organisation(s), in respect of the administration and support of the Fellow, setting up of appropriate meetings, and any materials required, as well as costs of incidental travel for the Fellow during the award
-Fees for any conferences or short courses attended during the period of the Fellowship, providing that these have been approved at the time when the application was considered by the CSC. Reasonable fees up to a maximum of £3,000 will be agreed in the context of the length of the programme, but full justification should be given for the amount being claimed. Fees should also be included in the application to cover the cost of travel for visits to other organisations in the UK, where these form an integral part of the programme
-Other fees, for which the CSC will consider requests from the nominating organisation on a case-by-case basis. However, when planning an application, nominating/host organisations should bear in mind the following restrictions:
-Induction/evaluation programmes must be in scale with the programme.
-Modest fees including catering, room hire, and facilitator hire for such programmes may be agreed; however, fees for facilitators for evaluation programmes will not be approved.
-Additional accommodation costs may be recovered from the Fellow’s stipend.
-Requests for funds for cultural events, mobile phones, laptop computer hire, professional association memberships, costs associated with visits outside the UK, and contingencies will not be approved.
Selection Criteria: 2014 applications for Commonwealth Professional Fellowships will be judged on the following criteria:
-the extent to which the proposed Fellowship will ensure the transfer of skills relevant to the needs of a Commonwealth developing country
-the extent to which those skills will lead to practical benefits for the developing country following the Fellowship
-the extent to which the Fellowship will have a ‘catalytic effect’, either within the developing country concerned, or in establishing new relationships with the UK.
-the extent to which the proposed Fellowship will ensure the transfer of skills relevant to the needs of a Commonwealth developing country
-the extent to which those skills will lead to practical benefits for the developing country following the Fellowship
-the extent to which the Fellowship will have a ‘catalytic effect’, either within the developing country concerned, or in establishing new relationships with the UK.
Notification: Not Known
How to Apply:
-Applications for Commonwealth Professional Fellowships must come from UK organisations – the CSC cannot accept any applications directly from prospective Fellows. An online application form is available at website. The first section of the form should be completed by a representative of the host organisation; the second section of the form should then be completed by the prospective Fellow(s). The CSC cannot accept applications directly from individual candidates and these will not be acknowledged.
-Applications for Commonwealth Professional Fellowships must come from UK organisations – the CSC cannot accept any applications directly from prospective Fellows. An online application form is available at website. The first section of the form should be completed by a representative of the host organisation; the second section of the form should then be completed by the prospective Fellow(s). The CSC cannot accept applications directly from individual candidates and these will not be acknowledged.
-If you are a contact at a prospective host organisation interested in making an application, you will need to register to use our Electronic Application System (EAS). To do this, please write to the CSC on your organisation’s headed paper providing the full name and email address of the person who will make the application and who will act as the main contact should the Fellowship go ahead. This letter can be sent by post to or as an attachment by email to professional.fe
Note: The EAS is currently closed. Please register your interest in applying in this round by following the instructions above, and you will be notified when the EAS is opened for applications at the end of July 2014.
Scholarship Application Deadline: The closing date for applications for 2014 (Round 3) Commonwealth Professional Fellowships is 18 September 2014.
