Top 10 International Scholarships for Commonwealth Countries

©iStock.com/FotografiaBasica

Under the Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan (CSFP), member countries of the Commonwealth offer Commonwealth Scholarships to other member countries. Through the scholarships, citizens of developing/developed Commonwealth countries can study in other developed/developing member countries*.  Aside from Commonwealth scholarships, there are University scholarships that are targeted to students from Commonwealth countries.

UK Commonwealth Scholarships for Developing Commonwealth Countries
The Commonwealth Scholarships are intended for students from developing Commonwealth countries who wants to pursue Master’s and PhD study in the UK. These scholarships are funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID).  Each Scholarship provides airfare to and from United Kingdom, tuition and examination fees, personal maintaining allowance, thesis grant (if applicable), initial arrival allowance, among others.

Commonwealth Shared Scholarships Scheme at UK Universities
The UK Commonwealth Shared Scholarship Scheme provides scholarships for international students from developing Commonwealth countries who wants to study a postgraduate degree at UK Universities.  It is a joint initiative between the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission (with funding from DFID), and UK universities. DFID and participating United Kingdom institutions will jointly meet the full costs of an award holder’s study in the United Kingdom.

See also Commonwealth Shared Scholarship Scheme at University of Edinburgh

Commonwealth Distance Learning Scholarships
The Commonwealth Distance Learning Scholarships support candidates from developing Commonwealth countries to study Master’s degree courses that are either offered in partnership with universities in developing countries, or delivered directly by UK institutions. The scholarships cover the overseas tuition fees at the Masters degree level.

Commonwealth Scholarships in UK for Developed Commonwealth Countries
Commonwealth Scholarships are offered for citizens of developed Commonwealth countries for PhD and split-site (PhD) study in the UK. These scholarships are funded by the UK Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and the Scottish Government, in conjunction with UK universities.  Each scholarship includes tuition and examination fees, maintenance allowance, airfare costs, initial arrival allowance, etc.

Commonwealth Scholarships in Low and Middle Income Countries
Commonwealth Scholarships located in low and middle income countries are available through the establishment of the CSFP endowment fund in 2009.  The scholarships allow citizens from Commonwealth countries to pursue Master’s level study at low and middle income member countries.

New Zealand Commonwealth Scholarships
As part of the CSFP programme, New Zealand offers New Zealand Commonwealth Scholarships to candidates from developing Commonwealth countries for postgraduate study (Master’s and PhD) in New Zealand universities on a contestable basis. New Zealand Commonwealth Scholarships are highly competitive and for top level graduates.

Malaysian Commonwealth Scholarships
The Malaysian Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan are awarded by the Malaysian Government to the nominated students from the Commonwealth countries to study at the post-graduate level in Malaysia. This is a Government to Government scheme without any bond imposed by Malaysia.   Each scholarship consists of air tickets from recipient’s capital city to Malaysia, approved tuition fees, monthly maintenance allowance, annual grant for books and internal travel, medical / health insurance, installation and termination grant, thesis allowance, and visa.

Singapore Commonwealth Scholarships at National University of Singapore (NUS)
Commonwealth Scholarships are awarded to talented students from any Commonwealth country with an aptitude for innovative, high calibre PhD research at NUS Graduate School for Intergrative Sciences and Engineering. Scholarship holders receive a monthly stipend of S$3,200 up to 4 years of the PhD studies.

Nottingham Developing Solutions Scholarships 
The Developing Solutions Scholarships are designed for international students who want to study in the University of Nottingham in UK and make a difference to the development of their home country. The scholarships are targeted to citizens of Africa, India or one of the countries of the Commonwealth. The scholarships are full tuition fees or 50% tuition fees. About 105 scholarships are available.

Professor Arthur Li Scholarship at University of the West of England
The Professor Arthur Li scholarship commemorates the progressive thinking and contribution to education of Professor Arthur Li.  The scholarships are open to all Commonwealth Countries and covers the full tuition fees of  a Master’s Programme offered at UWE.

*Please note that not all Commonwealth Scholarships are offered to all Commonwealth countries and not all member countries are offering the Commonwealth scholarships.  See this link for a list of current countries offering Commonwealth Scholarships.