Commonwealth Split-Site Scholarships, 2024-2025

Commonwealth Split-site Scholarships are for PhD candidates from low and middle-income Commonwealth countries, to spend up to 12 months at a UK university as part of their doctoral studies in their home country. This scholarship program aims to widen access to UK equipment and expertise for high-quality doctoral candidates from developing countries, and to contribute to the UK and Commonwealth higher education and research through collaboration and partnerships.

The Commonwealth Scholarship Commission in the UK (CSC) provides the UK government scholarship scheme led by international development objectives. Funded by the UK Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), Commonwealth Split-site 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. The program is available for high-quality graduates whose proposed research has a developmental focus and who have the potential to become influential teachers or researchers in their home countries.

Commonwealth Split-site Scholarships are offered under the following six CSC Development 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.

Program Details

• Host Institution: United Kingdom universities with part funding agreements (Please check the full list below).
• Number of awards: Not specified.
• Duration: up to 12 months at a UK university.
• Target group: Open to British Protected Persons, citizens and persons with refugee status of Bangladesh, Belize, Botswana, Cameroon, Dominica, Eswatini, Fiji, Gabon, Ghana, Grenada, Guyana, India, Jamaica, Kenya, Kiribati, Lesotho, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Montserrat, Mozambique, Namibia, Nauru, Nigeria, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Rwanda, St Helena, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Gambia, Togo, Tonga, Tuvalu, Uganda, Vanuatu, Zambia.

Commonwealth Split-site Scholarships Benefits

The Commonwealth Split-site scholarship provides successful applicants with:

1. Approved airfare from your home country to the UK and return at the end of your award (the CSC will not reimburse the cost of fares for dependents, nor the cost of journeys made before your award is confirmed)
2. Approved tuition fees
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 you are widowed, divorced, or a single parent, a 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 you are accompanied by your children and they are living with you at the same address in the UK.

Participating Universities in the Commonwealth Split-site Scholarships

Below is the list of universities that have part funding agreements with the CSC for Commonwealth Scholarships for candidates from low and middle-income countries:

1. Aberystwyth University
2. Aston University
3. Bangor University
4. Bath Spa University
5. Birkbeck, University of London
6. Birmingham City University
7. Brunel University London
8. Cardiff University
9. City, University of London
10. Coventry University
11. Cranfield University
12. Durham University
13. Glasgow Caledonian University
14. Goldsmiths, University of London
15. Harper Adams University
16. Heriot-Watt University
17. Imperial College London
18. Keele University
19. King’s College London
20. Kingston University
21. Lancaster University
22. Leeds Beckett University
23. Liverpool Hope University
24. Liverpool John Moores University
25. Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine
26. London School of Economics and Political Science
27. London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
28. London South Bank University
29. Loughborough University
30. Manchester Metropolitan University
31. Newcastle University
32. Northumbria University
33. Nottingham Trent University
34. Open University
35. Oxford Brookes University
36. Plymouth University
37. Queen Mary, University of London
38. Queen’s University Belfast
39. Robert Gordon University
40. Royal Agricultural University
41. Royal Holloway, University of London
42. Royal Veterinary College
43. Sheffield Hallam University
44. SOAS, University of London
45. St George’s, University of London
46. Swansea University
47. Teesside University
48. Ulster University
49. University College London
50. University of Aberdeen
51. University of Bath
52. University of Birmingham
53. University of Bradford
54. University of Bristol
55. University of Cambridge
56. University of Central Lancashire
57. University of Chester
58. University of Dundee
59. University of East Anglia
60. University of East London
61. University of Edinburgh
62. University of Essex
63. University of Exeter
64. University of Glasgow
65. University of Greenwich
66. University of Huddersfield
67. University of Hull
68. University of Kent
69. University of Leeds
70. University of Leicester
71. University of Lincoln
72. University of Liverpool
73. University of Manchester
74. University of Northampton
75. University of Nottingham
76. University of Oxford
77. University of Portsmouth
78. University of Reading
79. University of Roehampton
80. University of St Andrews
81. University of Salford
82. University of Sheffield
83. University of Southampton
84. University of Stirling
85. University of Strathclyde
86. University of Surrey
87. University of Sussex
88. University of the West of England
89. University of Warwick
90. University of Westminster
91. University of West London
92. University of Wolverhampton
93. University of Worcester
94. University of York

Commonwealth Split-site Scholarships Eligibility

To qualify for a Commonwealth Split-site Scholarship, Applicants must be:

• a citizen of or have been granted refugee status by an eligible Commonwealth country, or be a British Protected Person
• permanently resident in an eligible Commonwealth country
• registered for a PhD at a university in an eligible Commonwealth country by the time your scholarship starts (September 2024)
• able to 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.
• available to start your academic studies in the UK by the start of the UK academic year in September 2024
• by September 2024, hold a first degree of at least upper second class (2:1) honors standard, or a lower second-class degree and a relevant postgraduate qualification (usually a Master’s degree)
• unable to afford to study in the UK without this scholarship.

Similar opportunities

1. CSC Scholarship at the China University of Geosciences;
2. Mohamed Bin Zayed University Scholarship in Artificial Intelligence;
3. King Abdulaziz University Scholarship.

How to Apply for the Commonwealth Split-site Scholarships

To apply for this Europe scholarship, applicants must follow the steps below:

1. You should apply to study at a UK university that has a part funding agreement with the CSC (Please see above for full list);
2. You must make your application directly to the CSC using the CSC’s online application system. The CSC will not accept any applications that are not submitted via the online application system. To start, please click on the “Apply button below”.
3. You are advised to complete and submit your application as soon as possible, as the online application system will be very busy in the days leading up to the application deadline.
4. Your application must include the following supporting documentation by the deadline in order for your application to be eligible for consideration:
   • Copy of your valid passport (or national ID card) showing your photograph, date of birth, and country of citizenship or refugee status – uploaded to the online application system
   • 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.
   • Supporting statement from your supervisor at your home country university, which must include details of the institutional link between the university where you are/will be registered for your Ph.D. and your proposed UK university – submitted directly by your supervisor to the online application system (supervisors will be sent an email request).
   • 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 the institution named on the application form.
   • A supporting statement, in PDF format, signed and on institutional letterhead or an email clearly showing the sender’s details, from the current supervisor at the home university.

To be considered for the Commonwealth Split-site Scholarships, you must send your application documents by December 5, 2023 at 16:00 (GMT) at the latest. For more details, please visit the official page. To be the first to see latest opportunities, please follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram.