The Commonwealth Master’s Scholarships are awarded to students who possess leadership qualities and are capable of changing the world positively.
The UK Scholarship Commission, each year, decides to award students with Masters/Ph.D. scholarships that help them seek higher levels of education in foreign countries, which they couldn’t have achieved otherwise.
Short Details of the Scholarships
- Course Level: Masters (1 year taught)
- Number of Scholarships: No such limits
- Financial Coverage: Fully Funded
Scholarship Coverage
- Approved flight tickets from your country to the UK, and your return tickets once your scholarship is complete. (The CSC is not responsible for flight fares of your family members/relatives and flights taken before the scholarship is awarded.)
- Full tuition fee coverage.
- A handsome stipend of £1,133 per month or £1,390 per month is your university near the London Metropolitan area.
- Applicants would be provided with warm clothing, wherever applicable.
- Applicants may get a thesis grant for their thesis/research; also, they may get study travel grants for study-related travel within the UK/overseas.
- Applicants will get a child allowance if they are divorced, widowed, or single parent. The child allowance is £485 for the first child and £120 for the second and third child if they accompany the applicant and live in the same address in the UK.
- For disabled candidates, additional financial support would be provided by the CSC.
Eligibility Criteria for Bangladeshi Students
- The applicant should be a citizen or must have been granted refugee status by an eligible commonwealth country or can even be a British Protected Person.
- The applicant should be a permanent resident of an eligible commonwealth country.
- Applicant can only select their subjects under these 6 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 Crisis, Access, Inclusion and Opportunity.
- Applicants must be holding a First Degree (Honours) of at least upper second-class (2:1) honours standard/CGPA, or a second-class degree (2:2) honours standard/CGPA and also a relevant postgraduate Master’s Degree (terminal degree) in the same condition. (2:1 denotes CGPA of 3.30 -3.90 & 2:2 denotes CGPA of 2.70-3.30)
- The applicant should not have commenced/registered in any Master’s Degree programme or other equivalent courses.
- Applicants must mention the GPA/CGPA of the degree while filling up the application form. (Also, if he/she has received the results in the form of Distinction, Excellent, Very Good, Good, and Passed, the total number and the obtained number must be mentioned.)
- Applicants for Medicine and Dentistry must show their year of passing each for MBBS/BDS and the marks obtained, total and average marks in the application form.
Choosing a university/course
Applicants have the benefit of choosing their course as well as the institution they want to study in the UK. For more details, you can visit here.
Academic Requirements
Applicants must be holding a First Degree (Honours) of at least upper second-class (2:1) honours standard/CGPA, or a second-class degree (2:2) honours standard/CGPA and also a relevant postgraduate Master’s Degree (terminal degree) in the same condition. (2:1 denotes CGPA of 3.30 -3.90 & 2:2 denotes CGPA of 2.70-3.30).
Job Experience Requirements
No such requirements.
Language Requirements
The applicants don’t need to take the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). However, if you have a certificate, you can attach it to the application form. Moreover, having an IELTS certificate would be beneficial in proving your competence.
Opening Date/Deadline
The last date to apply for the Commonwealth Masters Scholarships is 14th October 2021.
Application Fees
No FEE is required.
Documents Required
- All certificates and transcripts (attested copy)
- IELTS certificate (copy)
- Passport size photo (attested copy)
- Applicants can submit their publication in any journal (if any)
- You can also submit an offer letter (if any)
How to Apply
If you are an applicant from Bangladesh, the CSC does not accept direct applications for the Master’s Programme. You will have to fill up the application form at the Commonwealth Commission Website and send the application to the University Grants Commission (UGC) Bangladesh. Also, you may download the form here.
Also, the UGC may have its own qualification requirements and selection procedure. So, be prepared for that. Now, you can only apply for the Master’s Scholarship 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 Crisis
- Access, Inclusion, and Opportunity
After filling out the application form, you must submit the hard copy in an envelope to “The Secretary, University Grants Commission of Bangladesh, Agargaon Administrative Area, Sher-E-Bangla Nagar, Dhaka-1207” within 14th October 2021.
Applicants should clearly mention the name/category or scholarship on the top of the envelope.
Completing the Online Application Form
[The nominated candidates after Viva-Voce by the UGC are required to fill up the EAS (Electronic Application System) form from the Commonwealth Commission website.]
Applications must be submitted through the CSC’s online application system, which may be found in the ‘How to Apply‘ section of the CSC scholarship page.
Prospective Scholars will be requested to complete the following fields on the application form:
- List all undergraduate and postgraduate university degrees earned (if applicable).
- List up to ten publications and awards (if applicable).
- Give details about your work history and explain how each job relates to the degree you want to pursue in the UK (up to 100 words per employment).
- Make a statement about how your previous job experience relates to the proposed Scholarship. (max. 300 words).
- List the names and positions of three referees who are qualified to remark on your ability to benefit from your intended Scholarship in the UK as well as your ability to deliver development effect afterwards. Your current employer must be one of your referees.
- Provide a four-part development impact statement. In the first section, explain how your proposed Scholarship is related to a) global, national, and local development concerns, b) development issues related to your selected CSC development theme and the broader sectors.
- In the second section, you should explain how you intend to put your new talents to use once your scholarship is over (up to 100 words).
- In the third section, you should indicate what you intend to change in terms of development as a result of your Scholarship, including a) the goals you want to achieve, b) the timeframe for implementing them, c) who will be the recipients (maximum of 250 words).
- In the fourth section, you should discuss how the impact of your work may be best measured (up to 100 words).
- Confirm your award objectives and how the Scholarship program will meet each of them.
- Confirm your professional goals for the next five years after receiving your Scholarship.
- Confirm your long-term professional objectives.
- Provide a personal statement summarizing how your personal background has inspired you to wish to make a difference in your own nation. In addition, you should mention areas where you have already made a difference, such as overcoming any personal or community challenges to your chosen vocation (up to 500 words).
- Summarize your involvement in volunteer activities and the opportunities you’ve had to display leadership (up to 500 words).
- Please upload a scan of your passport.
- For an example of the questions asked in the online application system, please check this paper. Do not fill out the linked paper; it is purely for your information. Only applications submitted using the online application system will be accepted.
Selection Procedure
- The UGC will conduct a viva-voce to select worthy candidates.
- Then the UGC would public a Final result of the Viva-Voce. The nominated candidates are selected for the scholarships.
- Then the candidates are required to fill up the EAS (Electronic Application System) Form from the Commonwealth Commission website. (Here, you should select the Ministry of Education, Bangladesh, as the nominating agency).
- Then candidates should submit the hard copy of the EAS form to “The Secretary, University Grants Commission of Bangladesh, Agargaon Administrative Area, Sher-E-Bangla Nagar, Dhaka-1207”.
- All results would be published on the Official UGC Website under the heading “Notice Board” or “Scholarships”. No e-mails, notices would be sent to the candidate from the UGC. Candidates are required to check their results on their own.
Applications will be considered according to the following selection criteria:
- Academic merit of the candidate
- Quality of the plan of study
- Potential impact on the development of the candidate’s home country
To know more about the selection procedure, visit here.
Facilities for Disabled, Single Mom & Divorced
Applicants will get a child allowance if they are divorced, widowed, or single parent. The child allowance is £485 for the first child and £120 for the second and third child if they accompany the applicant and live in the same address in the UK.
For disabled candidates, additional financial support would be provided by the CSC.