Commonwealth Professional Fellowship for Mid-Career Professionals from Developing Countries
Commonwealth Professional Fellowships are offered by the CSC for citizens of developing Commonwealth countries. These fellowships are funded by the UK Department for International
Development (DFID), with the aim of contributing to the UK’s international development aims and wider overseas interests, supporting excellence in UK higher education, and sustaining the principles of the Commonwealth.
Commonwealth Professional Fellowships support mid-career professionals from developing countries to spend a period of time at a UK host organisation working in their field for a programme of professional development.
Intended beneficiaries:
- Mid-career professionals (with five years’ relevant work experience) working in development-related organisations in developing Commonwealth countries.
- Organisations from any sector can apply either to host one or more Commonwealth Professional Fellows within their own organisation, or to nominate one or more Fellows to be hosted by another organisation with which they have links.
Key features
The CSC is keen to encourage creative and flexible applications for Commonwealth Professional Fellowships from a wide range of sectors – professional, charitable, public, and private. Priority will be given to applications with practical relevance in the following broadly-defined areas:
- Agriculture / fisheries / forestry
- Economic growth
- Education
- Engineering / science / technology
- Environment
- Governance
- Public health
Eligibility
To be eligible for these fellowships, you must:
- Be a citizen of a developing Commonwealth country, refugee, or British protected person
- Be permanently resident in a developing Commonwealth country
- Have normally 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 start 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
Fellowship Worth:
Each fellowship provides:
- Approved return airfare from the Fellow’s home country to the UK
- Stipend (living allowance) payable monthly (or pro rata) for the duration of the award at the rate of £1,580 per month, or £1,959 per month for those at organisations in the London metropolitan area (rates quoted at 2015-2016 levels). 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
- Arrival allowance of up to £887.83 at current rates, including an element for warm clothing and reimbursement of the visa application fee
- Fixed grant 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
- Flat rate contribution of £800 to the costs of the host/nominating organisation relating to the administration and support of the Fellow, setting up of appropriate meetings, any materials required, and incidental travel for the Fellow during the award
- Reasonable fees up to a maximum of £3,000 will be agreed in the context of the length of the programme, but
- Agriculture / fisheries / forestry
- Economic growth
- Education
- Engineering / science / technology
- Environment
- Governance
- Public health
full justification must be given for the amount being claimed. Such claims can cover:
- Fees for any conferences or short courses attended during the fellowship, provided that these are approved as part of the original application
- 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 on a case-by-case basis Host/nominating organisations should bear in mind the following restrictions when planning an application:
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 hire, professional association memberships, costs associated with visits outside the UK, and contingencies will not be approved.
SELECTION CRITERIA
Applications are considered according to the following selection 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
HOW TO APPLY
- Applications must be made using the CSC’s Electronic Application System (EAS). Information on how to use the EAS, including detailed guides, is available at http://bit.ly/cscuk-professional-fellowships
- A representative of the host/nominating organisation must complete the first section of the form. The prospective Fellow(s) must complete the second section of the form. Once this has been done, the host/nominating organisation is then required to nominate the prospective Fellow(s) via the EAS. Candidates who have not been nominated via the EAS will not be considered.
For More Information:
Visit the Official Webpage of the Commonwealth Academic Fellowships for Mid-Career Professionals
Application Deadline: 17 May 2016 on 23:59 (BST)