NOW OPEN: Commonwealth Professional Fellowships 2024/2025 for Developing Countries – UK

In 2024/25, the CSC will be running a special Professional Fellowship programme: Gender and Sexuality Fellowship programme 

Application Deadline: 10th August 2023 by 4pm BST

About the Award: Commonwealth Professional Fellowships are for mid-career professionals from low- and middle-income countries to spend a period at a UK Host organisation working in their sector for a programme of professional development.

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Purpose: To provide professionals with the opportunity to enhance knowledge and skills in their given sector, and to have catalytic effects on their workplaces.

Intended beneficiaries: Mid-career professionals (with five years’ relevant work experience) working organisations in low and middle income Commonwealth countries.

These fellowships are offered under six 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

Type: Fellowship

Eligibility: To be eligible for these Fellowships, prospective fellows must:

• Be a citizen of or have been granted refugee status by an eligible Commonwealth country, or be a British Protected Person
• Be permanently resident in an eligible Commonwealth country
• Have at least five years’ full-time, or equivalent part-time, relevant work experience, in a profession related to the subject of the fellowship programme, by the proposed start of the fellowship – voluntary work experience will not be counted towards this minimum
• Be in employment at the time of application at an organisation that they will return to upon completion of the fellowship
• Provide at least two references, one of which must be from their current employer. Any applications for which references are not received by the reference closing date will be considered ineligible.
• Not have undertaken a Commonwealth Professional Fellowship within the last five years (at the time of taking up the award)
• Not be seeking to undertake an academic programme of research or study. 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
• Be available to undertake their fellowship from the prescribed start date

In addition to the above, prospective fellows must ensure they meet any eligibility criteria set out by each individual host organisation.

Eligible Countries: Developing countries

Number of Awards: Up to 25 fellows (in total)

Value & Duration of Award: Each Fellowship provides:

• Approved return airfare from the Fellow’s home country to the UK
• Reimbursement of the standard visa application fee
• Stipend (living allowance) payable monthly (or pro rata) for the duration of the award at the rate of £1,944 per month, or £2,397 per month for those at organisations in the London metropolitan area (rates quoted at 2022/23 levels
• If a Fellow declares a disability, a full assessment of needs and eligibility for additional financial support will be offered by the CSC. See the CSC disability support statement for more information
• Arrival allowance of up to £1,061.10 (rates quoted at 2021/22 levels), including an element for warm clothing
• A maximum of £3,000 per fellow can be agreed by host organisations for short courses/conferences as well as travel to visit other UK organisations where this forms an integral part of the programme. Host organisations should bear in mind the restrictions set out in our guidance on claimable costs.

How to Apply: Applications for prospective Fellows are now open. 

In the application form, prospective Fellows will be asked to:

• List all undergraduate and postgraduate university qualifications obtained (where applicable)
• List up to 10 publications and prizes (if applicable)
• Provide details of your employment history and explain how each job is relevant to the programme you wish to undertake in the UK (up to 100 words per employment)
• Provide a statement on the relevance of your previous work experience to the proposed fellowship (up to 300 words)
• List names and positions of up to three referees who are qualified to comment on both your capacity to benefit from your proposed fellowship in the UK and your ability to deliver development impact afterwards. One of your referees must be your current employer

Provide a development impact statement in 4 parts.

• Part 1: (up to 200 words) Explain how participation on your selected fellowship relates to:
  • one of the six CSC development themes
  • development issues at the global, national and local level
• Part 2 (up to 100 words) Explain how you intend to apply your new skills once your Fellowship ends.

• Part 3 (up to 250 words) Outline what you expect will change in development terms following your fellowship including:
  • the outcomes that you aim to achieve
  • the timeframe for their implementation
  • who the beneficiaries will be
• Part 4: (up to 100 words) Write about how the impact of your work could be best measured.
• Confirm what your award objectives are and how each of them will be met by the fellowship programme
• Confirm what your objectives are for the next two years and how each of them will be met by the fellowship programme
• Confirm what your objectives are in the longer term and how each of them will be met by the fellowship programme
• Provide a personal statement to summarise the ways in which your personal background has encouraged you to want to make an impact in your home country. You should indicate areas in which you have already contributed, such as having overcome any personal or community barriers to your chosen career (up to 500 words)
• Summarise the ways in which you have engaged in voluntary activities and the opportunities you have had to demonstrate leadership (up to 500 words)
• Provide a scan of your passport or national identity card

• It is important to go through all application requirements in the Award Webpage (see Link below) before applying.
• GOODLUCK

Visit Award Webpage for Details