Beit Trust Masters & PhD Scholarships 2024/2025 for African Students

The Beit Trust is offering a number of Postgraduate scholarships for research and studies abroad to scholars from Malawi, Zimbabwe and Zambia.

Application Deadline: 19th February 2024

Eligible Countries: Malawi, Zambia or Zimbabwe

To be taken at (country): United Kingdom or South Africa

Eligible Field of Study: A subject of the individual’s choice appropriate to the needs of the beneficial area

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About the Beit Trust Masters & PhD Scholarships: The next round of Beit Scholarships to be awarded is for the academic year beginning September 2024 for universities in the UK; and January 2025 for universities in South Africa. 

The Beit Trust offers annually a number of Postgraduate Masters or PhD Scholarships abroad for  studies or research to graduates who are domiciled in (the beneficial area).

The Trust is pleased to announce a new partnership with the University of Pretoria for the new South African academic year beginning January 2025.

Type: Masters

Eligibility: The process for applying for a Beit Trust Masters & PhD Scholarships is as follows:

• Only nationals of Zambia, Zimbabwe and Malawi, who are also resident in and intend to return to those countries, are eligible to apply;
• Applications should be for a one-year taught Master’s Degree (to UK universities); and a two-year taught Master’s in South Africa;
• Applications should be made directly to the partner universities listed above, and only to those universities, via their websites and in the period beginning September 2024 (although some application windows do not open until October. Their websites will guide you);
• As long as the courses you wish to pursue are available, you may apply to more than one partner university at a time. Indeed, we recommend you do so, to increase your chances of acceptance, and to broaden the scholarship opportunities available;
• Once you have an offer from your chosen partner university, you should apply as early as possible to The Beit Trust for a scholarship.  When the new application window opens, there will be a linked application form here;
• The Trust will then sift and shortlist the most qualified, for interview by our national selection boards in Zambia, Zimbabwe and Malawi.
• Resources are limited and the scholarship process competitive. Not all those interviewed will necessarily be selected for a Scholarship. But an interview is essential to selection;
• The Trust will notify those selected for interview of the date, time and place;
• The Trust will give particular weight to those who have work or other professional experience; have demonstrated a capacity to become leaders in their field; are reading for a degree of direct and practical relevance to the development of their country; and whose stated intention is to return to their country at the completion of their degree.

Selection Criteria: 

• Prospective applicants must hold at least a degree of class 2.1, i.e. Merit or Distinction.
• Only those applicants who state that they intend to return to work in the relevant country upon completion of the scholarship, and who can, if short-listed, present themselves for interview before a Beit Postgraduate Scholarship Selection Board in Harare, Blantyre or Lusaka at the beginning of December, will be considered.
• The selectors favour practical and useful disciplines that are likely to offer a clear benefit to the beneficial area.
• Because of their high cost, MBAs and PhDs are very seldom awarded in the UK, but a taught MBA at an established university in South Africa is acceptable.

Number of Awardees: Not specified

Value of Scholarship: 

• Fees and costs of tuition and related academic expenses are paid by the Trust direct to the universities.
• Payment of a personal allowance, index linked in accordance with guidance from an independent authority covering maintenance support.
• Other allowances are paid for arrival, a laptop and printing of a thesis, and return home.
• Economy Class air passages are provided by the Trust for the initial journey to the place of study, and for the return at the end of the course.
• No allowances are paid for spouses or other family members.

Duration of Scholarship: Duration of 1 year in UK, and 2 yrs in SA,

How to Apply for Beit Trust Masters & PhD Scholarships: 

For UK Partner University applications:

1. Make your application for admission directly to one or more of the Partner Universities listed above, and only to those universities. Please apply via their websites, which will guide you.
2. Notify the relevant university, as part of your study application, that you will be approaching the Beit Trust for scholarship funding.
3. As long as the course/s you wish to pursue are available, you may apply to more than one Partner University at a time. Indeed, we recommend you do so, to increase your chances of acceptance, and to broaden the scholarship opportunities available.
4. Once you have an offer from your chosen Partner University, you should apply as early as possible to The Beit Trust for a scholarship.
5. Your application, with all the supporting documents, must be uploaded via the Scholarship application link, below in green.
6. You need three referees: Academic, Character and Employer (as appropriate). They have separate and individual forms, the link for which must be forwarded to them by you, the applicant. The link becomes available once you have submitted your scholarship application form electronically.
7. We prefer referees to use the link provided in the application form. If, however, they can only provide their reference by email, please forward them the relevant forms, which you can download below.

Download Academic Reference Form – Download Character Reference Form – Download Employer Reference Form

The completed forms must be returned directly from the referee via email to [email protected]

For South African Partner University applications:

Due to the South African University application process opening after our Scholarship application deadline of 20 February 2023, we will accept scholarship applications for South African Universities for the year 2023/2024 without a confirmed offer.

Please follow steps 3 to 7 above. Where you are asked to upload your university offer letter, please provide instead the details of the course/s and university/s that you will be applying for, in PDF format. Your scholarship application will then be considered alongside the applicants for UK universities, as part of the same entry year cohort.

The Trust will sift your application as part of our selection process. If you are successful and shortlisted for an interview, you will go to the relevant Beit Trust national selection Board.

If you are then offered a scholarship from the Trust – and not all those selected for interview receive an offer – you will then need to apply for entry to a South African Partner University (as set out in our website). You may indicate in your application that you have been awarded a Beit Scholarship.

Should you get an offer, we ask that you submit it to us as soon as you receive it. Should you not be successful in obtaining an offer, the scholarship will not, unfortunately, be available to you.

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

Visit Beit Trust Masters & PhD Scholarships Webpage for details