Scholarships & Fellowship plan 2008 - New Zealand & South Africa - closing date 20 March 2007

WHAT IS THE COMMONWEALTH SCHOLARSHIPS & FELLOWSHIPS PLAN?

Although much has changed since its inception in 1959, the central aims of CSFP remain very much intact. The Plan aims to provide a network of study opportunities throughout the Commonwealth. Although special emphasis is placed on the needs of developing nations, the scheme is intended as a genuine partnership, with opportunities and benefits for all member countries.

Awards under the scheme are not made by any central body. It is for each Commonwealth country to decide whether to offer awards in a particular year, which countries will be eligible to receive them and what precise selection criteria will operate. As the map shows, over twenty have made awards at some point during the scheme's history, and over half of these have indicated that awards will be available for 2003 entry.

How to making an application

When the CSFP was established, one of its key principles was that each Commonwealth country would decide on its own level of participation. This allows awards to reflect national priorities, and ensures that selection is a genuine partnership between home and host countries. It also means, however, that knowing where and when to apply can be difficult, since the number of countries offering awards is regularly changing.

The process of making an application can be simplified, however, by using this site in the following way:

First, check whether any CSFP awards are currently available in the country in which you wish to study. This can be done by checking whether it appears on the list of current sponsors under the section on Countries offering Awards 

If the country is not listed, then no awards are being offered at present. You could, however, contact the agency in that country to ask whether they have any plans to offer awards in future, or click onto another country.

If the country is listed, you should check whether you are eligible. Please note that terms and conditions of awards vary over time, as do application deadlines. Whilst the organisers of this web site try to keep up to date with these developments, this is not always possible, and it is advisable to check the current situation with the national agency concerned.

If you seem to be eligible for an award, check whether it is available to nationals of your home country, by seeing if your country is listed in the drop down box in the Applications section. In some cases, this will not only provide further details, but give access to the appropriate application form. Please remember, however, that many host nations only offer awards to a limited number of other countries. This might be decided not the basis of geographical reasons, the needs of recipient countries, or whether the country concerned offers awards themselves.

If awards are offered to citizens from your country, do as much research as possible on the likely course or university where your award may be held. Some country sections offer detailed links to the sites of specific universities or national advisory agencies. In other cases, investigations can be made via the link to the ACU's free Coursefinder service 

When writing your application, make sure you present yourself to the best effect. Whilst the requirements of individual countries vary, a leaflet giving general advice was issued to candidates last year by the United Kingdom, and might be of wider interest. For a copy of the leaflet, click here.

See www.csfp-online.org  for further details.