Commonwealth PhD Scholarships 2026/2027 (Fully-funded) – YOA

Deadline: October 14, 2025

Applications are open for the Commonwealth PhD Scholarships 2026/2027. Funded by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), Commonwealth PhD scholarships contribute to the event wants of Commonwealth international locations by supporting analysis that may have a developmental influence.

Commonwealth PhD Scholarships are for candidates from least developed international locations and fragile States, as categorised by the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC), within the Commonwealth, for full-time doctoral study at a UK college.

The Commonwealth Scholarship Commission within the UK (CSC) supplies the UK authorities scholarship scheme led by worldwide growth goals. It operates throughout the framework of the Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan (CSFP) and presents a vivid demonstration of the UK’s enduring dedication to the Commonwealth. By attracting people with excellent expertise and identifiable potential from all backgrounds and supporting them to develop into leaders and innovators on returning to their home international locations, the CSC’s work combines sustainable growth with the UK nationwide curiosity and supplies alternatives for worldwide partnerships and collaboration.

Scholarship

Each scholarship supplies:

• Approved airfare from the Scholar’s home nation to the UK and return on the finish of the award (the CSC won’t reimburse the price of fares for dependants, nor the price of journeys made earlier than the award is confirmed).
• Approved tuition charges: full charges are lined by settlement between the CSC and the UK college, and Scholars are usually not liable to pay for any part of the tutoring payment.
• Stipend (dwelling allowance) on the fee of £1,452 per thirty days, or £1,781 per thirty days for these at universities within the London metropolitan space (charges quoted at present ranges).
• Warm clothes allowance, the place relevant.
• Study journey grant in direction of the price of study-related journey throughout the UK or abroad.
• Provision in direction of the price of fieldwork undertaken abroad (the price of one financial system class return airfare to the fieldwork location), the place authorised.
• Paid mid-time period go to (airfare) to the Scholar’s home nation, except they’ve claimed or intend to assert partner and/or child allowances throughout their scholarship or have acquired a return airfare to their home nation for fieldwork.
• Family allowances, as follows (charges quoted at present ranges):
  • If a Scholar is accompanied by their partner however no youngsters: partner allowance of £313 per thirty days for a most interval of 9 months, in the event that they and their partner reside collectively on the similar tackle within the UK (except the partner can also be in receipt of a scholarship; different situations additionally apply).
  • If a Scholar is accompanied by their partner and youngsters: partner allowance of £313 per thirty days and child allowance of £313 per thirty days for the primary child, and £154 per thirty days for the second and third child beneath the age of 16, if their partner and youngsters reside with them on the similar tackle within the UK (except their partner can also be in receipt of a scholarship; different situations additionally apply).
  • If a Scholar has youngsters and is widowed, divorced, or a single mother or father, child allowance of child allowance of £622 per thirty days for the primary child, and £154 per thirty days for the second and third child beneath the age of 16, if their youngsters reside with them on the similar tackle within the UK.

Eligibility

To apply for this scholarship, candidates should:

• Be a citizen of or have been granted refugee standing by an eligible Commonwealth nation, or be a British Protected Person.
• Be completely resident in an eligible Commonwealth nation.
• Be accessible to begin educational research within the UK by the beginning of the UK educational yr in September 2026.
• By September 2026, maintain a primary diploma of at the very least higher second-class (2:1) honours commonplace, or a decrease second-class diploma and a related postgraduate qualification (often a Master’s diploma).
• Not be registered for a PhD, or an MPhil resulting in a PhD, at a UK college or of their home nation earlier than September/October 2026.
• Be unable to afford to study within the UK with out this scholarship.
• Have offered all supporting documentation within the required format.

Selection Criteria

Applications can be thought of in accordance with the next choice standards:

• Academic benefit
• Quality of analysis proposal
• Potential influence on the event of the candidate’s come nation

Application

Applications for Commonwealth PhD scholarships for the 2026/2027 educational yr at the moment are open. The deadline for submitting an application is 16:00 hours BST (15:00 GMT) on 14 October 2025. The scholarships are for study within the UK starting in September/October 2026.

Applicants are suggested to finish and submit purposes as early as potential, as the net application system can be very busy within the days main as much as the application deadline.

As properly as making use of to the CSC, candidates should apply to a nominator.

There are three kinds of nominator invited to take part within the PhD scholarship programme: 

Click here to apply

For extra data, go to Commonwealth PhD Scholarships.