Commonwealth Professional and Academic Fellowships
Commonwealth Scholarship Commission in the UK
Around 40 funded UK placements for mid-career professionals with five years' experience and for PhD-holding university staff from Commonwealth countries, Ghana included. The 2027 round closed 25 August 2026; no dates are published for the next round.
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Eligibility
- Who can apply
- Commonwealth
- Education required
- None
- Work experience
- 5+ years
- Fields
- Any field of study
- Residency
- Permanently resident in an eligible Commonwealth country; prospective Fellows should not have indefinite leave to remain in the UK
- Also required
- Be a citizen of, or have been granted refugee status by, an eligible Commonwealth country, or be a British Protected Person
- Professional Fellows: at least five years' full-time (or equivalent part-time) relevant work experience by the proposed start of the fellowship; voluntary work does not count
- Academic Fellows: hold a PhD and be employed by a university in a Commonwealth country other than the UK
- Be in employment at the time of application at an organisation you will return to after the fellowship
- Provide at least two references, one of which must be from your current employer
- Must not have undertaken a Commonwealth Fellowship within the last five years
- Must also meet any additional eligibility criteria set by the individual UK host organisation
About this opportunity
From 2026/27 the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission runs a single Commonwealth Fellowship Programme with two strands. Commonwealth Professional Fellowships are for mid-career professionals from eligible Commonwealth countries other than the UK to spend six weeks to three months on a bespoke professional development programme at a UK host organisation working in their sector. Commonwealth Academic Fellowships are for academic staff who hold a PhD and are employed at a university in an eligible Commonwealth country, for a three-month academic skills update, knowledge exchange and networking placement at a UK university. Ghana is named on the Commission's list of eligible ODA countries, alongside Cameroon, The Gambia, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda and Zambia.
The Commission provisionally plans around 40 Fellowships in total, about 30 for citizens of ODA-eligible Commonwealth countries and about 10 for citizens of non-ODA Commonwealth countries. Fellowships sit under six development themes: science and technology for development; improving population health, health systems and capacity; promoting innovation and entrepreneurship; strengthening peace, security and governance; strengthening resilience and response to crises; and access, inclusion and opportunity. You do not apply to the CSC in the abstract - you pick one of the named UK host organisation programmes (for the 2027 round these included University College London, Imperial College London, the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, the British Geological Survey, Justice Defenders and Bees for Development) and apply to that programme through the CSC's form. Some hosts recruit only from their own established networks, and the CSC flags which ones on the host organisation page.
Each Fellowship provides approved return airfare from the Fellow's home country, reimbursement of the standard visa application fee, an arrival allowance of up to GBP 1,247.09 including an element for warm clothing, and a monthly stipend of GBP 2,218 (GBP 2,753 for organisations in the London metropolitan area) at 2025/26 rates. Professional Fellows need at least five years' full-time relevant paid work experience by the start of the fellowship, must be in employment at an organisation they will return to, and must supply at least two references, one from their current employer. Selection weighs the quality and relevance of the programme, development impact and candidate potential. Applications for 2027 opened at 09:00 BST on Tuesday 28 July 2026 and closed at 16:00 BST on Tuesday 25 August 2026. The Commission has not published dates for the next round.
- Level
- Early career, Postdoc
- Where
- United Kingdom
- Duration
- Professional Fellowships: six weeks to three months, starting mid-February to mid-March 2027. Academic Fellowships: three months, starting January/February 2027.
- Number of awards
- Provisionally around 40 in total: approximately 30 for citizens of ODA-eligible Commonwealth countries and approximately 10 for non-ODA Commonwealth countries
- Difficulty
- High · about 6 weeks to prepare
Funding
Fully funded
- travel
- visa
- stipend
- training
Approved return airfare from the Fellow's home country to the UK; reimbursement of the standard visa application fee; a monthly stipend of GBP 2,218, or GBP 2,753 for organisations in the London metropolitan area (2025/26 rates); an arrival allowance of up to GBP 1,247.09 including an element for warm clothing. Additional fees for short courses, conferences and travel to other UK organisations can be agreed and are paid to the host: up to GBP 1,000 for programmes of six weeks to two months and up to GBP 2,000 for two to three months. Fellows who declare a disability are offered a full assessment of needs and eligibility for additional financial support.
What you will need
- Reference letters (2)
- Personal statement
- CV / résumé
- Passport or national ID
The form asks for all university qualifications, up to ten publications and prizes, employment history with up to 100 words per job explaining relevance, a 300-word statement on the relevance of previous work experience, a four-part development impact statement (200 / 100 / 250 / 100 words), award objectives for the fellowship and for the next two years and the longer term, a 500-word personal statement on how your background shaped your wish to make an impact at home, a 500-word statement on voluntary activities and leadership, a scan of your passport or national identity card, and at least two references including one from your current employer.
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