Commonwealth Professional Fellowship

Commonwealth Professional Fellowships are provided to mid-career professionals from the low and middle-income Commonwealth countries. The fellowship is granted to the applicants to spend 6 weeks to 3 months at a UK university or host organization working in their sector on a program of professional development.

The fellowship is offered to the applicants under the following 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 CrisiS
Access, Inclusion, and Opportunity

Commonwealth Professional Fellowship aims to provide talented and motivated professionals with the opportunity to enhance knowledge and skills in their fields of specialization.

The scholarship is funded by the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission (CSC) in the UK.
An applicant is expected to have at least 5 years' full-time or equivalent part-time relevant work experience.
The scholarship benefit includes a chance to be working in development-related organizations in the UK.

Applicants must apply for the fellowship to their host organization. The application deadline for the fellowship is September 20, 20202.

Highlights

Scholarship Type	Merit-Based
Offered by	Government bodies
Organization	Department for International Development
Application Deadline	Sep 20 ,2020
Number of Scholarships	N/A
Amount	Variable Amount
Renewability	One Time Payment
International Student Eligible	Yes
Scholarship Website Link	http://cscuk.dfid.gov.uk/apply/professional-fellowships/commonwealth-professional-fellowships/

Eligibility Criteria

To receive the Commonwealth Professional Fellowship, applicants must meet the eligibility requirements listed below:

The applicant should either have been granted refugee status by an eligible Commonwealth country or a British Protected Person.
The applicant must be a permanent resident in an eligible Commonwealth country.
An applicant is expected to have at least 5 years' full-time or equivalent part-time relevant work experience.
- Voluntary work experience is not counted in this criteria.
The applicant must be in employment to the related field of programs while applying for the fellowship.
The application is expected not to be the recipient of the Commonwealth Professional Fellowship within the last five years of applying.

The applicant should not be seeking an academic program of research or study in the UK.

Application Process

Candidates who wish to secure Commonwealth Professional Fellowship must apply to the host organization in the UK. The application can only be done on the Host Programs which are available during that time, some of the Host Programs include:

African Prisons Project
Bees for Development Trust
British Geological Survey
Cardiff Metropolitan University
Cardiff University School of History, Archaeology, and Religion
University of East London
Cardiff University, School of Modern Languages
Cardiff University, The Phoenix Project
University of Salford
Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council
Commonwealth Telecommunication Organization
Conciliation Resources
Doncaster and Bassetlaw Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London
Knowledge for Change
Liverpool John Moores University, School of Nursing
London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust

The complete application must include at least two references, out of which one should be from the applicant's current employer.

The application deadline to submit the same is September 20, by 4 PM (BST).

After the deadline, the submitted applications are shared with the Host Organization in order to review all applications and nominate the candidates they wish to consider for theCommonwealth Professional Fellowship.

Note: The references are to submitted by September 30, 4 PM (BST).

Selection Process

The applications for Commonwealth Professional Fellowship are sent to the Host Organization which the candidate has applied to.

The Host Organization sets up a Commission to selects potential candidates for the Fellowship Grant.
Selection is based on work employment, the program they have applied to, their contributions towards the field during employment, etc.
The decision of the Host Organization is final and binding.

After carefully assessing all candidates, the Commission reaches a decision on which applicants are to be considered for the Commonwealth Professional Fellowship.

Grant Details

The Commonwealth Professional Fellowship is granted by the UK government through CSC.

The main purpose of this fellowship is to provide a talented and excellent professional with the opportunity to enhance knowledge and skills in their respective sectors.

Approved return airfare from the Fellow’s home country to the UK
The living allowance payable monthly at the rate of 1,696 GBP per month, or 2,104 GBP per month for those at organizations in the London metropolitan area.
Arrival allowance of up to 953.45 GBP at current rates.
Also including an element for warm clothing and reimbursement of the standard visa application fee
Flat rate contribution of 800 GBP to the costs of the Host organization relating to the administration and support of the Fellow.
Fees of up to a maximum of GBP 2,000 GBP will be agreed for awards under two months and up to a maximum of 3000 GBP for awards of three months.

Terms and Conditions regarding Commonwealth Professional Fellowship:

Fellowships are provided for 1 to 3 months. If that exceeds, there must be a strong case for the additional time.
No fellowship can be applied for less than one month.
Attending short courses or conferences during the fellowship is also acceptable.
The fellowship grant is only applicable for UK-based courses for their full duration.
Up to 5 applicants can be nominated to the host by the organizations every year.
Candidates who are pursuing a full-time course are not eligible for the fellowship.
If a candidate has received benefits of any other grant or aid during the application, they are not eligible for the scholarship.
Applicants who wish to undertake research or academic program will also not be considered for the fellowship.
Applicants who previously have taken leave to work abroad in a developed country must make an additional case clearly stating their experience, what they gained from the previous term and why they should be considered again for this scholarship.

Completed application forms must be submitted before September 20, 2020, to be considered for Commonwealth Professional Fellowship.