Commonwealth Professional Fellowships for Developing Commonwealth Countries in UK

Commonwealth
Professional Fellowships

Commonwealth Professional
Fellowships are offered by the CSC for citizens of developing Commonwealth
countries. These fellowships are funded by the UK
Department for International Development (DFID), with the
aim of contributing to the UK’s
international development aims and wider overseas interests, supporting
excellence in UK
higher education, and sustaining the principles of the Commonwealth.

Commonwealth Professional
Fellowships s
upport mid-career professionals from developing countries to spend
a period of time at a UK
host organisation working in their field for a programme of professional
development.

Purpose: To provide professionals with the opportunity
to enhance knowledge and skills in their given sector, and to have catalytic
effects on their workplaces.

Intended beneficiaries: Mid-career professionals (with five
years’ relevant work experience) working in development-related organisations in
developing Commonwealth countries.

Organisations from any sector can
apply either to host one or more Commonwealth Professional Fellows within their
own organisation, or to nominate one or more Fellows to be hosted by another
organisation with which they have links.

Key features

The CSC is keen to encourage
creative and flexible applications for Commonwealth Professional Fellowships
from a wide range of sectors – professional, charitable, public, and private.
Priority will be given to applications with practical relevance in the
following broadly-defined areas:

Agriculture / fisheries / forestry
Economic growth
Education
Engineering / science / technology
Environment
Governance
Public health

Applications for Commonwealth Professional
Fellowships must adhere to the following rules:

Fellowships should normally be between one and three
months in length. Applications for longer periods (up to a maximum of six
months) will be considered, but only when a strong case for the additional
time has been made. Fellowships should be long enough to enable the
serious development of professional skills, so the CSC will not consider
applications for fellowships with a duration of less than one month.
Applications should include a clear programme of
professional experience and exchange for mid-career professionals. Visits
to, and periods of experience with, relevant UK organisations are
particularly encouraged. Attendance at short courses or conferences during
the fellowship is acceptable, providing that this can be justified within
the selection criteria and that attendance is not the main focus of the
fellowship.
Fellowships should be UK-based for their full duration.
Organisations can apply to host/nominate up to ten
Fellows in one year, with no more than six in any round. The CSC will
decide on the actual number of Fellows to be supported.
Applications will not be considered from candidates who
are undertaking a course of full-time study at the time of application;
seeking assistance towards the cost of commencing or completing a formal
academic or professional qualification; or wishing to undertake an
academic programme or research of any kind in the UK.
Applications presenting an academic research proposal or plan will be
considered ineligible.
Candidates who have previously taken a leave of absence
to study or work abroad in a developed country should make an additional
case for why they should be considered for a fellowship in the UK and
make clear what they have gained from their previous experience.