The Commonwealth Scholarship Commission in the United Kingdom is inviting suitably qualified candidates to apply for the United Kingdom Commonwealth Scholarship tenable at a University in the United Kingdom, commencing October 2015.  

Candidates should address the general priorities of DFID which include:
•    Education
•    Health
•    Economic Growth and the Private Sector
•    Governance and Conflict
•    Climate and Environment
•    Water and Sanitation
•    Food and Nutrition
•    Humanitarian Disasters and Emergencies

The Commission does, however, recognise that development objectives can be pursued through a wide variety of subject areas, and encourages candidates to specify the potential benefits that will arise from their application, whatever field of study is proposed.

Awards are offered in the following categories:

•    Up to 36 months’  support towards completion of  a full-time  doctoral postgraduate qualification at an eligible UK Institution; 

•    12 months’ support towards completion of a full-time taught postgraduate qualification at an eligible UK Institution.

Eligibility Requirement:
To be eligible for selection an applicant must:

•    be a citizen of Saint Lucia and should be residing and working in Saint Lucia for at least two (2) years prior to application;

•    possess or expect to possess by October 2015, a first degree of Upper Second Class Honors standard (or above); or a second class degree and a relevant postgraduate qualification, which will normally be a Master’s degree.
 
•    be able to take up their awards in October 2015; 

•    ensure that the selected area of study is on the Government of Saint Lucia Approved List of Areas for National Training 2013/2014;

•    must provide the Commission with evidence of support from a prospective supervisor for Doctoral Studies at the time of application;

Value of the Award
The award covers the following:

•    return airfare on completion of study;
•    tuition and examination fees;
•    personal maintenance allowance;
•    a grant towards the expenses of preparing thesis
•    a grant for expenses for approved travel within the UK or overseas.

Please note that successful candidates:
•    cannot hold another scholarship during the period of this scholarship. 
•    must agree in writing that they will return to their home country for a minimum period of two (2) years following completion of their scholarship in order to contribute to their country’s social and economic development.

Awards are tenable at any UK institution of higher education with whom the Commission has a part-funding agreement; a list of these institutions can be found at: http://bit.ly/cscuk-uk-universities .  All interested candidates must also access the following website: www.dfid.gov.uk/cscuk 

Application Procedure
All candidates who wish to nominate for a Commonwealth Scholarship must first apply using the Electronic Application System (EAS) provided by the Commonwealth Commission on its above-mentioned website.  The Commission will not consider any candidate who has not submitted an application through the EAS.

The Government Scholarship Application Form Must also be completed and submitted to the HRD Department with a copy of your EAS Form.   The Application form can be obtained at the Human Resource Development Department of the Ministry of Education, Human Resource Development & Labour 4th  Floor, Francis Compton Building, The Waterfront, Castries.  For further information persons may also contact the HRD Department at Telephone Numbers 468-5229/5434/5230.

The deadline for submission of all UK Commonwealth Scholarship 2015 application packages to the HRD Department, Ministry of Education, Human Resource Development & Labour is Friday October 10, 2014.