Applications are now open for residents of eligible African countries to benefit from the prestigious Ireland Fellows Program that awards recipients a fully funded scholarship to complete a 1-year master's degree program in Ireland.
The Ireland Fellows Programme enables early to mid-career professionals from eligible countries, with leadership potential, to benefit from a prestigious, world-class, quality education contributing to capacity building. It offers selected students the opportunity to undertake a fully funded one-year master’s level programme at a higher education institution (HEI) in Ireland. Eligible master’s level programmes in Ireland commence in August or September each year and, depending on the programme, will run for between 10 and 16 months. (This call is for programs commencing August next year, i.e 2025)
Ireland Fellows Program - Africa Summary
• Scholarship Sponsor: The Irish Government
• Host Institution(s): Multiple Higher Education institutes in Ireland
• Study Level: postgraduate (Masters)
• Duration: one-year master’s level programme
• Funding: Fully Funded
• Eligible Countries: Angola, Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
Eligible Study Courses
Eligible courses are in areas such as agriculture, health, education, human rights, computer science, engineering, business and more, and are listed in a Directory of Eligible Programmes (PDF).
Scholarship Coverage
The award covers:
university application fees
tuition fees
examination and other fees
economy travel to and from your country of residence to Ireland;
settling in allowance, book allowance and study allowance
A monthly living stipend of €700 (subject to review);
Student accommodation arranged and paid for trimesters 1 and 2 (normally September to May), and in trimester 3 a monthly accommodation stipend of €650-€850 depending on location in Ireland (subject to review).
the costs of an entry clearance (student visitor visa) application
Eligibility Criteria
To be eligible for an Ireland Fellows Programme – Africa scholarship commencing at the beginning of the academic year 2024 applicants must:
Be a resident national of one of the following countries
Have a minimum of two or three years’ work experience that is directly relevant to your proposed programme(s) of study
Hold a bachelor’s level academic qualification from an accredited and government-recognised higher education institution, with a minimum grade point average of 3.0 (4.0 scale)
Degree must have been awarded in 2012 or later (i.e. within the last 12 years).
Not already hold a qualification at master’s level or higher. Not currently undertaking a programme at master’s level or higher, or be due to start a programme at master’s level or higher in the academic year 2024/25.
Be able to demonstrate the following: leadership abilities and aspirations; a commitment to the achievement of the SDGs within your own country; and a commitment to contribute to building positive relationships with Ireland.
Have identified and selected three programmes relevant to your academic and professional background from the Directory of Eligible Programmes
Have a clear understanding of the academic and English language proficiencies required for all programmes chosen.
Must not have applied to the Ireland Fellows Programme on more than one previous occasion.
Be in a position to take up the Fellowship in the academic year 2024-2025.
➢ To better understand program's requirements and further info, please download and read the guidelines carefully before applying for this scholarship.
Application Procedure
➢ The application process consists of three stages:
Stage 1: Preliminary Application;
Stage 2: Detailed Application;
Stage 3: Interviews.
Stage1 Applications (current application window) is a preliminary application which seeks information under the headings detailed
below and requires you to submit a scanned copy of the following documents with your application form:
Official identification: either your passport (only the identity page is required), or other official identification document if you do not have a passport at this time;
Your undergraduate degree award certificate;
Final degree academic transcripts; Please also include the explanation of the grading system, where provided with your transcript or otherwise available.
➢ Collect and scan the documents above along with your complete application form (Download from here) and send them by email according to following picture:
➢ Before submitting your application, carefully read the Guidelines (PDF) where you can find the list of required documents and further important info.
➢ All applicants who are selected to progress after the second stage will be required to sit an online Duolingo English Test. If shortlisted after the interview stage, all applicants will be required to take another English language test, normally the IELTS exam, unless they are already in possession of an IELTS certificate that is dated 2022 or later which shows the applicant has achieved the necessary score for the course(s) they intend to apply to.
LINKS
➢ Online Application Portal (For applicants from Lesotho and Zimbabwe)
Downloadable content (PDF)