Commonwealth Scholarships for PhD and split-site PhD study in the UK are offered for citizens of developed Commonwealth countries.

Commonwealth Scholarships for citizens of developed Commonwealth countries (Australia, The Bahamas, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Cyprus, Malta and New Zealand) are offered for PhD and split-site PhD study in the UK. These scholarships are funded by the UK Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), in conjunction with UK universities.

At a glance

  • Funding valueAll tuition fees, travel and living costs
  • Suitable for Applicants fromRest of World
  • DeadlineOn going
  • Funding provider(s)Commonwealth Scholarship Commission


What it covers

  • Approved airfare from your home country to the UK and return at the end of your award (the CSC will not reimburse the cost of fares for dependants, nor usually the cost of journeys made before your award is finally confirmed).
  • Approved tuition and examination fees.
  • Stipend (living allowance) at the rate of £1,084 per month.
  • Thesis grant towards the cost of preparing a thesis or dissertation, where applicable.
  • Warm clothing allowance.
  • Study travel grant towards the costs of study-related travel within the UK or overseas.
  • Fieldwork grant towards the cost of fieldwork undertaken overseas (usually the cost of one economy class return airfare to your fieldwork location).
  • Paid mid-term visit (airfare) to your home country (unless you have claimed (or intend to claim) spouse and/or child allowances during your scholarship, or have received a return airfare to your home country for fieldwork).

Applicable courses

This funding opportunity is applicable to PhD courses at Cranfield University. Please see the 'Who can apply' section for more information.

Who can apply

To apply for these scholarships, you must:

  • Be a Commonwealth citizen, refugee, or British protected person;
  • Be permanently resident in Australia, The Bahamas, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Cyprus, Malta or New Zealand;
  • Be available to start your academic studies in the UK by the start of the UK academic year in September/October 2018;
  • By October 2018, hold a first degree of at least upper second class (2:1) honours standard, or a second class degree and a relevant postgraduate qualification (usually a master’s degree)
  • If you are applying for split-site (PhD) study, you must be registered for a PhD at a university in your home country.

If you have already started your PhD study at a UK university, you are not eligible to apply for these scholarships.


Further information

Each candidate’s application will be considered by the CSC’s selection committee in competition with other candidates.

Applications are considered according to the following selection criteria:

  • Academic merit of the candidate,
  • Quality of the proposal,
  • Potential of the candidate to lead in the pursuit of global excellence in research and knowledge.

For more information please visit the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission website.

How to apply

The Commonwealth Scholarship Commission has yet to announce when the next application period for these scholarships will occur.

All subject areas are eligible, although you should note that the CSC’s selection criteria give priority to applications that demonstrate the strongest potential for strategic impact.

If you are applying for PhD study, the scholarship will be tenable only at a UK university with which the CSC has a joint funding agreement. Joint funding agreements will be negotiated individually for selected candidates for PhD study. You should make this clear to your chosen universities.

You must make your application directly to the CSC using the CSC’s Electronic Application System (EAS) – information on how to use the EAS, including detailed guides, is available on the CSC website.