Irish Aid Scholarship Programme

The Fellowship Training Programme was Irish Aid's first scholarship programme, begun in 1974. Since that time, it has brought suitably qualified candidates from developing countries to undertake Masters degrees at universities and colleges in Ireland.

Awards are made for study in Ireland in fields such as development studies, rural development, health care, education and law with the aim of supporting and enhancing the contribution recipients can make to Irish Aid's partner organisations. Fellowship eligibility requirements aim to ensure close alignment with Irish Aid's programmatic approach.

The scholarship award covers course fees, required flights, accommodation (for out of country study), monthly allowances, insurance and other incidental expenses. Eligible Masters programmes in Ireland commence in the period August to September each year and, depending on the course, scholarships will run for between 10 and 16 months.

All applicants who are selected to go forward to second stage will be required to sit an IELTS exam, unless they are already in possession of an IELTS certificate that is less than 12 months old at the time of application which shows the applicant has achieved the necessary score for the course they intend to apply to. Early preparation for the IELTS exam is strongly advised, even for native English speakers.

• To be eligible, applicants must

• be a citizen of one of the following countries: Cambodia, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Laos, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Mozambique, Myanmar, Palestine, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Vietnam, Zambia or Zimbabwe.
• be resident in that country.
• have achieved the necessary academic standard to be accepted onto a Master’s degree course in a higher education institution in Ireland (an undergraduate degree at equivalent to pass level is not sufficient).
• be able to demonstrate a strong commitment to the development of their home country.
• have identified and selected two relevant courses from the Irish Aid Directory of Eligible Postgraduate Courses.
• be applying to commence a new qualification and not be seeking funding for a course they have already commenced or which will begin before fellowship awards have been notified.
• be able to take up the fellowship in the academic year 2019/2020.
• Applicants must be able to demonstrate their skills in academic English with an appropriate score on a recognised test (IELTS 6.5 or higher). 

• An applicant will not be considered further in either of the following circumstances:

• They already hold a master’s qualification.
• They have applied for the Fellowship Training Programme on two or more previous occasions without being awarded a fellowship. (Cases where an applicant withdrew from the process previously may be considered if there were exceptional or unforeseen circumstances for withdrawal in that instance).
• They are currently working, or it is anticipated that they will work in the future, at our embassies or at headquarters. Those personnel who have worked with any of our embassies/missions in the past must allow a full year before becoming eligible to apply for a fellowship.