The Postgraduate Programme

Applications for both the CSC Master’s Scholarships 2025 and the WTI Postgraduate Programme are open now until October 15th 2024.

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If you are a resident of Kenya, Uganda, Sudan, South Sudan or Somaliland, you may be eligible to apply for a postgraduate scholarship to study up to Master’s level.

We include people who have refugee status and were born elsewhere, as well as country nationals, in this criteria. Our current programmes include options for study in the UK, study in Africa, and study via Distance Learning.

The Windle Trust International Postgraduate Programme is made up of two core funding strands: our UK scholarships programme, including Commonwealth Scholarships Commission Masters Scholarships and Shared Scholarships, and our Ugandan scholarships programme, the James Aryam Scholarships. We rely on outside funding for all of our scholarships, and the funding available is generally tied to your country of residency (where you live), which may be different to your country of origin (where you were born) or nationality. Refugees for example are generally defined as “resident” in their host country.

  • You may be eligible for our Postgraduate Scholarships to study in the UK via the Commonwealth Scholarships Commission. You will need to apply to both Windle Trust International, and the Commonwealth Scholarships Commission during open application windows. Applications are open now.
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  • You may be eligible for our James Aryam Scholarships Programme in Uganda and will need to apply to Windle Trust International during the next open application round. The next round is anticipated to launch in October 2024.

  • You are not eligible for Windle Trust International Postgraduate Scholarships and exceptions are not made for any reason.

What are we looking for? 

Wherever you will be studying, what we’re looking for does not change. You must first apply to Windle Trust International directly, where we will assess you against our scholarship priorities. These are: 

Giving back: We ask scholarship recipients to put what they learn into practice in the future for the benefit of their communities, regions and to the broader Windle community. If you have a track record of community involvement, your application will be considered favourably. 

Student status: We give scholarships to people who have refugee status, have been internally displaced, marginalised, in need, or otherwise affected by conflict. 

Financial need: You should be able to demonstrate genuine financial need, and be unable to meet the costs of your study independently. 

Gender: To address the huge gender inequality in education among the communities in which we work, all else bring equal, we seek to give priority to girls and women. One of our key focuses is on dealing with the disparity in communities, schools, and employment sectors by offering scholarship opportunities that empower women. 

Origin and coverage: We give scholarships to people who are resident in the regions of Africa in which we work. In practice this means that you should be resident in specific conflict-affected areas of Kenya or Uganda, or throughout the entireties of Sudan, South Sudan or Somaliland. 

Our scholarships support the development of leadership and skills in African communities. You will need commit to returning to your current country within one month of the completion of the studies, or within the validity of your study visa, whichever is shorter. Our scholarships must not be seen as a route to asylum and we will not support asylum claims from scholarship recipients under any circumstances.

Full eligibility criteria can be found here.

How our scholarships have helped

What does a Postgraduate Programme scholarship include?

Whether in the UK, Africa or online, your Postgraduate Programme scholarship will include: 

  • Fully funded academic tuition fees 

  • A maintenance stipend for the entire period of study (1 year in the UK, 2 years in East Africa)

  • Return airfare between the candidate’s country of residence and country of scholarship (for scholarships overseas) 

  • Leadership development training 

  • Attendance at themed conferences and workshops 

  • Welfare and pastoral support throughout the programme of study 

  • Orientation on issues such as adapting to life in your host country, dealing with culture shock, managing finances, study methods and access to essential services. 

  • “Being able to study from one of the prestigious universities in the world through Windle Trust has mainly impacted my ability to think critically and to research more on a topic. My 1-year in the UK also improved my sense of humour and strengthened my leadership and communication skills."

    Postgraduate Programme scholar

  • "As a Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist in USAID's Monitoring Evaluation and Support Project, I find myself employing all the skills I have attained during my MSc International Development (Facilitating trainings for USAID staff and partners, organising information dissemination forums with the use of PowerPoint presentation).”

    Postgraduate Programme scholar

  • “The scholarship has helped make a positive impact in my country through my work in the health sector, involvement in community activities and supporting community initiatives and improving the livelihood of my family and those I support to get education. “

    Postgraduate Programme scholar

  • "Since graduation, I have started a firm in South Sudan working with both local and international organisations in strengthening their financial management system and business processes. This means that my scholarship didn't just help me but helped my community too.”

    Postgraduate Programme scholar