Commonwealth Shared Scholarship 2027: last date and eligibility

Commonwealth Shared Scholarships pay for a one-year Master’s degree in the UK: tuition, a return airfare and a monthly living allowance. They are offered by the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission in the UK (CSC) together with UK universities, and Pakistan, India and Bangladesh are among the eligible countries. Applications for study starting in September or October 2027 open on Tuesday 10 November 2026 and close at 16:00 GMT on Tuesday 8 December 2026, which is 9:00 pm in Pakistan, 9:30 pm in India and 10:00 pm in Bangladesh. Everything on this page is taken from the CSC’s own page for the programme.

Key dates

The CSC asks candidates to submit early because the application system becomes very busy in the last days before the deadline, and applications cannot be edited after they are submitted.

Who can apply

• A citizen of, or a refugee recognised by, an eligible Commonwealth country, and permanently resident there. Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana and Malaysia are on the list, among others.
• By September 2027, a first degree of at least upper second-class (2:1) standard, or a lower second-class degree plus a relevant postgraduate qualification, usually a Master’s.
• Not having studied or worked for a year or more in a high-income country. Distance learning from home at a university in such a country is allowed, but the form asks you to say so.
• Unable to afford study in the UK without the scholarship, and available to start by September 2027.
• There is no age limit.

Pakistani, Indian and Bangladeshi degrees use percentages or CGPA rather than the UK’s 2:1 label; how a particular grade compares is decided by the university you apply to, so check its entry requirements page for your country.

How the application works

1. Pick an approved Master’s course at a participating UK university. The CSC publishes the course and university lists for 2027 before the opening date; the lists online now are for 2026.
2. Apply to the university for admission separately, following its own deadline and rules. A scholarship application alone does not get you a place.
3. Apply for the scholarship on CSC Central, the CSC’s online system, between 10 November and 8 December 2026. You may apply for more than one course and university but can accept only one scholarship.
4. The universities select their candidates and nominate them to the CSC, which checks eligibility and confirms the awards.

CSC Central uses two-factor authentication, so you need a smartphone or a second email account when registering. After the first page you receive an email with a reference in the format 01234-SSP-UK-15 and a passcode, both case-sensitive; keep it, because you need both to log in again. Use the form’s own back buttons, save often, and do not refresh the page, which logs you out and loses unsaved answers. The CSC suggests writing long answers outside the system first.

Documents you must upload

• Proof of citizenship: a copy of a valid passport or national ID card showing your photograph, date of birth and country of citizenship.
• Full transcripts of every higher-education qualification, including the course you are studying now, with certified English translations where needed. A missing transcript or missing pages makes the application ineligible.
• References from at least two people, as signed PDFs on institutional letterhead or as an email that clearly shows the sender’s details. The form itself asks for the names and positions of three referees, one of them your current employer if you have one.

Nothing sent outside CSC Central is accepted, and an application missing any of these by the closing date is ineligible. A transcript scanned on a phone is usually several photos; join them into one PDF in page order, check every page is readable, and keep the file name plain. The CSC states it does not charge any fee to apply.

What the form asks you to write

Besides qualifications, publications and employment history, the form asks for a development impact statement in four parts: how the course relates to development issues globally, nationally and locally and to your chosen CSC development theme; how you will use the new skills afterwards; what you expect to change, for whom and by when; and how that impact could be measured. It also asks for your award objectives, five-year and long-term career plans, a detailed study plan, a personal statement and your voluntary and leadership experience. Selection is on academic merit, the quality of the proposal and the likely impact on your home country.

What the scholarship pays

The UK student visa is a separate application made after the award. Its passport photo and money rules are covered on this site’s UK pages.