Commonwealth Shared Scholarships (CSS)

Application period opens: Wednesday 12 November 2025
Application period closes: Tuesday 9 December 2025
Entry: 2026

You must apply to the University of St Andrews by mid-January 2026 at the latest in order to be considered for this scholarship. See How to apply section below for more details.

The Commonwealth Shared Scholarships are a joint initiative between the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission (with funding from FCDO) and UK universities, to support scholarships for students from low- and middle-income Commonwealth countries and territories who would not otherwise be able to study in the UK.

The Commonwealth Shared Scholarships are offered on an annual basis for full-time postgraduate Masters study only. Eligible courses at the University of St Andrews are:

MSc Health Data Science

Value of award (per year)

Includes tuition fees, inward and homeward airfares, monthly stipend, arrival allowance, thesis grant and a study travel grant.

See CSS website for full award details.

Duration of award

This award is available for 1 year of postgraduate study.

At what stage of my course application can I apply for this scholarship?

We recommend applying for your course at the University of St Andrews before you apply for the scholarship via the Commonwealth online application system. See 'How to apply' section for full details.

Application restrictions

Study level

Available to students studying at:

Postgraduate taught

Subjects

Available to students studying:

MSc Health Data Science

Domicile for fee status

Overseas

Schools

Available to students in the following Schools and Departments:

Graduate School

Application assessment

Academic merit

Available to

Prospective students

Mode of study

Full time

Geographical criteria

Bangladesh, Belize, Botswana, Cameroon, Dominica, Eswatini, Fiji, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Grenada, Guyana, India, Jamaica, Kenya, Kiribati, Lesotho, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldive Islands, Mauritius, Montserrat, Mozambique, Namibia, Nauru, Nigeria, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Rwanda, Samoa, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, South Africa, St Helena, Sri Lanka, St Lucia, St Vincent, Tanzania, Togo, Tonga, Tuvalu, Uganda, Vanuatu, Zambia

Additional criteria

See CSS website for full eligibility criteria.

How to apply

Apply for postgraduate study at the University of St Andrews.
Apply for the scholarship on the CSS website using the online application system.

Full details about the application process may be found on the CSS website.

You are advised to complete and submit your application on the Commonwealth online application system as soon as possible, as the online application system will be very busy in the days leading up to the application deadline. Full details about the application process and documents required may be found on the CSS website.

Please note that we may not be able to consider your application if you have not applied for a place on an eligible course by the time of the internal selection process (starting mid-January 2026), so it is very important that you apply for your chosen course, including all required supporting documents, as soon as possible. However, you do not need to have accepted your place before applying for the scholarship. If you decide to decline your place you must inform the University of St Andrews as soon as possible.

Please also ensure that you use the same email address for both your Commonwealth application and your University of St Andrews application.

Application fee exemption

CSS applicants do not need to pay the £50 application fee. At the point of submitting your application to St Andrews, please contact pgscholarships@st-andrews.ac.uk for further advice. Exemptions may also be granted based on country of domicile in some cases. See our General - Postgraduate taught application fee guidance for full details.

Terms and conditions

See CSS website for full terms and conditions of this scholarship.

Please read the University of St Andrews scholarships terms and conditions

When will I know the outcome?

You will be notified of the result of your application by June 2026.

Contact: CSS website or pgscholarships@st-andrews.ac.uk