EAC Masters’ Scholarship Opportunity (Cohort 2) – by 22nd October 2020

IUCEA hereby invites the citizens of the East African Community to apply for cohort 2 of the KfW- funded Scholarships, to pursue Master’s studies in the EAC Partner State other than their own.

Opening date: 2nd October 2020
Closing date:  22nd October 2020, 17:00 hours, East African Time
Thematic areas: 1) Mathematics, 2) Engineering, 3) Informatics, 4) Science,   5) Technology and 6) Business Science
Eligible applicants: Nationals of the East African Community (EAC) Partner states (Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda).
Duration of the Scholarship: 2 years

BACKGROUND

The EAC Scholarship Programme is an initiative of the East African Community (EAC), the Inter-University Council for East Africa (IUCEA) and German Development Bank-KfW. The project has begun in 2018 when the EAC and IUCEA entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with KfW geared towards the training of students within the EAC Region. This Project aims at creating future change agents, who identify themselves with the integration agenda of the EAC and are willing to share economic and development-oriented expert knowledge. The goal of this initiative is to contribute towards training leaders that will foster the EAC Regional integration. This goal will be partly achieved through the establishment of academic collaboration and an exchange programme between universities/institutions within the EAC Region, by encouraging students to study in countries other than their own. In order to achieve these impacts, the project offers a comprehensive package including scholarships for Master’s programmes, internships, mentoring, networking events and further leadership training activities. The scholarship will support Master’s students in i) Mathematics, ii) Engineering, iii) Informatics, iv) Science, v) Technology and vi) Business Science programmes.

Female applicants are encouraged to apply. This programme will include a minimum of 30% female students and a special consideration will be given to South Sudan female applicants.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of the programme is to train Master’s scholars who will serve as change agents for regional economic development and integration in the EAC.

SCHOLARSHIP DESIGN

The project offers financial support to academically skilled and disadvantaged Master’s students with the main focus on priority areas. Women and persons with disabilities are encouraged to join the programme. Up to 60 scholarships are available this year.

The scholarship covers:

1. University tuition fees: payable directly to the university according to an official invoice;
2. Stipend: EUR380 per month to support living expenses including housing, food, utilities, local transportation and settlement expenses;
3. Allowances for study materials and research: EUR 1,500 one-off allowance;
4. Medical insurance; and
5. Extracurricular events: at least one event per year.

The students shall be required to apply to study in another EAC country (not their country of origin).

At the Universities/Institutions, mentors will be selected in order to support the students during the time of study and research. With the help of integrated internships and extra-curricular activities, practical learning will be ensured through the universities and public-private partnerships undertakings. IUCEA will support the Universities/Institutions in the selection of the mentors and facilitation of the internships during the implementation of the Master’s programmes.

The financial cooperation arrangement shall finance the first three cohorts of approximately 157 Master’s students over their full study time of 2 years. After the first cohort has completed the studies, an independent evaluation of the level of attainment of the objectives of the project will be carried out, with the desirable impact being assessed.

The students will take part in extracurricular events at a minimum of one event-visit per year per student. These could be networking events with representatives from political and socio-economic spheres, whereby training on regional integration topics and other subjects based seminars are organized.

ELIGIBLE PROGRAMMES

Students will apply for the following programmes. Please ensure that you have applied for a programme at a university outside your country of origin.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

The minimum requirements for qualification for the programme are:

1. Be a citizen of a partner state of the East African Community;
2. Possess the required academic qualifications for admission to the programme (at least at the level of Upper Second Class Honours or “Distinction” as applicable;
3. Submit a motivation letter in English (with not more than 500 words) as follows:

• well written (grammatically and professionally)
• Demonstrates a convincing motivation for wanting to pursue the Master’s Programme chosen          
• Adequately demonstrates the applicant’s foreseen professional engagement in the EAC Integration agenda after completing the Master’s Programme
• Demonstrates how they expect to apply the acquired skills and knowledge from the Master’s Programme to contribute to the EAC Integration Agenda
• Demonstrates where they anticipate to see themselves professionally and academically in 5 and 10 years.

Note: This has to be one letter

i. Be below 35 years of age; and
ii. Have obtained an admission from a university in another country in the EAC Region other than their own.

APPLICATION PROCESS

To apply for this Scholarship, interested candidates are advised to proceed as follows:

Application for admission to the university;

Step 1: Identify the programme and University of their choice from section 4 above that contains Eligible Programmes;

Step 2: Fill the application form for admission to your university of choice (this can be found on the university website);

Step 3: Submit the completed university application form and its supporting documents to the university indicating that you intend to apply for the EAC Scholarship Programme.

Application for the EAC Scholarship Programme

Step 4: Register online to express your interest in the EAC scholarship (https://bit.ly/3jj0n69).

Step 5: Download the EAC Scholarship Application Form from the IUCEA website and fill it.

EAC Scholarship Application Form - Ver2

Step 6: Submit both 1) the scholarship application form and its supporting documentation (see section 7 below) and 2) the university application form and its attachments electronically to;

• scholarships@iucea.org and  projects@adroitconsultinternational.com indicating the subject line as; YOUR NAME, PROGRAMME APPLIED FOR AND UNIVERSITY e.g. Tsavo Simba, MBA at Adroit University

 Notes:

1. Where universities have an online application system, please complete this online application form then send the scholarship application form and attachments to the specified email addresses. Please ensure that you submit both application forms as described in step 6 above.
2. Candidates may apply to more than one University.
3. Candidates may apply for more than one programme; however, each programme should have its own application form and attachments.

SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS

Please ensure that you have attached the following documents

1. Signed curriculum vitae
2. Certified copies of all university degree certificates and transcripts. Please combine into one file. If necessary, you may zip the file to make it smaller for uploading.
3. Applicants with academic qualifications obtained from foreign institutions must be equated by the National Council/ Commission for Higher Education in their respective Partner State.
4. Applicants with supporting documents (transcripts, certificates among others) in languages other than English are required to submit both the originals and copies translated to the English language by an accredited language translations provider.
5. Recent passport photograph in the colour of your full head and upper shoulders.
6. Evidence of Nationality of a Partner State in the East African Community such as a copy of national identity card/ passport/birth certificate.
7. Any other form of evidence required in the application form e.g. medical reports, photos and letters of reference.
8. A motivation letter.

The deadline for receiving applications is 22nd October 2020, not later than 17:00 hours East African Time. Only successful candidates will be contacted after the selection process is complete.

Staff Writer

This article was written and edited by a staff writer.