MSc Scholarships

MSc African Studies Scholarships

for study in academic year 2026-27

Please see the following link for the University's fees and funding search tool for further information on scholarships that you may be eligible for and guidance on the cost of studying at Oxford. 

An A-Z list of scholarships is available here.

FirstRand Oxford African Studies Scholarship

Open to South African graduate applicants for the MSc African Studies. The African Studies Centre is delighted to announce the FirstRand Oxford African Studies Scholarship, a collaboration between the FirstRand Foundation, the African Studies Centre, and Wadham College.

One fully-funded scholarship, including tuition fees, is available per year.

Eligible applicants must be ordinarily resident in SOUTH AFRICA, must show the potential to rise to positions of leadership and influence, and must not have previously studied outside of South Africa for degree purposes.

Please note that applicants must apply both to Oxford for admission to the MSc African Studies AND SEPARATELY to the FirstRand Scholarship for Postgraduate International Study. The link to the FirstRand application process is here.

Applications for the scholarship will open in November 2025.

The application deadlines for the MSc in African Studies are in November 2025 and January 2026, exact dates TBC.

Africa Oxford Initiative

The Mastercard Foundation Africa Oxford Initiative Scholarship programme

The Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program enables African students to pursue graduate studies at the University of Oxford. The Mastercard Foundation AfOx Scholarships cover course fees and a grant for living costs for taught postgraduate students at the UKRI minimum doctoral stipend rate. Awards are made for the full duration of your fee liability for the agreed taught postgraduate course. The Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program at the University of Oxford emphasises explicitly groups who have historically been under-represented, including but not limited to female scholars, people from refugee and displaced backgrounds and disabled scholars. Necessary residence considerations will be made for students from refugee and displaced backgrounds.

Application deadline: November 2025

Black Academic Futures

The Black Academic Futures Scholarships offer UK Black and Mixed Black students financial support to pursue graduate study at Oxford.

These awards are made possible by the generous support of funding partners across the University and colleges, and the scholarships are open to all academic subjects.

Each scholarship will cover your course fees in full and will provide you with a grant for living costs. Awards are made for the full duration of your fee liability for your course. There is no need to submit a separate application; all eligible applicants to the MSc will be considered.

Scholarships at St Antony's College

Please see the St Antony's website for more details.

Students from Africa

Beit Trust Scholarships - Offered each year for graduate studies or research to graduates who are domiciled in and nationals of Malawi, Zambia or Zimbabwe. 

Commonwealth Scholarships via the Canon Collins Trust - Offers fully-funded scholarships for a Master's or PhD programme in the UK in six specific areas, including promoting global prosperity. Open to nationals or residents of Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique or Zambia.

Gordon Memorial College Trust Fund - Promotes educational development in South Sudan and Sudan. The Trust supports students studying for a graduate course in the UK, who intend to return to South Sudan or Sudan at the end of their studies.

Qalaa Holdings Scholarship Foundation - Awards to Egyptian nationals residing in Egypt studying towards a Master's of DPhil and who intend to return to Egypt upon graduation.