Ireland Fellows Programme for Masters Scholarship 2026-2027

The Ireland Fellows Programme enables early to mid-career professionals from eligible countries, with leadership potential, to benefit from a prestigious, world-class, quality education contributing to capacity building. It offers selected students the opportunity to undertake a fully funded one-year master’s level programme at a higher education institution (HEI) in Ireland. 

he Ireland Fellows Programme promotes gender equality, equal opportunity, and welcomes diversity. Our Development Policy is aligned with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16 on building effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels, and we are encouraging applications from the broadest possible base. The Programme welcomes applications from applicants with disabilities, and applicants who belong to a minority or disadvantaged group. We would like to increase the representation of female applicants and those whose gender identity does not align with the male/female gender binary.

The aims of the Programme are to nurture future leaders; to develop in-country capacity to achieve national SDG goals; and to build positive relationships with Ireland.

The Programme is intended to support graduates on their return home, through the skills they develop, to contribute to capacity building in their home countries and to become one of the next generation of leaders in their respective fields. It is also envisaged that they will contribute to building enduring positive personal and professional relationships with Ireland, promoting institutional linkages.

The Ireland Fellows Programme is fully funded by the Irish Government and is offered under the auspices of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).

• Table of Content
• About Government of Ireland
• Ireland Masters Scholarship
• Aim and Benefits of Ireland Masters Scholarship
• Ireland Masters Scholarship Courses
• Requirements for Ireland Masters Scholarship Qualification
• Interview date, Process and Venue for Ireland Masters Scholarship
• Application Deadline
• How to Apply

About Government of Ireland

The Programme enables students to benefit from a prestigious, world-class, quality education contributing to capacity building whilst also profiling the best that Ireland has to offer in education. For information on studying in Ireland. The Government of Ireland (Irish: Rialtas na hÉireann) is the cabinet that exercises executive authority in Ireland. The Constitution of Ireland vests executive authority in a government which is headed by the Taoiseach, the head of government. ... The Government is also known as the cabinet.... continue reading

Ireland Masters Scholarship

Application Deadline	Not Specified
Country to study	Ireland
Type	Masters
Course to study	View courses
Sponsor	Government of Ireland
Gender	Men and Women

Aim and Benefits of Ireland Masters Scholarship

The award covers programme fees, flights, accommodation and living costs.

Ireland Masters Scholarship Courses

• Agriculture
• Business
• Computer Science
• Education
• Engineering
• Health
• Human Rights

Requirements for Ireland Masters Scholarship Qualification

To be eligible for an Ireland Fellows Programme – Africa award commencing at the beginning of the academic year 2026, applicants must: 

• Have a minimum of two or three years’ substantial work experience that is directly relevant to your proposed programme(s) of study, depending on the country.
• Hold a bachelor’s level academic qualification from an accredited and government-recognised higher education institution, with a minimum grade point average of 3.0 (4.0 scale) – i.e. a first class honour, or second class honour, Grade 1 (a second class honour Grade 2 may be accepted if the applicant has substantial directly relevant work experience). It must have been awarded in 2014 or later (i.e. within the last 12 years). 
• Not already hold a qualification at master’s level or higher. Not currently undertaking a programme at master’s level or higher, or be due to start a programme at master’s level or higher in the academic year 2025/26. Candidates from Senegal must hold a minimum of a Senegalese Masters 2 with 2-3 years relevant work experience. A Senegalese Masters 1 with significant relevant work experience may be considered.
• Be applying to commence a new programme at master’s level in Ireland no sooner than August 2026. 
• Be able to demonstrate the following: leadership abilities and aspirations; a commitment to the achievement of the SDGs within your own country; and a commitment to contribute to building positive relationships with Ireland. 
• Have identified and selected three programmes relevant to your academic and professional background from the Directory of Eligible Programmes. 
• Have a clear understanding of the academic and English language proficiencies required for all programmes chosen. 
• Must not have applied to the Ireland Fellows Programme on more than one previous occasion. 
• Be in a position to take up the Fellowship in the academic year 2026/2027. 
• In addition, applications are by invitation only in the following countries: Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eswatini, Eritrea, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Uganda, Zambia. This means that fellowships in these countries are restricted to the staff of government departments and NGOs which work in partnership with Irish Aid, and to personnel of organisations that are aligned with Irish Aid's development strategy in their country which have already been identified by the Embassy of Ireland. Applications from outside these partnerships will not be eligible. To find out if you are eligible to apply, please contact the relevant Embassy of Ireland or your employer. 

Interview date, Process and Venue for Ireland Masters Scholarship

The application process consists of three stages:

• Stage 1   Preliminary Application;
• Stage 2   Detailed Application;
• Stage 3   Interviews.

All applicants who are selected to progress after the second stage will be required to sit an online Duolingo English Test. If shortlisted after the interview stage, all applicants will be required to take another English language test, normally the IELTS exam, unless they are already in possession of an IELTS certificate that is dated 2023 or later which shows the applicant has achieved the necessary score for the course(s) they intend to apply to. Early preparation for the IELTS exam is strongly advised, even for native English speakers.

Application Deadline

Not Specified

How to Apply

• For Burundi, please see both this document and the Courtney Fellowship page. 
• For Nigeria, please see both this document and the Roger Casement Fellowship page. 
• For Namibia, please see the Seán Mac Bride Fellowship page.
• For South Africa, please see the Kader Asmal Fellowship page.
• For Zambia, please see both this document and the Frank Ferguson Fellowship page.
• For African SIDS (Cabo Verde, Comoros, Guinea-Bissau, Mauritius, Seychelles, Sao Tomé and Príncipe), please see the Ireland-SIDS Fellows page. 

To find out what Ireland is doing in Africa, visit www.irishaid.ie.
For information on the Department of Foreign Affairs, visit www.dfa.ie.
To learn about education in Ireland, visit www.educationinireland.com.
For information about IELTS, visit www.ielts.org.

For more details, visit Ireland Fellowship webpage