Ireland-SIDS Fellows Programme for Mid-career Professionals

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.

The Ireland Fellows Programme promotes gender equality, equal opportunity, and welcomes diversity. Their Development Policy is aligned with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16 on building effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels, and they 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. They would like to increase the representation of female applicants and those whose gender identity does not align with the male/female gender binary.

The Ireland Fellows Programme – SIDS is one of a number of commitments set out in the Government’s Strategy for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) which reflects the breadth of areas where Ireland and SIDS already collaborate, and where they have shared interests in global outcomes.

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.

Costs Covered

•  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. The award covers programme fees, flights, accommodation and living costs. Eligible master’s level programmes in Ireland commence in August or September each year and, depending on the programme, will run for between 10 and 16 months.

Eligible Courses

• Eligible courses are in areas such as agriculture, health, education, human rights, computer science, engineering, business and more

Eligibility Criteria

• To be eligible for an Ireland Fellows Programme – SIDS award commencing at the beginning of the academic year 2025, applicants must:
  • Be a national of one of the eligible SIDS countries and resident in one of the eligible SIDS countries – they can be a national of one country and resident in another, in the same region, as set out here:
    • Africa: Cabo Verde, Comoros, Guinea-Bissau, Mauritius, Sao Tomé and Príncipe, Seychelles.
    • Asia: Maldives, Timor-Leste.
    • Caribbean: Antigua & Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, St Vincent & the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago.
    • Pacific: Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Micronesia (Federated States of), Nauru, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu.
  • Have a minimum three years’ substantial work experience that is directly relevant to your proposed programme(s) of study.
  • 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 2013 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 2024/25.
  • Be applying to commence a new programme at master’s level in Ireland no sooner than August 2025.
  • 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 2025/2026.

For more information, visit Irish Aid.