Apply for a scholarship

Are you a young person, age 25 or younger, who is passionate about giving back to your community? Do you have the ambition to help develop your community or country?

Apply for a Watipa scholarship – online application form.

In September 2016, Watipa launched a scholarship program to support young people achieve their dreams to give back to their community. You can apply for a Watipa scholarship if you are:

  • 15 – 25 years of age
  • Living in a developing country, including but not limited to Malawi, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, South Africa or Nepal
  • Have secured a place to study, either at an institute of higher education or secondary school. We will consider applicants starting a new course as well as those part-way through.
  • passionate about community development

In 2018, we will continue our support for existing Watipa scholars as well as expanding the opportunity to a handful of new applicants.

Our scholarship program will support young people with tuition fees and living expenses for a period of 1-3 years (depending on the needs of the scholars) as well as access to our pool of international mentors. The average Watipa scholarship awarded in 2017 was for £500 (range from £250 – £1,125) for tuition fees. Additional support for living expenses of £240 was awarded to applicants who were in secondary school students, who are living with a disability, and/or who are young mothers.

Applications are due by midnight SUNDAY, 14 OCTOBER 2018.

Late applications will not be considered. Applications for scholarships will open again in 2019. If you have not heard from us by the end of November 2018, unfortunately your application has not been successful this time. The Watipa scholars will be announced publicly on Watipa’s website and social media, on International Human Rights Day, Monday 10th December 2018.

If you are one of the Watipa scholars from 2016 or 2017, you do not need to complete an application form. You should have received a link via email to complete a renewal form.

How to apply for a Watipa scholarship in 2018:

Complete the online application form.

What supporting documents will you need?

  1. A letter of reference from a teacher or lecturer
  2. A letter of support from your parents or a family member
  3. A CV, that includes your contact information as well as details of your study, work and volunteer experience (maximum 2 pages)
  4. Proof of your enrolment in a higher education course or secondary school (including the name of the educational institution, details of the course, and bank information for the transfer of tuition fees)

The scholarships do not fund postgraduate studies, or studies outside your home country.

Contact scholarships@watipa.org if you have any questions. We expect a high amount of interest in the scholarship program and will respond to your enquiry as soon as we can.