VLIR-UOS awards scholarships to students from 54 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin-America, to follow training or master program at a Flemish university or university college in Belgium. The training and master programs are taught in English. They are designed to enable graduates to assume positions of responsibility in their country of origin. The master programs, lasting one or two academic years, focus on specific problems of developing countries and/or are relevant to developing countries in a more general sense. They are designed to enable graduates to share and apply acquired knowledge in the home institution and country. In the training programs, lasting one to four months, the focus is on updating and adding knowledge, as well as about transferring acquired skills that are relevant to individuals working in institutions in developing countries.
Study Subject:
Students can only apply for following master (ICP) or training (ITP) programs that are recognized and funded by VLIR-UOS. International Master Programs 2013-2014: Master of Science in Development Evaluation and Management, Globalization and Development, Governance and Development and Human Settlements. International Master Programs 2013-2015: Master of Science in Aquaculture, Biology – Specialization Human Ecology, Statistics – Specialization Bio-statistics, Environmental Sanitation, Marine and Lacustrine Science and Management (Oceans & Lakes), Molecular Biology (IPMB), Nematology, Nutrition and Rural Development, Physical Land Resources, Food Technology and Water Resources Engineering. International Training Programs 2013: Lib@Web : Management of Electronic Information and Digital Libraries, Audio Visual Learning Materials – Management, Production and Activities (AVLM), Human Rights for Development (‘HR4DEV’), Road safety in Low and Middle-Income Countries: Challenges and Strategies for Improvement, Technology for Integrated Water Management, Dairy Nutrition and International Training Program in Food Safety, Quality Assurance Systems and Risk Analysis.
Eligibility:
- The candidate is a resident and national of one of the countries on the country list (not necessarily the same country for residence and nationality). Please note that candidates must reside in one of these countries at the moment of application.
- The candidate is not older than 40 years (on 1 January2014) when applying for a scholarship to follow a master program or not older than 45 years when applying for a scholarship to follow a training program.
- The candidate was not enrolled in a master (or equivalent) program (with or without a scholarship) at a Flemish university before.
- Present employment or reintegration perspectives are required for a training program. The candidate must be currently employed or have a written (future) employer’s guarantee of (re) integration in an employment where the acquired knowledge and skills will be immediately applicable. Professional experience and employment (perspectives) are not required for a master program, but they can be a competitive advantage for selection, depending on the program.
- Earlier applications and scholarships:
- The candidate cannot apply for more than one VLIR-UOS scholarship per year.
- The candidate must never have received a master scholarship funded by the Belgian government before 1 January 2014.
- The candidate is only admissible for a training program scholarship if he or she has never received a VLIR-UOS scholarship for a training program before.
- Only for employees of a university that currently receives support from VLIR-UOS through the IUC program or TEAM program: you need a letter or statement from the IUC or TEAM coordinator stating that your department is not involved in IUC or TEAM. Contact the program manager in the IUC or TEAM office at your university for further information.
Scholarship Value: The scholarships cover all related expenses.
Selection Criteria:
All eligible candidates’ files are evaluated by the programs and shortlisted on the basis of the following selection criteria:
Motivation: It is essential that the candidate’s motivation and future career perspective and the pertinence of the program for which he or she applies in that respect, is clearly written down. The candidate who is not able to convincingly motivate his application, is unlikely to be selected for a scholarship.
- Knowledge transfer: The candidate should demonstrate his or her ability to transfer knowledge or create extension activities in his or her home country afterwards, and determine the developmental dimension of these activities. “Developmental” ideally refers to national or sub-national economic, social and /or environmental development plans of the national or sub-national government, or commonly known developmental problems or challenges of the country concerned.
- Professional experience: The training program candidate demonstrates professional experience, preferably in a research institution, a higher education institution, the government sector (national/sub-national), the sector of social economy, an international organization or an NGO. This is not required but preferred for master scholarship applications. Professional experience in terms of experience or expertise in matters relevant to development is preferential. Present employment/reintegration perspectives. The training program candidate demonstrates an employment status or reintegration perspectives, preferably in a research institution, a higher education institution, the government sector (national/sub national), the sector of social economy, or an NGO, but not in the commercial for profit sector, is required for training program scholarship applications. It is not required but preferred for master scholarship applications. Preferably this employment implies the possibility to generate an impact through the transfer of knowledge, extension activities or otherwise. Candidates for a training program should add a written statement of their employer confirming the current employment and the reintegration after the program. The statement should also confirm the added value of the training for the applicant and the organization. For a master student, this certificate is not necessary, but it can be of added value in the selection procedure, depending on the program.
- Previous scholarships: Priority will be given to the application of a candidate for a master program who has not been granted a scholarship before. For a candidate for a training program, the selection committee assesses the opportunity of awarding a VLIR-UOS scholarship, taking into consideration the candidates’ previous study and scholarship curriculum.
- Gender: In case of two equally qualified candidates of different sexes, preference will be given to the female candidate. The selection commission will aim at a parity or relative balance between the number of male and female candidates awarded a VLIR-UOS scholarship.
- Regional balance: The selection commission tries to ensure that 50% of the program’s scholarships are granted to candidates from Sub-Saharan Africa, provided there is a sufficient number of qualifying candidates from this region.
- Social background: In case of two equally qualified candidates, preference will be given to candidates who can demonstrate that they belong to a disadvantaged group or area within their country or an ethnic or social minority group, especially when these candidates can provide proof of leadership potential.
Notification:
Candidates selected for a VLIR-UOS scholarship will be contacted by VLIR-UOS around mid June 2014 at the latest, in order to start up the visa and flight procedure.
How to Apply?
You can apply for a scholarship by following the guidelines for application on the website of the training or master program of your interest. In case of doubt, please contact the training or master program. Applications that are sent to VLIR-UOS directly by the candidate will not be considered. Once can apply for a program without applying for a scholarship. Candidates who apply for both but in the end are not awarded a scholarship, can still register if they are willing and able to secure own funding or other funding than the VLIR-UOS scholarship. After having submitted your application file to the program of your choice, you will be asked to send a printout of your application file along with all required documents (diploma transcripts, motivation, etc.) to the International Office of the host university or university college (not to VLIR-UOS!).
Application Deadline: The deadline for applications is determined according to the universities program. Check the list of eligible program 2014 to find out which calls for scholarships are currently open.
For further information: VLIR-UOS Training and Master Scholarships
