The Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program at University of California, Berkeley 2025
Call for Application Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program at Carnegie Mellon University Africa
The University of California, Berkeley has partnered with The Mastercard Foundation(link is external) in a collaborative, global network of education institutions and non-profit organizations that believe education is a catalyst for social and economic advancement. The Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program aims to develop a cohort of ethical, entrepreneurial, and energetic young leaders who will drive and lead socio-economic transformation in Africa. The Program is a growing commitment, and, to date, the Program has committed over USD $1.2 billion to supporting the education and leadership development of more than 40,000 young people.
The future of Africa will be shaped by its young people, including those talented, yet economically disadvantaged students who face significant barriers to accessing quality education. The Mastercard Foundation’s strategy, Young Africa Works(link is external), aims to enable 30 million young people, particularly young women, to secure dignified and fulfilling work by 2030. To harness the potential impact of this generation, The Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program(link is external) provides next-generation leaders who are committed to the social and economic transformation of their continent with access to quality education by delivering comprehensive financial, social, and academic support throughout their secondary and university education and supports their transition to further study or to the workforce.
Eligibility
The main eligibility criteria are:
- Being a citizen of an African country: This includes Africans who have been forcibly displaced or have refugee status within the African continent. Those with dual citizenship, asylee, refugee or permanent resident status in the US, Canada, UK or EU are not eligible.
- Having academic talent: All prospective Scholars must first be admitted to a UC Berkeley master’s degree program to be considered for the Scholarship. An important criteria for admission to the University is demonstrated academic excellence.
- Demonstrating leadership potential: The Program seeks those committed to developing the skills and mindsets associated with transformative leadership, i.e, that which engages others in an ethical manner to generate positive and lasting change.
- Experienced signifcant barriers to accessing higher education: This Scholarship is designed for those extremely talented individuals who might have faced barriers to quality higher education, including social, financial, personal, practical or health related.
- Having demonstrated the commitment to give back to your community, country, or continent: We are looking for well-rounded students who are engaged in activities beyond the classroom. Some may be directly related to your field of study, but this may also include other issues (social, economic, political) that you are working on and passionate about. Applicants should elaborate on their achievements both in their application to UC Berkeley, and then later in the application for the Scholars Program.
- Having expressed the desire and intention to return to your home country after completing your studies and post-graduation training: We are looking for students who are engaged with and passionate about issues affecting their communities, and who will take advantage of their education at UC Berkeley to better equip themselves with the knowledge and training to address these issues upon return. While important work can be done from abroad, the intention of the Program is to enable Scholars to return home, after forming valuable professional connections through internships, academic training and job placements.
Send questions on eligiblity to mcfs.programinfo@berkeley.edu(link sends e-mail).
Benefits
- Fully tuition and accommodation,
- Living stipend,
- Round trip flight from home country to UC Berkeley, etc.
Eligible Regions: Africa
Application Process
Master’s degree applicants must first apply to an eligible master’s degree program before they can be nominated for the Mastercard Foundations Scholars Program. If a graduate program has multilple admission rounds with staggered deadlines, only those who submit applications in the first round can be considered for the Scholars Program.
Each graduate degree program(link is external) has specific requirements and deadlines. Applicants should carefully review these. The Graduate Division(link is external) also provides detailed information on the admissions process. Direct questions regarding admission requirements should be made to the specific graduate program. We outline more details of the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program application process for master’s program here. We will recruit Mastercard Foundation Scholars through the fall of 2028.
While the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program at UC Berkeley is not open to undergraduates, students at this level are welcome to apply to the University of California, Berkeley. More information on the undergraduate process is available on the Undergraduate Admissions site(link is external). Other Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program partners(link is external) are recruiting undergraduates.
For Further Queries: If you have a question you would like to ask, including admission queries, please use their official QA section on their website.
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