New Zealand Scholarship for Asian, African, and Commonwealth Students

About New Zealand Scholarship

New Zealand Scholarships are educational aid funds offered by the New Zealand Aid Program registered under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, New Zealand. This scholarship is available for students from Asian, African and Commonwealth countries to join.

Once selected, candidates will receive full tuition fees at New Zealand universities, living expenses, transportation tickets for flights back to their home country, health insurance, leave benefits and financial support for academic related issues from educational institutions chosen.

Some of the list of disciplines offered by the New Zealand Scholarship include the following:

• Renewable energy
• Public sector management
• Private sector development
• Agricultural development
• Disaster risk management

New Zealand Scholarships finance the education of eligible candidates from developing countries to study abroad at New Zealand educational institutions or universities or at a Pacific university.

The New Zealand Government provides these scholarships.

1. New Zealand Scholarship for undergraduate and postgraduate study
2. New Zealand Short Term Training Scholarships for Pacific and Timor-Leste citizens
3. New Zealand Short Terms Scholarships for citizens of Southeast Asia and Timor-Leste
4. New Zealand English Language Training for Officials Scholarships (NZELTO)

All applicants must meet all the eligibility criteria to be declared as a valid New Zealand Scholarship recipient. Applicants can fill out an online questionnaire at the link https://scholarship.force.com/scholar/s/eligibility-test to confirm whether you can apply. The questionnaire will check thoroughly if you meet all the requirements in force.

If you are applying for a New Zealand Scholarship, you must meet all of the following eligibility criteria.

• You must be 18 years old or older when you start your scholarship program.
• All applicants should ensure that they will meet the requirements for a student visa before applying for the New Zealand Scholarship.
• You must meet both academic entry requirements and English language requirements that have been determined by each educational institution. New Zealand scholarships accept test results from English language competency testing systems such as the International English Language Testing System (IELTS), Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), Pearson Test of English Academic (PTE Academic) or Cambridge Academic English.
• The applicants are expected to contribute to the social and economic development of their respective countries for two years after completing their scholarship-based studies. This is in line with the goal of the New Zealand Scholarship to finance training from candidates from developing countries, so that they can contribute positively to the development of their country through the implementation of new capabilities and knowledge gained from their studies.
• Postgraduate applicants and applicants who have graduated from high school several years ago must have relevant work experience regarding the courses of study to be chosen. Work experience that has been done can be either voluntary, paid or unpaid.

How to Apply for Asian Students

Asian students can apply for the New Zealand Scholarship through the online registration system.

1. Confirm your eligibility at this link: https://scholarship.force.com/scholar/s/eligibility-test. If you are qualified to apply for this scholarship, you will receive an eligibility code or
2. When you are declared able to join the program, you will see a “register” button on the webpage, click to start registration for a New Zealand Scholarship account.
3. Enter your e-mail address and complete the full details of your account. Click “register” and enter the eligibility code that you have received previously.
4. Set a password to complete the registration process.
5. Complete and submit your New Zealand Scholarship application at any time between the opening and closing dates set for Asian countries.

Closing Date for Asian Countries

The closing date for online applications for applicants from Asian countries is Friday, February 28, 2020, 12.00 P.M. NZ time.

Asian countries included on the New Zealand Scholarship eligibility list are:

• Cambodia
• Indonesia
• Jordan
• Lao PDR
• Malaysia
• Mongolia
• Myanmar
• Nepal
• Philippines
• Thailand
• Timor-Leste
• Viet Nam

How to Apply for African Students

Students from Africa who want to study abroad in New Zealand can follow the following steps to register as a New Zealand Scholarship recipient.

1. Confirm your eligibility at this link: https://scholarship.force.com/scholar/s/eligibility-test. If you are qualified to apply for this scholarship, you will receive an eligibility code or
2. When you are declared able to join the program, you will see a “register” button on the webpage, click to start registration for a New Zealand Scholarship account.
3. Enter your e-mail address and complete the full details of your account. Click “register” and enter the eligibility code that you have received previously.
4. Set a password to complete the registration process.
5. Complete and submit your New Zealand Scholarship application at any time between the opening and closing dates set for Asian countries.

Closing Date for African Countries

The closing date for online applications for applicants from African countries is Friday, February 28, 2020, 12.00 P.M. NZ time.

African countries included on the New Zealand Scholarship eligibility list are Algeria, Angola, Botswana, Djibouti, Egypt, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

How to Apply for Commonwealth Students

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade offers New Zealand Scholarships for candidates from developing countries of Commonwealth for postgraduate studies (master’s and PhD) in New Zealand.

To apply, students from Commonwealth countries can contact the nominating agencies in their respective countries in advance to request a registration form paper. Deliver or send the completed application form back to the nominating agency before the closing date for registration. Agencies in each country will then choose only two applications and these will be sent to MFAT on May 1, 2020 as consideration for acceptance.

Closing Dates for Commonwealth Countries

The closing date for collecting paper forms from Commonwealth countries candidates is Friday, 27 March 2020, 12.00 P.M. NZ time.

Commonwealth countries included in the New Zealand Scholarship eligibility list are:

1. Africa: Bostwana, Cameroon, Eswatini, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia.
2. Caribbean: Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines.
3. Asia: Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Malaysia.
4. Pacific: Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Niue, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu.

Contact Information

Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT)

Address:

195 Lambton Quay
Private bag 18 901
Wellington 6160, New Zealand

Telephone number: +64 4 439 8000

Fax number: +64 4 472 9596

E-mail address: enquiries@mfat.govt.nz

Official website