Irish Aid Roger Casement Fellowship in Human Rights

Application Deadline: 30 July 2023

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. 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 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.

The Ireland Fellows Programme Roger Casement Fellowship in Human Rights was established to honour the memory of the Irish human rights activist Roger Casement, who spent some of his early working life in Calabar, Nigeria. He was an early advocate for human rights while in Nigeria and during his later work in the Congo, the Amazon and in Ireland. With his humanitarian legacy in mind, the Roger Casement Fellowship supports a candidate from Nigeria to undertake a master’s level course of study in Human Rights in Ireland each year. 

Eligibility

To be eligible for an Ireland Fellows Programme – Casement Fellowship award commencing at the beginning of the academic year 2024, applicants must:

• Be a resident national of Nigeria.
• Have a minimum of two 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 2012 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 2023/24.
• Be applying to commence a new programme at master’s level in Ireland no sooner than August 2024.
• 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 Casement Fellowship 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 2024/2025.

Eligible Countries: 

Nigeria

Eligible Courses: 

Masters programmes at Irish higher education institutes in the areas of Law, Human Rights and Governance.

Benefits

• 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.

Application Procedure:

Please read the Applicants Guidance Note carefully before completing as eligibility criteria may differ from country to country. 

The application process consists of three stages:

• Stage 1   Preliminary Application;
• Stage 2   Detailed Application;
• Stage 3   Interviews.

For More Information:

Visit the Official Webpage of the  2024/2025 Irish Aid Roger Casement Fellowship in Human Rights