Handbook

Student engagement

The CSC offers a range of student engagement activities to bring you together with other Commonwealth Scholars and Fellows, and to create opportunities that will enhance your scholarship experience.

Events and activities

You will have the chance to take part in a wide range of activities and events during your time in the UK. The CSC organises a series of events every year to help you meet other Commonwealth Scholars and Fellows as well as offering the Leaders in Sustainable Development programme to help you gain the knowledge and skills you need to achieve development impact.

The CSC Connect and Collaborate Event is an annual event for new Scholars studying in the UK. Held at the Queen Elizabeth II Centre in London, this whole-day event features guest speaker, interactive workshops, and the chance to network with fellow Scholars. The next Connect and Collaborate Event will be held in February 2025, and the CSC looks forward to welcoming all new Scholars.

Throughout your scholarship there will be opportunities to attend events organised by Commonwealth or educational organisations.

Whilst many of these opportunities will take place in person, we also try to ensure that there is a chance to participate in virtual events and activities so you can easily connect with other Scholars and Fellows across the UK and beyond.

To find out more, visit the CSC events page and browse photos from past events on Flickr.

Event travel top-up allowance

The cost of travelling to and from CSC events has been factored into your Commonwealth Scholarship stipend, which is designed for all living costs including domestic travel. However, the CSC also provides some Scholars with an ‘events travel top-up allowance’ which is an additional contribution to the cost of your travel to and from CSC events.

The events travel top-up allowance will be made as a one-off payment, and if you are eligible, will be automatically included in your second stipend payment from the CSC in December.

Please be aware that top-up amounts vary and are based on the location of your UK university. The event travel top-up allowance for each UK region are as follows:

UK region	Events travel top-up allowance amount
London	N/A
South East (including Cambridge)	£82.84
Midlands	£117.72
North East, North West	£171.13
Scotland, Northern Ireland	£229.99
South West, Wales, and Oxford	£118.81

Please note that Scholars studying at universities based in Greater London do not receive the events travel top-up allowance. This is because they will incur minimal or no costs to attend CSC events which are usually held in Greater London.

You are strongly encouraged to attend the CSC Connect and Collaborate Event in February and the CSC Farewell Event in July to maximise your scholarship opportunities and connect with fellow Scholars.

Regional Networks

The CSC’s Regional Networks connect Commonwealth Scholars and Fellows who are studying in the same UK region. They offer enriching opportunities to get to know other Scholars and Fellows through a wide range of events and activities which are organised throughout the year.

Open to all Scholars and Fellows, each Regional Network has its own Facebook group and a dedicated coordinator from among its members. To find out more about activities in your region and to get in touch with your coordinator, visit the Regional Networks page.

Leaders in Sustainable Development programme

Online training

The Leaders in Sustainable Development programme runs throughout the academic year to support your ambitions for development impact after your scholarship.

The programme begins with the Understanding Development Impact online training on FutureLearn, which will help to strengthen your understanding of development and how it applies to the world today. During the course, you will consider how development has evolved over time in response to a range of global challenges and how it can lead to actions that improve people’s lives across the world.

As you progress through the course on FutureLearn, you will be able to connect with other Scholars by engaging in group discussions and peer review activities, so it’s also a great way to get to know fellow Scholars before you arrive in the UK.

The course opens in August, and you will be invited to enrol before your scholarship begins.

Workshops

After completing the Understanding Development Impact training on FutureLearn, you will have the change to join a Leaders in Sustainable Development workshop.

The workshops will help you develop a range of practical skills while each focusing on a core development strength, whether in project management, leadership, networking, proposal writing or Theory of Change. The workshops will build on the skills and ideas explored in the Understanding Development Impact course, and you will have the chance to choose the workshop that best matches your studies and future ambitions.

The Leaders in Sustainable Development programme includes both online and in-person workshops, to enable you to connect with a range of other participants. Applications for the workshops will open in September

The flow diagram below shows how you progress through the different stages of the Leaders in Sustainable Development programme.

Certificates

You will have the chance to gain a certificate of attendance towards the end of the academic year once you have completed the Understanding Development Impact training and attended a Leaders in Sustainable Development workshop.

To be eligible to receive a certificate, you will need to submit your reflections on the workshop or workshops you have attended as part of a Development Training Record.

Social media

Throughout your scholarship you will have the chance to connect with other Scholars and join activities related to your studies and research. To find out about the latest opportunities, you can follow the CSC’s social media channels on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, Flickr and YouTube.

The CSC uses social media to engage with Commonwealth Scholars and Alumni and amplify their work and impact stories. By following the CSC on social media and taking an active role in social networking groups, you will be part of a growing community of Commonwealth Scholars across the world.

Facebook

You can join the Commonwealth Scholars 2024 Facebook group to find out about news and events and share stories with fellow Scholars in the CSC community. You will receive an invite to join the Facebook group in your Confirmation of Award email.

You can also join the Facebook group for your Regional Network to get to know Scholars at your university and wider region and find out about activities that are taking place.

Please be aware that these are both closed groups for current Commonwealth Scholars only. As such, if your Facebook profile does not correspondent to the name you provided in your Commonwealth Scholarship application, you may be contacted by the CSC Secretariat and asked to provide your CSC reference before being approved to join the groups

Knowledge Hubs

You can also join one of the CSC’s six Knowledge Hubs, which provide a platform for Commonwealth Scholars and Alumni studying and working in similar disciplines to network and exchange ideas linked to their chosen CSC Development Theme:

• Science and technology for development
• Strengthening health systems and capacity
• Promoting innovation and entrepreneurship
• Strengthening global peace, security and governance
• Strengthening resilience and response to crises
• Access, inclusion and opportunity

The Knowledge Hubs are hosted on LinkedIn and are supported by their members, who share insights on their own research, studies, and work, and who form a support system in achieving shared or similar development goals. You can join the Knowledge Hubs now to connect with other Scholars and alumni.

Twitter

You can share exciting news about your research or studies with the rest of the CSC community by tagging the CSC @commschols on Twitter. This is a great way to get your stories heard, build your network, and discover opportunities to collaborate in the future.

Follow us on Twitter to find out more about the stories we share.

Common Knowledge

Common Knowledge is the CSC’s magazine for the Commonwealth Scholarship community. It features articles on the work and achievements of current and former Commonwealth Scholars and Fellows, as well as news, events, and alumni updates. The magazine is published twice a year and is available online.

You can send news about your work to your Programme Officer or contact the Engagement Team for the chance to be included in the Common Knowledge magazine, on social media, or to be featured on the CSC website.

CSCmail

CSCmail is the monthly email newsletter for all Scholars and Fellows which includes important information about your scholarship, as well as news of activities you can get involved in.

All current Commonwealth Scholars receive CSCmail once their scholarship begins, and we encourage you to read the newsletter so as to not miss out on key updates and opportunities. If your email changes during your scholarship, please ensure you contact your Programme Officer to update your records so you can continue receiving the CSCmail newsletter.

Remember to look out for emails from the CSC Engagement Team and mark engage@cscuk.org.uk as a safe sender to stay up to date with news from the CSC throughout your scholarship.