The Commonwealth Scholarship Commission in the UK (CSC) provides the main UK government scholarship scheme led by international development objectives.

The CSC has long known that its Alumni go on to become change agents in their institutions and communities and that their Scholarships and Fellowships are a key contributor to this work. The establishment of the CSC’s dedicated Evaluation and Monitoring programme has facilitated the systematic gathering of evidence and data to support this knowledge, initially through surveys but increasingly through more innovative and rich methodologies including, most recently, a case study approach. This approach, as applied by the CSC, has involved investigation of individual Alumni trajectories through in-depth interviews, giving them an opportunity to share details of their experiences and developmental activities following the Scholarship. The case study approach allowed for a much more thorough investigation and understanding of the wider benefits of the Commonwealth Scholarships as well as the wide variety of contexts that have facilitated or hindered the achievement of Scholarship outcomes and impact.