To be eligible you should:

– Hold Syrian, Jordanian, Lebanese or Palestinian nationality
– Hold an undergraduate degree that is equivalent to a 2:1 or higher, or be in the final year of your undergraduate degree
– Have work and/or voluntary experience relevant to your field of study and a clear career path on return to your home country or the region
– Demonstrate leadership potential
– Have applied for an eligible course at a partner university
– Meet the Foundation’s English language requirements
– Upload all required documentation

To be eligible to apply you should be permanently resident in one of our target countries of Syria, Jordan, Lebanon or Palestine. You may apply if you are temporarily living outside of your country for study/work purposes but are normally resident in one of our target countries. The Foundation is more flexible with Syrian candidates because of current circumstances in that country. Palestinians living in Israel may apply.

Yes, we accept applications from candidates who hold Syrian, Jordanian, Lebanese or Palestinian nationality who also hold another nationality. You must upload a copy of your passport or national ID that shows you hold Syrian, Jordanian, Lebanese or Palestinian nationality to your application.

Yes, however priority is given to candidates who have not previously had the opportunity to study outside of their home country.

Yes, provided that you are in the final year of your undergraduate degree. You must upload transcripts of your studies so far.

No, there is no age limit for applicants.

You must have some work or voluntary experience relevant to your chosen course but we do not require a minimum number of hours or years of experience.

If you are shortlisted you will be interviewed in Beirut, Amman or Ramallah in February/March 2024. Syrian and Gazan candidates will be interviewed online.

Please see our scholarships timetable for further details about when you should expect to receive an update on your application. Updates will be sent via email. Please ensure that you also check your junk mail.

Please be aware that due to the volume of applications it is not possible for the Saïd Foundation to provide individual feedback.

The Saïd Foundation offers approximately 20-30 new scholarships annually.

The Foundation provides fully funded scholarships which include tuition fees, full maintenance/living costs for the duration of your course, an arrival allowance, visa and healthcare surcharge fees and one economy return flight.

A separate funding arrangement is in place for students who are selected to study at either the University of Oxford or the University of Cambridge, and for Chevening partner scholars.

No, we do not apply caps on tuition fees for programmes such as MBAs. However, in exceptional circumstances the Saïd Foundation may only be able to offer a partial scholarship if the tuition fees are very high.

The Foundation is unable to provide any financial support for students’ family members and advises that students travel to the UK unaccompanied.

Saïd Foundation students are required to sign a binding undertaking to apply the skills and knowledge they have gained to work towards the development of the Foundation’s target countries on completion of their studies.

The Foundation asks candidates to have the equivalent of a UK Upper Second Class (2:1) degree or above. It is not possible to draw exact parallels between education systems or take into account the different marking systems at all universities in the Foundation’s target countries. We suggest you use the following information as a guide only:

– Jordan – A score of 75-91% (GPA of 3.0/4.0 or 3.5/5.0) is considered comparable to a UK 2:1
– Lebanon – A score of 80-89% is considered comparable to a UK 2:1
Palestine – A score of 80-89% / Very Good is considered comparable to a UK 2:1
– Syria – Generally ‘Very Good’ or a GPA of 80-89% from private universities and 70-79% from state universities is considered as equivalent to a 2:1

In some instances we may accept a lower ranking degree.

Please check with your UK university for information on their entry requirements and on degree equivalency.

Yes, you must submit three different references to support your scholarship application. You must upload these with your application before submitting.

The Saïd Foundation is unable to collect references on your behalf; candidates are responsible for securing their own references prior to submitting their application.

You must collect references from your three nominated referees and upload their letters to your application form prior to submitting it. It will not be possible to upload references after you have submitted your application. References received after the deadline has passed will not be considered.

The Saïd Foundation is unable to collect references on your behalf; candidates are responsible for securing their own references prior to submitting their application.

You must provide three different references: one must be from an academic, one from your current or recent employer and the third from your voluntary activities. If you do not have a professional referee then the Foundation will accept a second academic or voluntary reference. Please refer your referees to the Saïd Foundation Guidance for Referees. Certificates will not be accepted in place of reference letters.

You may provide two reference letters of the same type if you are not able to obtain one of the references required but your application will be much stronger if you provide three references of each type as outlined here. You must provide three different reference letters with your application otherwise your application will not be considered.

You need to provide evidence that you meet the Foundation’s English language requirement. This is a score in IELTS of at least 6.0 overall with a minimum of 6.0 in each band. We can also accept the Duolingo test (please see here for equivalent scores) and TOEFL iBT test (with a minimum overall score of 80 and minimum score of 20 in each band). In addition to the Foundation’s requirement you will need to meet the English language requirements of your chosen UK universities. Please check which English language tests and test scores they require.

Only English language certificates dated after 1^st October 2022 will be considered for a 2024/25 scholarship.

If you have not yet taken an English language test you must register for a test and provide us with the date of the test. When you have taken the test you should upload a copy of the test certificate to the application portal. You must upload your test results showing that you have met the Foundation’s English language requirement to the application portal by 26^th January 2024 to be considered for interview.

Yes, you can apply but you must register for another English test and provide us with the date of that test. You should then upload a copy of your test certificate to the application portal. You must show that you have met the Foundation’s English language requirement by 26^th January 2024 to be considered for interview.

Yes, you must still take an English language test to meet the Foundation’s English language requirement. Most UK universities will also not waive English language requirements unless you have completed an undergraduate degree or higher at a university in a native English-speaking country. If you completed your degree in your home country and your classes and examinations were in English, it is likely that you will still need to provide evidence that you meet your proposed UK university’s language requirements.

The Foundation supports one-year master’s degree studies at our partner universities. If you submit an application for undergraduate or PhD studies your application will not be considered.

No, the Foundation no longer offers scholarships for PhD studies.

At our UK partner universities only. The Foundation cannot provide scholarships for study at a university outside of the UK.

You may apply to a non-partner university but only if the chosen course is not available at one of the Foundation’s partners. You will need to explain this in your application.

The Foundation does not accept applications for two-year master’s degree programmes in the UK.

In exceptional circumstances the Saïd Foundation may consider a distance-learning master’s degree programme at a UK university. Candidates looking to study a distance learning programme must provide detailed arguments to support their choice in their scholarship application form and explain why they are unable to travel to the UK.

The Saïd Foundation will not consider distance-learning programmes that take more than two years to complete.

No, but you should have submitted your university application if the course is open for applications and provided evidence that you have done so (e.g. by providing a university application ID number).

If your chosen university is not accepting applications before the scholarship deadline then you can still submit your scholarship application. In this instance you should enter ‘course not currently open for applications’ in the application ID box of the Study Plans section of the scholarship application form. You should then submit your application to your chosen course when applications open and submit evidence of your application to the application portal by 26^th January 2024.

The Foundation cannot pay application fees or ask universities to waive application fees on behalf of candidates. If you are unable to pay a university’s application fee you should contact them directly for guidance.

There are no restrictions on academic subjects however you will be asked to provide a justification for your choice and explain the relevance and importance to your home country.

No. The Foundation cannot consider candidates for courses which begin before September 2024.

We will contact candidates in accordance with our scholarship timetable. You will be contacted via email.

You should upload a copy of any university offers received after submission of your application to the application portal.

Yes, you must upload a copy of your English language test to the application portal by 26^th January 2024.

No, in order to be considered candidates must have uploaded three valid references prior to submitting their application. This is one of our eligibility criteria and it is not possible to accept references after the deadline.

If your question has not been answered please contact applications@saidfoundation.org