The Government of Ireland Postgraduate Scholarship Programme is an established national initiative, funded by the Department of Education and Skills and managed by the Council. The Council is the largest provider of individual postgraduate scholarships in Ireland. Including awards made in collaboration with enterprise (Enterprise Partnership Scheme; Employment-Based Postgraduate Programme), the Council typically makes an investment in 280 new postgraduate scholarships every year. In 2018, the Council invested in a total of 1,193 postgraduate scholars, with over 5,000 individual scholarships for excellent research awarded to date.
The Government of Ireland Postgraduate Scholarship Programme is unique in the Irish research landscape and complements other channels for funded postgraduate education in the Irish ecosystem. Among its features are:
● individual, prestigious awards for excellent research in the name of the applicant;
● an objective selection process using international, independent expert peer review;
● funding across all disciplines, from archaeology to zoology;
● awards for bottom-up, non-directed research, with the exception of those funded by our strategic funding partners.
The programme provides outstanding scholars with the opportunity to direct their own research project at the early-career stage, working with a supervisor, in their chosen area of interest. The Council is pleased to be working with the following strategic funding partners for the 2020 programme, i.e. the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Irish Aid Division) and the Environmental Protection Agency.
SCHOLARSHIP BENEFITS
● a stipend of €16,000 per annum
● a contribution to fees, including non-EU fees, up to a maximum of €5,750 per annum
● eligible direct research expenses of €2,250 per annum
ELIGIBILITY
All applicants must have a first class or upper second-class honour's bachelor’s, or the equivalent, degree.
If a scholar does not have a first class or upper second-class honour's bachelor’s, or the equivalent, degree, they must possess a master’s degree.
HOW TO APPLY
Potential applicants should read the 2020 Terms and Conditions carefully to ascertain whether or not they are eligible to apply. Indicative versions of the applicant, supervisor and referee forms are provided for information purposes only. All participants must create and submit their forms via the online system.
KEY DATES
Application deadline is 31 October 2019. Supervisor and referee deadline is 7 November 2019. The research office endorsement deadline is 14 November 2019.
Website: http://research.ie/funding/goipg/