Queen Elizabeth Scholarship 2024 for early career women scholars from West Africa

Call for Applications: Queen Elizabeth Scholarship for early career women scholars from West Africa. Apply below.

When is Application Deadline:

20th September 2023

Tell Me About Queen Elizabeth Scholarship for early career women scholars:

As the first cohort of the Carleton University Queen Elizabeth Scholarship for Advanced Scholars from West Africa (QES-AS-WA) wraps up, we are delighted to announce the second and final call for applications for the second cohort scheduled for 2023-24. The program Wurin ta na yin rubutu – Her own room to write, which runs until October 2024, is open to West African women in the final stage of their PhD program, postdoctoral researchers, and early career academics affiliated to institutions, to participate in a research acceleration experience.

Wurin ta na yin rubutu – Her own room to write is supported and funded by the Queen Elizabeth Scholarship – Advanced Scholars West Africa program which focuses on Sustainable Development Goal 5 (gender equality) and (gender equality) as a crosscutting or mainstream goal in one or more of the following areas: climate resilience and sustainable food systems; education and innovation systems; ethics in development research; health equity; inclusive governance; and sustainable inclusive growth.

Carleton University’s program is contributed to by Universities Canada, with funding from International Research Development Centre (IDRC) through the Rideau Hall Foundation. The first cohort drew scholars from Cameroon, Ghana and Nigeria. The deadline for the submission of applications through the program website is Wednesday, September 20th, 2023.

This program is designed to provide an opportunity of between 35 and 180 days in which two thirds of the time is spent at Carleton University to strengthen research capacity under the supervision of a Carleton University faculty member. A third of the time will be committed to gain field research experience through placement with NGO partners that have offices in Canada and or in West and Central Africa. The scholarship provides for research supervision, focused seminars, experiential learning through a research proposal that aligns with the research interests of the placement opportunities (see Placement Partners), leadership, and network building.

About the Scholarship Award
This next round of the Queen Elizabeth Scholarship will run between April and October 2024 and is subject to the acquisition of visas by the awardees. The scholars can choose from two award lengths, namely, short-term awards 35-60 days to, and mid-term 61-180 days. The scholarship funds cover mobility expenses, accommodation, research placement expenses, and travel and health insurance. Scholars must be registered for their PhD at a West African university; postdoctoral fellows/researchers or early career PhD scholars must be working at a West African university.

As part of the award, successful candidates will be granted access to Carleton’s library resources. The scholars are expected to participate in workshops designed to augment research skills including writing, publishing, data analysis, and grant applications. Scholars will also benefit from joint research projects with their mentors and the many talks and lectures hosted by the Institute of African Studies (IAS) as well as by other departments and community partners.

The research of successful applicants will fall into one of the following areas:

• Climate-Resilient Food Systems
• Education and Science
• Ethics in Development Research
• Global Health
• Democratic and Inclusive Governance
• Sustainable Inclusive Economies

Type:

Fellowship

Who can Apply for Queen Elizabeth Scholarship for early career women scholars?

This project is only open to women applicants.

Career Level
Successful applicants will fit into one of the following defining categories:

• Doctoral Researcher – An individual who has completed all course work and is at the dissertation stage of their PhD.
• Post-doctoral Researcher – An individual, who is conducting research after the completion of their PhD, who usually works under the mentorship of a lead researcher or a principal investigator.
• Early Career Researcher – An individual with a PhD, who has demonstrated strong evidence of work as an independent researcher, has led his/her own laboratory or research project for 4-6 years or is in a tenure-track position at a degree-granting institution.

How are Applicants Selected?

Which Countries are Eligible?

Benin, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo

Where will Award be Taken?

Carleton University, Canada

How Many Awards?

Not specified

What is the Benefit of Queen Elizabeth Scholarship for early career women scholars?

The scholarship funds cover mobility expenses, accommodation, research placement expenses, and travel and health insurance. Scholars must be registered for their PhD at a West African university; postdoctoral fellows/researchers or early career PhD scholars must be working at a West African university.

Upon completion of the research, the QE Scholar will be expected to share the knowledge they have gained with their home institution and community. They are also required to write a Scholar Narrative Report and to join the QES-AS network through Universities Canada. Publications resulting from the QES-AS will be also hosted on the IDRC’s institutional digital library. Scholars will also be required to stay in touch and to contribute to building a growing network of QE Scholars.

Each Queen Elizabeth Scholarship is premised on a mandatory period of 30% of the time for research placement to give the candidate the experience of applying their research skills towards the research needs of the partner organizations. Successful candidates will demonstrate that they have aligned their research with the research areas of the IDRC and that their research proposals relate to the research focus of their mentors and placement partners. All applicants must be fluent in either English or French. The majority of placements are English. However, there are certain opportunities for placements and mentorship in French. Carleton faculty members involved in this scholarship as mentors have expertise across various disciplines and access to professional networks. We are thus able to match selected candidates’ research need for supervision by leveraging available expertise and placement partnership. The applicants are required to demonstrate their best matches for mentors and placement partners.

All scholars must be mobile and willing to travel.  Travel may occur across West Africa and/or to Canada where feasible and permissible.  Please note, we are unfortunately unable to support childcare.

How Long will Award Last?

This next round of the Queen Elizabeth Scholarship will run between April and October 2024 and is subject to the acquisition of visas by the awardees. The scholars can choose from two award lengths, namely, short-term awards 35-60 days to, and mid-term 61-180 days.

How to Apply:

Review Eligibility Criteria
Identify Research Mentors
Identify Placement Partners
Complete Application package – English | French
Submit Application package – English | French

Application Deadline
The deadline for the submission of applications is Wednesday, September 20th, 2023. For more information about the application process, please visit our website. The application package can be found under the application tab. Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted.

If you have any questions, please email us at [email protected].

Visit Award Webpage for Details