Nuffic Mena Scholarship 2020/2021

Nuffic Mena Scholarship Programme 2021/2022 to study in the Netherland

The Nuffic Mena scholarship program offers professional employees the opportunity to improve in their careers. 

The Mena Scholarship Programme is initiated and funded by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs and managed by Nuffic.

The scholarships are awarded in a competitive selection to highly motivated professionals who are in a position to introduce the newly-acquired skills and knowledge into their employing organization. 

While the scholarship is awarded to individuals, all candidates must be nominated by their employer to be able to participate.

The need for training has to be demonstrated in the context of the organization the applicant is employed by.

 What is the aim of the Nuffic Mena Scholarship programme?

 The overall aim of the MSP is to contribute to capacity building within organizations by enabling employees to take part in short courses in the Netherlands. 

It also aims at strengthening the relations between the participating countries and The Netherlands by building a sustainable alumni network. 

What do I need to know about the MSP scholarship programme ?

Before application, make sure to do these three things:

1. Review the eligibility criteria carefully.

2. Check whether your employer is willing to nominate you for the scholarship. 

3. Check if your application fits within the country focus areas of your country, which are taken into consideration when scholarship applications are nominated and assessed.

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Who is the Target Group of the MSP? 

The scholarship is awarded in a competitive selection to highly motivated professionals ‘change-makers’ who are in a position to introduce the newly-acquired skills and knowledge into their employing organization.

50% of all scholarships are allocated to female applicants.

The MSP is open to professionals who are nationals of – and living and working in – one of the countries listed below: 

  1. Algeria
  2. Egypt
  3. Iran
  4. Iraq
  5. Jordan  
  6. Lebanon
  7. Libya
  8. Morocco
  9. Syria *
  10. Tunisia

 What are the Eligibility Criteria for MSP?

To be eligible for an MSP scholarship:

  1. The applicant must be a professional and national of, and living and working in one of the countries on the MSP country list valid at the time of application;
  1. The applicant must have a current employer’s statement that complies with the format Nuffic has provided. All information must be provided likewise the commitments that are included in the format must be endorsed in the statement;
  1. The applicant must not be employed by an organization that has its means of staff development. Organizations that are considered to have their means of staff development are for example multinational corporations e.g. Shell, Unilever, Microsoft), large national and/ or a large commercial organization, bilateral donor organizations (e.g. USAID, DFID, Danida, Sida, Dutch ministry of Foreign affairs, FinAid, AusAid, ADC, SwissAid), multilateral donor organizations, (e.g. a UN organization, the World Bank, the IMF, Asian Development Bank, African Development Bank, IADB), international NGO’s (e.g. Oxfam, Plan, Care);
  1. The applicant must have an official and valid passport (valid, three months after the candidate submission date);
  1. The applicant must have a government statement that meets the requirements of the country in which the employer is established (if applicable).
  2. The age of the MSP candidate must not exceed 45 years of age at the time of the grant submission;
  1. The candidate is only allowed to submit one scholarship application. If the candidate submits more than one application, only the last will be given consideration. All other applications will be marked as not eligible without notifying;
  1. The scholarship application is in line with the priority areas mentioned in the Country Focus Document.

Did you find MSP interesting and may want to apply?

Application for the MSP takes place via Dutch institutions.

 The dates provided by these institutions give a list of courses available for that deadline.

The short courses on offer fall within several fields of study and have a duration of 2 to 12 weeks.

What are the steps I need to follow?

Follow these steps to apply:

1. Select a course on the MSP course list

The new course list of the MENA Scholarship Program will be published as soon as possible.

2. Contact the Dutch institution that is offering the course for information on:

  1. Course content
  2. The application deadline (deadlines can differ per Dutch institution)
  3. The application and selection procedures
  4. The online application form and the supporting documents 

3. Prepare your application and the supporting documents

       1. The employer’s statement. 

       2. Format statement of a government authority.

       3. Please check the government statement requirements to see if your country requires you to obtain a government statement.

4. Submit your online application via the Dutch institution offering the course

With your online application, you will be asked to upload a valid passport copy, a current statement from your employer, and depending on your country of employment; a government statement.

What are the Selection procedures for Nuffic’s scholarship award?

If your application meets all the course admission requirements and the MSP eligibility criteria, you can be nominated by the Dutch institution for a scholarship.

If a candidate is considered, the applicant is expected to take the following steps:

  1. The Dutch institution will submit a grant request to Nuffic requesting funding for eligible applications.
  2. The Netherlands Embassy will check the applications on their eligibility and will assess the applications based on the eligibility criteria and the Embassy country focus areas.
  3. Only eligible applications will be taken in to further consideration. Applications that do not meet the eligibility criteria will be rejected.
  4. Scholarships are equally distributed across the participating countries, taking into account the available budget and the quality of the applications. Half of the scholarships are given to female applicants.

Nominated candidates will be informed of the outcome of the selection by the Dutch institution.

For any further questions concerning the MSP application and selection procedures, please contact the Dutch institution offering the course directly.

What is the Current application round?

Round 2 is now open for applications. Nuffic’s deadline for applications is 13 October |2020 16.00 CEST.

Each education institution has a different deadline for applications. Please contact the institution for more information or take a look at the deadlines mentioned in the course list.

What do I stand to gain after my studies?

Once you have finished your study period, you are officially an MSP alumnus. Nuffic offers a range of activities and services for alumni:

  1. Access to the Holland alumni network, 
  2. Refresher courses,
  3. Alumni events, 
  4. And more.

For more information on the available alumni activities, please visit the Holland Alumni network.

Note: MSP is not currently open to professionals applying from Syria. Applicants with Syrian nationality may apply if they are residing and working in one of the other MSP countries listed.

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