British Council Scholarships for sub-Saharan Africa – Postgraduate study in Language Testing

Eligibility: Available to applicants who live in and are citizens of or legally resident in sub-Saharan African countries

Deadline: Expressions of interest to be submitted via the application form by Tuesday, 5 May 2026

About the Award

The British Council is offering two scholarships to eligible applicants wholive in and are citizens of or legally resident in sub-Saharan African countries. This is to encourage the academic and professional development of promising graduates in sub-Saharan Africa and to promote diversity in the language testing profession at a global level.

The scholarships are offered in collaboration with Lancaster University. Each scholarship covers programme fees, initially for the Postgraduate Certificate in Language Testing with Lancaster University. This online programme runs over one year and comprises two taught modules.

Most students undertaking the online programme are in full or part time employment, and the programme is designed to be taken alongside work and other commitments. It is ideally suited to those working in education or assessment environments, allowing their work and studies to complement each other. This is an excellent opportunity to become part of an exciting global network of professionals.

Applications are accepted for the one-year Postgraduate Certificate in Language Testing. Subject to future funding opportunities and student performance, there is the possibility for scholars to progress to the Postgraduate Diploma and Master’s qualifications in Language Testing with Lancaster University.

How to apply

To apply for the scholarship, please complete and submit the application form. This form will be available from mid-March 2026. The deadline to submit your Expression of Interest (EOI) is Tuesday, 5 May 2026 (23:59, UK time). Do not apply using the Lancaster University application portal at this stage.

The selection process

The EoIs will be evaluated by a panel, and criteria will include eligibility in terms of citizenship or residency, as well as whether the Lancaster University admission criteria will be met. Applicants may be asked to provide documents to demonstrate both eligibility and programme admission suitability. Shortlisted candidates will be invited for a brief interview (conducted online). We aim to notify the shortlisted candidates by Friday, 15 May 2026. The provisional date for the interviews is Tuesday, 19 May 2026.

Further information

View the course page for information about the PgCert in Language Testing (Online).

If you have any questions about the scholarships, contact MAScholarshipsSSA@britishcouncil.org or Dr John Pill.

British Council Apprenticeships with MA in Language Testing

Eligibility: Candidates with legal residency in the UK are eligible to apply

Deadline: The apprenticeship scheme is not taking new apprentices to start this year (September 2026). Information about the application process for apprenticeships starting in September 2027 will be available here from early 2027.

To encourage the academic and professional development of promising university graduates and promote greater diversity in the language testing community in the UK, the British Council is offering two fixed-term apprenticeships in language assessment.

Candidates with legal residency in the UK are eligible to apply. As part of the British Council’s commitment to addressing underrepresentation in the field of language assessment within the UK, we particularly encourage applications from Black, Asian and other ethnic minorities.

The opportunity to work full-time for two years as an apprentice with the British Council in the UK is offered in collaboration with Lancaster University. While working, each apprentice will also study part-time on the internationally renowned online MA programme in Language Testing at Lancaster University. This also takes two years, with five taught modules and a concluding dissertation project.

At the British Council, the apprentices will spend their first year working “hands on” with the team responsible for the development and delivery of English language tests. In the second year, they will join the team with responsibility for British Council language testing research. This experience will support their dissertation project, completed in the final six months of the academic programme at Lancaster University.

The working location for apprentices can be flexible (by agreement) but they should be able to attend one of the British Council offices in the UK on request (in London, Manchester, Edinburgh, Cardiff or Belfast). The MA programme is delivered fully online.

Please direct any questions to Dr John Pill.