Securing a Fully Funded Scholarship is only the first step. Many Nigerian students are now utilizing No-Cosigner Student Loans through providers like MPOWER Financing and Prodigy Finance to cover living expenses in the USA, Canada, and the UK.
If you are applying to Ivy League or Russell Group Universities, look for programs offering Graduate Assistantships. Many top-tier universities are currently granting GRE and GMAT Waivers for African applicants with strong professional backgrounds or high GPAs from recognized institutions.
For Canada and the US, a WES Course-by-Course Evaluation is often mandatory. Additionally, if your degree was taught in English, you may qualify for an IELTS/TOEFL Waiver, saving you significant costs during the Graduate Admissions process.
If you finished your first degree with outstanding grades and you want a Masters in the United Kingdom, the University of Glasgow has opened one of the largest scholarship schemes in the country. The Glasgow Global Leadership Scholarship offers a £10,000 tuition fee discount to 350 international students, across every discipline, for a one year full time Masters degree. Applications are open now, and the university assesses them on a rolling basis, so apply early.
This is a partial scholarship, not a full ride. The £10,000 comes off your tuition invoice, and you still need to fund the rest of your tuition, your living costs, your visa and your travel. Even so, with 350 awards on offer, this is one of the most realistic high value scholarships a Nigerian graduate can aim for in 2027. Nigeria is named on the official list of eligible countries.
Every award is a £10,000 tuition fee waiver for one year only, applied directly to your tuition invoice, so no cash is paid into your bank account. The university is offering 350 scholarships for the 2027/28 academic session, a large number for a single scheme.
The award cannot be combined with another University of Glasgow discount or scholarship, except for the Alumni Discount. If you are offered more than one, the lower value award will be deleted, so plan your funding around a single award.
To be eligible, you must meet all three conditions below.
Nigeria is explicitly on the eligible countries list published on the official scholarship page, alongside Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. No separate quota by country is published, so Nigerian applicants compete on academic merit with applicants from everywhere else.
Almost every one year Masters programme at Glasgow is eligible, from Data Science and Artificial Intelligence to International Relations, Public Health and Finance and Management. Two limits matter: diplomas and certificates are not eligible, and only one year full time in person Masters programmes qualify, except for the Book and Paper Conservation MPhil and the Textile Conservation MPhil, where the discount applies for the first year only.
There is no application fee for the scholarship itself. Follow the steps below in order.
Because assessment is rolling, timing matters. An applicant who applies in November is in a stronger position than one who waits until the summer, even though both may be eligible on paper.
The University of Glasgow has not yet published a fixed closing date for the September 2027 round. The official page states that the closing date will be confirmed in due course, usually in late August, but with rolling assessment, awards can be allocated long before any closing date is announced.
A separate January 2027 round covers only six programmes: Aerospace Engineering and Management, Civil Engineering and Management, Educational Studies, Electronics and Electrical Engineering, Electronics and Electrical Engineering and Management, and Mechanical Engineering and Management. Confirm the closing date for that round on the official programme pages.
For September 2027 entry, submit your course application before the end of 2026, hold your offer early in 2027, and submit your scholarship application as soon as the portal lets you in. Then check the official page regularly for the confirmed closing date.
The £10,000 award is generous, but it is a discount on a much larger bill. International tuition fees for 2027/28 at the University of Glasgow include the following examples, published on the official programme pages.
On a £28,275 programme, the award covers roughly a third of your tuition, and on a £34,815 programme just under a third. You will still need to fund the balance of your tuition, plus living costs, your visa, the immigration health surcharge and travel.
Check the exact tuition fee on the page for your chosen programme, because fees vary by course. The £2,000 deposit is credited towards your tuition and is payable by the deposit deadline in your offer email.
If you are domiciled in Africa and hold a passport from an eligible African country, including Nigeria, you should also apply for the University of Glasgow African Excellence Award, a separate and much larger award from the same university.
To be eligible, you must show grades equivalent to a UK first class honours degree, hold international fee status, be domiciled in Africa and hold a passport from one of the eligible countries, and show a clear career and development plan that your Masters study will support. You will also need to meet the UK visa living costs requirement.
The university publishes average fees with the 75% discount applied. Arts and Humanities averages £27,390, so the discount would be £20,542.50. Social Sciences averages £28,275, so the discount would be £21,206.25. Science and Engineering and the Adam Smith Business School average £34,815, so the discount would be £26,111.25. Medicine, Veterinary and Life Sciences averages £33,708, so the discount would be £25,281. These are examples only, and your actual award depends on the fee in your own offer letter.
Like the Global Leadership Scholarship, the African Excellence Award cannot be combined with another University of Glasgow discount or scholarship, except for the Alumni Discount. You can apply for both awards, but you can only hold one.
Most rejected applications fail on a simple rule, not on grades. Avoid these mistakes.
No. It is a partial scholarship worth £10,000 off your tuition fees for one year. It does not cover living costs, travel, your visa or the immigration health surcharge. If you need more funding, look at the African Excellence Award, which covers 75% of tuition.
Yes, for the Global Leadership Scholarship you must hold an offer for a full time one year Masters programme starting in September 2027 before you apply. For the African Excellence Award, you do not need an offer to apply, but you will need one to be considered for interview.
Yes, and many Nigerian applicants should. You cannot hold both, because Glasgow scholarships cannot be combined, except for the Alumni Discount. If you are offered both, the lower value award will be deleted, and you will keep the higher value one.
For the Global Leadership Scholarship, within 6 weeks from receiving your programme offer or submitting your scholarship application, whichever is later. For the African Excellence Award, shortlisted applicants will be contacted by Friday 7 May 2027.
The Glasgow Global Leadership Scholarship 2027 is open now, with 350 awards of £10,000 for international Masters students, and Nigeria is explicitly eligible. The closing date is usually in late August, but rolling assessment rewards the applicants who move first, so apply for your Masters programme today and submit your scholarship application as soon as the portal opens to you.
If you are African, also apply for the African Excellence Award before Wednesday 31 March 2027, because a 75% fee waiver is worth far more than £10,000 on most programmes.
Official links: University of Glasgow Global Leadership Scholarship and University of Glasgow African Excellence Award.
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