2026-2027 Graduate Scholarships Open at the University of Toronto

We are pleased to announce the start of the 2026-2027 Mastercard Foundation graduate scholarship recruitment at the University of Toronto. This scholarship opportunity is open to recent alumni and graduating students at our Africa Health Collaborative partner universities. These graduate scholarships will be awarded to those individuals who have demonstrated academic excellence in the associated health-related disciplines and a personal commitment to going back and giving back to their home countries at the completion of their degree.

The Award
This fully comprehensive scholarship provides full financial assistance for tuition, travel expenses, housing, food, books, and other expenses for the duration of the professional program. In addition to financial support, scholars will be provided with a comprehensive support network to ensure academic success. Furthermore, each scholar will participate in a two-week summer orientation program designed to fully engage them from the start of their graduate studies and to ease their transition to life as a graduate student in Toronto.

Graduate Programs
Up to 20 Mastercard Foundation scholarships will be awarded for the 2026-2027 academic year, split across the following graduate programs:

Please keep in mind when considering your program of study that you meet all the program requirements. Also, please remember that it is your motivation for choosing your field, as well as your career goals and aspirations of giving back to Africa, that will help determine your eligibility for the scholarship.

Eligibility Assessment:

Applicants MUST meet the following six eligibility criteria:

Be a citizen and currently residing in a Sub-Saharan African country.
Be graduating or have graduated from a partner institution of the Africa Health Collaborative (listed here) and have not yet started studies at the graduate level.
Be under 35 years of age
Demonstrate academic excellence and leadership qualities during his/her undergraduate years.
Be academically admissible to one of the sponsored graduate programs listed above.
Demonstrate a desire and commitment to return home following graduation to contribute to the ongoing economic growth and social development in Africa.

SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATION PROCEDURE:

Step One
Prospective applicants must first consult the admission requirements for their chosen program of study. The links above will guide you in exploring these different programs. If you meet the academic requirements of your program of interest, please follow through to step two.

Step Two

Sign up to attend a scholarship information session and complete the Mastercard Foundation Scholarship application. Deadline for submission of the completed application and receipt of all required attachments is Monday, November 3, 2025, at 12 noon (Toronto time).
If your application for the Mastercard Foundation scholarship meets all criteria and is approved by the Scholarship Admission Committee, you will receive an email to move forward to step three. These notifications to successful applicants will be made in early December.

Info Session 1:

October 14th, 2025 at 9 am EST | 1 pm GMT I 3 pm CAT I 4 pm EAT

Info Session 2:

October 14th, 2025 at 12 pm EST I 4 pm GMT I 6 pm CAT I 7 pm EAT

Step Three

Begin your graduate application to the department/program of your interest from the University of Toronto, School of Graduate Studies website. The School of Graduate Studies (SGS) is the central location for graduate applications at the university. Each department and program area will inform you as to the specific requirements of their department and provide you with subsequent dates for the submission of supplementary information. This is an online process that will require you to upload documents to your application. Follow the instructions of your prospective department once you receive them.

Please direct any questions to the University of Toronto’s Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program: mcf.cie@utoronto.ca

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