Application Deadline: 7 October 2025, at 12:00 (UTC)
LOCATION: United Kingdom
The Chevening Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies (OCIS) Fellowships are aimed at mid-career academics or professionals who are dedicated to the promotion of academic activities that encourage a more informed understanding of the culture and civilization of Islam and contemporary Muslim societies.
ELIGIBILITY:
To be eligible for a Chevening OCIS Fellowship, you must:
Demonstrate the potential to rise to a position of leadership and influence.
Demonstrate the personal, intellectual and interpersonal attributes reflecting this potential.
Be a citizen of one of the following countries and a resident in one of these countries at the point of application: Afghanistan, Algeria, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iraq, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Libya, Malaysia, Morocco, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Occupied Palestinian Territories, the Philippines, Senegal, Sudan, Syria, Tajikistan, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, or Uzbekistan.
Return to the country of your citizenship at the end of the period of the fellowship.
Hold a postgraduate-level qualification (or equivalent professional training or experience in a relevant area) at the time of application.
Have significant professional and/or academic research experience (at least five years).
Have a good working knowledge of English to be assessed in your application form and if you are invited to interview.
Not hold British or dual-British citizenship.
Not be an employee, a former employee, or a relative of an employee of His Majesty’s Government, or have been within the last two years from the opening of Chevening applications (including the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office; all British Embassies/High Commissions; the Home Office; the Ministry of Defence; the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy; the Department for International Trade; and the UKVI), the British Council, or a sponsoring UK university.
* Note: Immediate relatives are defined as parents or step-parents, siblings or step-siblings, children or step-children, spouses, civil partners, or unmarried (where the couple have been in a relationship akin to marriage or civil partnership for at least two years).
Please note that applicants who have previously received financial benefit from an HMG-funded scholarship or fellowship are eligible to apply after a period of five years following the completion of their first HMG funded award. In these cases, applicants will be required to demonstrate their career progression from that point.
Applicants should be prepared to outline a short proposal on the area of academic research they would like to conduct at the time of application submission. The proposal should include a main research question and how the applicant intends to conduct this research while in residence at the Centre.
The Chevening Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies Fellowship (OCIS) and OCIS Abdullah Gül Fellowship selection process involves two rounds of interviews. The first interview will be with British embassies and high commissions. Candidates should be prepared to explain their suitability and motivations for the Chevening OCIS fellowship and should also be prepared to explain their research interests. Successful candidates will be invited to a second and final interview with representatives from OCIS which will focus further on your research interests.
BENEFIT:
Five-month period of research at OCIS.
Living expenses for the duration of the fellowship.
Return economy airfare from home country to the UK.
Allowance package for research-related activities.
Access to a programme of cultural events and activities organised by the FCDO and the Chevening Secretariat.