United States Scholarships

Mastercard Foundation Scholar at UC Berkeley

Organization: JobsToApply Funding type: Fully Funded Deadline: Open Source: JobsToApply

About this opportunity

Master's degree applicants must first apply to an eligible master's degree program before they can be nominated for the Mastercard Foundations Scholars Program. If a graduate program has multilple admission rounds with staggered deadlines, only those who submit applications in the first round can be considered for the Scholars Program.

Each graduate degree program(link is external) has specific requirements and deadlines. Applicants should carefully review these. The Graduate Division(link is external) also provides detailed information on the admissions process. Direct questions regarding admission requirements should be made to the specific graduate program. We outline more details of the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program application process for master's program here. We will recruit Mastercard Foundation Scholars through the fall of 2028.

While the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program at UC Berkeley is not open to undergraduates, students at this level are welcome to apply to the University of California, Berkeley. More information on the undergraduate process is available on the Undergraduate Admissions site(link is external). Other Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program partners(link is external) are recruiting undergraduates.

Application and Selection Sequence

September through early January: Master's degree program prospective applicants must first apply to the University of California, Berkeley through the regular admissions process(link is external). Admission application deadlines vary(link is external) from September to early January with most in December. If a graduate program has multilple admission rounds with staggered deadlines, only those who submit applications in the first round (before January) can be considered for the Scholars Program.
November 15: The Scholars Program and some graduate degree programs are able to provide a limited number of admission application fee(link is external) waivers. Applicants from African countries who complete the basic demographic information and provide the names of at least two recommenders in the UC Berkeley graduate admission online application(link is external) by November 15 will receive an invitation by email to apply for admission application fee waivers. Applicants will be informed of fee waiver decisions before December 1.
February: The Scholars Program at UC Berkeley will invite candidates nominated by the graduate degree programs to complete a supplemental application.
March: The Scholars Program will invite selected candidates for an online interview.
Late March/early April: The Scholars Program will communicate final decisions.

Deadlines and Requirements

Graduate application deadlines vary by program. Please visit the Graduate Division Admissions Website(link is external) for up to date information on:

Which Master's Degree program?

Please note that bachelor and doctoral programs do not qualify for the Scholars Program at UC Berkeley.

UC Berkeley offers many master's degree programs. The following are eligible for the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program:

Haas School of Business
- Business Administration (MBA)(link is external)
  - MBA students need to secure additional funding from Haas Business School through obtaining Haas scholarships(link is external), which requires meeting the Round One application deadline(link is external). We encourage you to contact us if you are interested in learning more details about this unique process.
School of Education
- Education (MA)(link is external)

College of Engineering
College of Environmental Design -
- Architecture (MArch)(link is external) - only two year program
- City & Regional Planning (MCP)(link is external)
- Design (M.Des)(link is external) (joint with College of Engineering)
- Environmental Planning (MLA EP)(link is external)
- Landscape Architecture (MLA 2D)(link is external)
School of Information
- Information Management & Systems (MIMS)(link is external)
Graduate School of Journalism
- Journalism (MJ)(link is external)
  - We will consider only those applicants who meet the Round 1 deadline.
School of Law
- Law (LLM)(link is external) - Traditional(link is external) Program
College of Letters and Science
College of Natural Resources
School of Public Health
Goldman School of Public Policy
- Development Practice (MDP)(link is external)
- Public Policy (MPP)(link is external)
School of Social Welfare
- Social Welfare (MSW)(link is external)

Contact us(link sends e-mail) if you are interested in UC Berkeley programs not listed here.

Note: We only make awards for master's degree program that are two years or less. Hence, concurrent and dual degree programs are not eligible since they take longer than two years.

When considering any program, please keep in mind that it is your motivation for choosing your field, as well as your career goals that will determine if you are eligible for the Scholarship. Please revisit Eligibility Requirements to see if your goals are in line with those of the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program.

Application Guidance and Tips

Watch the 2023 informational webinar(link is external) that took place during the UC Berkeley Diversity Recruitment Fair.
Mastercard Foundation Application Tip Series(link is external).
Resources from UC Berkeley's Graduate Division
- Steps for prospective students(link is external)
- Getting into Graduate School (link is external)program.
- Attend the next online Graduate Diversity Admissions Fair(link is external). Dates are annually announced in August.

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