The Africa Oxford Initiative (AfOx) and Mastercard Foundation offer up to 3 fully funded Oxford MBA scholarships for African nationals resident in Africa — full course fees plus at least £21,805 living grant. Deadline: 8 January 2027.

Overview

An Oxford MBA. Fully funded. For African nationals who have overcome hardship and are committed to Africa’s development.

The AfOx Graduate Scholarship — established through a partnership between the University of Oxford, the Mastercard Foundation, and the Africa Oxford Initiative (AfOx), in collaboration with Saïd Business School — makes one of the world’s most prestigious business degrees accessible to up to three African scholars for the 2027–28 academic year.

The scholarship covers full MBA course fees plus a living cost grant of at least £21,805, alongside bespoke training, networking, and structured support before, during, and after Oxford.

There is no separate scholarship application. If you are applying for the Oxford MBA and you meet the eligibility criteria, you are automatically considered.

Application deadline: 8 January 2027

What Makes This Scholarship Distinctive

Most MBA scholarships reward high achievers in conventional professional tracks. The AfOx Graduate Scholarship specifically seeks Africans who have had to overcome hardship — making it one of the few Oxford scholarship routes that gives genuine weight to adversity alongside achievement.

The Mastercard Foundation Scholars Programme, which underpins this award, has consistently prioritised scholars who combine academic and professional excellence with demonstrated financial or circumstantial challenge and a clear commitment to contributing back to the African continent. At Oxford, that combination produces a profile of scholar that is genuinely distinct.

What the Scholarship Covers

Oxford’s MBA is a one-year intensive programme at Saïd Business School. The living cost grant of at least £21,805 is designed to cover accommodation and daily expenses in Oxford for the duration of the programme. Combined with full fee coverage, this removes the primary financial barrier to attending one of the world’s most transformative business programmes.

Who Can Apply?

You must:

• Be an African citizen
• Be ordinarily resident in an African country at the time of application
• Have not already taken a Master’s degree
• Be able to demonstrate a commitment to Africa’s development
• Meet Saïd Business School’s MBA admission requirements

Nigeria qualifies. All African countries are eligible — the scholarship is open to nationals from across the continent, not restricted to specific countries.

The no-prior-Masters requirement is important: if you hold a Master’s degree from any institution, you are not eligible for this scholarship — even if you haven’t completed a second one.

How to Apply

There is no separate scholarship application form.

Apply for the Oxford MBA at Saïd Business School through the standard MBA application process. Within that application, indicate your interest in being considered for the AfOx Graduate Scholarship. If you are shortlisted for interview, the University will contact you.

The MBA application itself is competitive — Saïd Business School is one of the world’s leading business schools, and the Oxford MBA cohort is small and highly selective. Your MBA application needs to be strong on its own merits before the scholarship layer is considered.

Application deadline: 8 January 2027

What the Oxford MBA Offers

The Oxford MBA at Saïd Business School is a 12-month full-time programme consistently ranked among the top MBA programmes globally. It is particularly known for:

• A genuinely international and diverse cohort
• Oxford’s interdisciplinary academic environment — with access to faculty across law, public policy, economics, medicine, and technology
• Strong entrepreneurship, social enterprise, and Africa-relevant specialisation tracks
• One of the most powerful alumni networks in the world — spanning finance, government, development, technology, and civil society

For African professionals with leadership ambitions — whether in business, public sector, development, or social enterprise — an Oxford MBA creates professional leverage that is genuinely difficult to replicate through any other single-year investment.

Why This Matters for Nigerian Professionals

Nigerian MBA applicants face a double barrier: the cost of an Oxford MBA (currently over £60,000 in fees alone) and the intense competition for admission. The AfOx Graduate Scholarship addresses the first barrier directly — and for applicants from Nigeria and other African countries who have demonstrated both achievement and hardship, it also creates a differentiated pathway through the scholarship criteria.

For Nigerian professionals in finance, consulting, entrepreneurship, technology, policy, healthcare, or the development sector — who are at a stage where an Oxford MBA would represent a genuine inflection point — this scholarship deserves serious preparation and a serious application.

Up to three scholarships. One annual deadline. The next one is 8 January 2027.

Quick Facts

Apply Now

Submit your Oxford MBA application at Saïd Business School by 8 January 2027 and indicate your interest in the AfOx Graduate Scholarship within the application.