New Commonwealth Professional Fellowship Opens at Strathclyde’s National Centre for Prosthetics and Orthotics

A new opportunity for prosthetics and orthotics (P&O) educators has opened as part of the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission’s (CSC) newly launched Commonwealth Fellowship Programme for 2026/27.

The University of Strathclyde’s National Centre for Prosthetics and Orthotics (NCPO), based in Glasgow, is offering an 8-week Commonwealth Professional Fellowship to a P&O educator from a Commonwealth low- or middle-income country. The fellowship offers the chance to work alongside the NCPO team, gaining experience in P&O education, curriculum development, teaching and learning, assessment, and wider academic practice. It is aimed at clinicians actively involved in educating the next generation of prosthetists and orthotists who want to strengthen their teaching skills and educational leadership.

The National Centre for Prosthetics and Orthotics has been delivering prosthetics and orthotics education since 1973, and is housed within the Department of Biomedical Engineering in Strathclyde’s Faculty of Engineering. Strathclyde is one of only two universities in the UK offering training in this field, and offers the only four-year prosthetics and orthotics degree in the UK — the only course in the UK with Category 1 accreditation from the International Society for Prosthetics and Orthotics. The centre also runs postgraduate programmes, including an MSc in Prosthetics and Orthotics and a PhD programme, and hosts research and clinical practice activity with an international reach.

About the wider Commonwealth Fellowship Programme

From 2026/27, the CSC has restructured its offer into a new Commonwealth Fellowship Programme with two strands:

• Commonwealth Professional Fellowships — for mid-career professionals (minimum five years’ relevant experience) from eligible Commonwealth countries (excluding the UK) to undertake professional development at a UK host organisation in their sector.
• Commonwealth Academic Fellowships (new for this cycle) — for academic staff holding a PhD and employed at a university in an eligible Commonwealth country to undertake academic skills development, knowledge exchange and networking at a UK university, with a view to future collaboration.

Both strands are open to candidates from all Commonwealth countries. The CSC is planning around 40 Fellowships in total, with approximately 10 for citizens of Commonwealth countries not eligible for Overseas Development Assistance (ODA) and around 30 for citizens of ODA-eligible countries.

Fellowships sit under six development themes: science and technology for development; improving population health, health systems and capacity; promoting innovation and entrepreneurship; strengthening peace, security and governance; strengthening resilience and response to crises; and access, inclusion and opportunity.

Key dates

• Applications open: 9:00 BST, Tuesday 28 July
• Applications close: 16:00 BST, Tuesday 25 August
• Professional Fellowships (2026/27): must begin mid-February to mid-March 2027, lasting six weeks to three months
• Academic Fellowships (2026/27): must begin January/February 2027, lasting three months

How to apply

Full eligibility criteria and details of the Strathclyde NCPO fellowship, along with all other available Commonwealth Fellowship placements, are listed on the CSC’s Commonwealth Fellowships information page for candidates.

https://cscuk.fcdo.gov.uk/scholarships/commonwealth-fellowships-information-for-candidates/#University%20of%20Strathclyde%20–%20National%20Centre%20for%20Prosthetics%20and%20Orthotics