The Mastercard Foundation

 '' Everyone deserves the opportunity to learn and prosper. But how? ''

The Mastercard Foundation works with visionary organizations to enable young people in Africa and in Indigenous communities in Canada to access dignified and fulfilling work.

The work of the Mastercard Foundation is driven by a belief that all people should have an equal chance to succeed, no matter where they started in life. To date, the MasterCard Foundation programming has improved the lives of more than 50 million people and millions more in their households.

Their work is unified around the single most complex challenge young people in Africa's face — unemployment. Their goal is to enable 30 million young people to secure dignified and fulfilling work by 2030.

The Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program envisions a transformative network of young people and institutions driving inclusive and equitable socio-economic change in Africa. Since launching in 2012, the Program has supported nearly 40,000 young people in Africa to pursue secondary or tertiary education.   

The Scholars Program is implemented through partner universities and non-governmental organizations. The application process and decision-making are managed individually by each partner. If you are interested in becoming a Scholar, you must apply through the university of your choice. 

You can research the application guidelines or contact the institution of your choice for more information. For schools that require application fees as part of the admissions process, the fees will be reimbursed if the student is selected for the Scholars Program.

Below are some of the universities/ institutes that share the value and impact of the MasterCard foundation:

Secondary Education

Camfed International: Camfed works to break the cycle of poverty in Africa by educating and empowering girls and young women to become leaders of change.

Equity Group Foundation: Equity Group Foundation (EGF) is a not-for-profit implementing foundation based in Nairobi, Kenya that champions the social and economic transformation of the people of Africa.

Undergraduate Studies

African Development University

African Leadership Academy

American University of Beirut

Ashesi University College

Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST)

Sciences Po

University of Abomey-Calavi

University of Edinburgh

University of Gondar

EARTH University

Makerere University

United States International University Africa

African Leadership University

International Institute for Water and Environmental Engineering (2iE)

Master's Studies

African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS)

American University of Beirut

Arizona State University

Carnegie Mellon University Africa

McGill University

Sciences Po

University of British Columbia

University of Cape Town

University of Edinburgh

University of Gondar

University of Pretoria

The University of California, Berkeley (UCB)

University of Toronto (U of T)