The Commonwealth Scholarship Commission takes its responsibility to monitor and evaluate the impact of its awards very seriously. For some years we have undertaken regular monitoring of our awards through anonymous satisfaction questionnaires, annual reports from supervisors and award-holders as well as regular analysis of completion and submission rates. In addition to this in 2008 we launched the CSC Evaluation Programme, a three phase programme which aims to identify and quantify the impact of our awards, on individual scholars, on institutions and on a wider scale on communities and societies.

The outline of the programme was designed following a workshop hosted by the Commission and held at Cumberland Lodge in May 2007. Participants at the workshop, who included Commonwealth Scholars and Fellows, representatives from CSFP national agencies as well as other funding organisations, drew up guidelines leading to the design of a three phase programme, which commenced in September 2007. The three phases are described below;

Phase 1 involves building on and maintaining the database we already hold to ensure that we have a sound and reliable source of basic data.

Phase 2 involved the design and distribution of an alumni survey. The initial results of this survey were published in a report that was launched at the Welcome Day held in London on 17 November 2008. A further more detailed report will be published in early 2009.

In Phase 3 we will identify key areas that merit further investigation such as the impact within the health sector, on Higher Education Institutions, or on particular regions or countries and undertake detailed studies on these areas. These studies will be available in due course.

Events and Activities:

Evaluating the Impact of International Scholarships – Cumberland Lodge. May 2007

The Alumni Evaluation Survey

Publications:

The Results of the Alumni Survey, November 2008 (pdf)

Evaluating Commonwealth Scholarships in the United Kingdom: Assessing impact in key priority areas (Phase 2 report) (pdf)

Evaluating Commonwealth Scholarships in the United Kingdom: Assessing impact in the Caribbean (pdf)

For further information regarding the CSC Evaluation and Monitoring Programme please contact:

Rachel Day

CSC Evaluation Programme

c/o The Association of Commonwealth Universities

Woburn House

20-24 Tavistock Square

London WC1H 9HF

United Kingdom

evaluation@cscuk.org.uk