Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) Scholarship Research Program for Students in Developing Countries 2018

Application Deadline: 16th March, 2018.

Eligible Countries: All. Applications are particularly welcome for research projects in Asia, South America and Africa.

About the Award: The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) runs an exciting and ambitious program, working with partners to transform the world’s seafood markets and promote sustainable fishing practices. Undergraduate and postgraduate students of environmental and fisheries science are able to further their studies through the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) scholarship research program.

This year, the MSC also welcomes applications from students researching best practice in sustainable seaweed harvesting and management. Direct linkage to a fishery certified or wishing to become certified by the MSC is not a requirement, although this is an additional point of interest for the MSC.

Type: Research, Undergraduate, Postgraduate (Masters)

Eligibility:  Qualifying projects will:

• Have the objective of studying some aspect of environmental improvement, performance or best practice in fisheries and seafood product traceability and supply chain management. This may be a direct study of one particular fishery or a comparative study of fisheries problems or management. The project can be desk- or field-based.
• Direct linkage to a fishery certified or wishing to become certified by the MSC is not a requirement, although this is an additional point of interest for the MSC.
• The MSC also has a strong interest in identifying, assessing and managing the risks in seafood supply chains, for example, product substitution and mislabelling, traceability and DNA testing.
• Applications are particularly welcome for research projects in Asia, South America and Africa.

Selection Criteria: Qualifying projects will:

Have the objective of studying some aspect of impact, improvement, performance or best practice in fisheries management and or seafood supply chain management. This may be direct study of one particular fishery or comparative study of fisheries problems or management. Direct linkage to a fishery certified or wishing to become certified by the MSC is not a requirement, although this is an additional point of interest for the MSC.

• All applications will be initially assessed on comparable scoring criteria. A maximum of five applications of the highest scoring applications will then be submitted for evaluation by the MSC scholarship research award review panel. The MSC Director of Science & Standards reserves the right for final decision of the scholarship award.
• Your application will be acknowledged with 1 week of the closing date. If you do not hear back from the MSC within that time, you should contact us immediately.
• All applicants will be informed of the outcome of their application within 6 weeks of the closing date

Number of Awards: A maximum of five

Value of Award: The MSC awards travel and study scholarships, up to the value of £4,000 to eligible undergraduate and postgraduate students worldwide.

Duration of Program: The project must be completed within 12 months of the start date stated on the application form, and the final project report must be submitted within 15 months of the start date.

How to Apply: Scholarship grant application form    

Application form to be completed and returned via email to Lucy Erickson, MSC Science Communications Manager: Scholarship@msc.org

Visit the Program Webpage for Details

Award Providers: Marine Stewardship Council (MSC)