IPSP Scholarship 2026: Ireland-Palestine Programme

Who can apply

A Palestinian currently resident in Palestine, holding a Palestinian or Jerusalem ID
A bachelor's degree from an accredited institution with a minimum GPA of 80% or 3.0 (or equivalent), and the academic standard needed for the chosen master's course
Not already holding a qualification at master's level or higher
Applying for a new qualification, not one already started or one that begins before awards are notified, and able to take up the scholarship in 2027/2028
An English score report dated September 2025 or later: IELTS 6.5, TOEFL ITP 550, TOEFL iBT 80, or Duolingo 120 overall with at least 105 in each sub-score
Three relevant courses selected and ranked from the programme's own Directory of Eligible Postgraduate Courses
Not having applied to the Ireland Fellows Programme on more than one previous occasion
Current or recent staff of the Irish Representative Office or Ireland's Department of Foreign Affairs, and Amideast staff or their immediate family, are excluded
Successful applicants must sign a commitment to return home within 14 days of finishing their studies

A separate calendar, and a separate administrator

This is listed separately from the wider Ireland Fellows Programme because it has its own calendar and its own administrator. Applications go through an online form run by Amideast, not to the Representative Office directly. Candidates selected after the Round-One interviews then have to hand in their original documents at an Amideast office, with a hard-copy deadline of 18 January 2027. The Office acknowledges this is a real hurdle for some applicants, and says Amideast will do its utmost to find submission options and will contact those candidates directly.

Don’t apply to Irish universities yet

The programme explicitly tells applicants not to apply for any course in Ireland until they have been shortlisted after interview. At the application stage you list three master’s programmes from the IPSP Directory of Eligible Postgraduate Courses, ranked 1 to 3. The programme strongly recommends spreading them across three different institutions where possible, so you have a better chance of a course offer. Shortlisted candidates are then contacted by the Irish Council for International Students (ICOS), which handles the actual course applications. If the directory and a university’s own course page disagree on entry requirements, the programme says to follow the university’s page, since it may have been updated after the directory went to print.

The English test rules have two layers

To apply, you need an English score report dated September 2025 or later: IELTS 6.5, TOEFL ITP 550, TOEFL iBT 80, or Duolingo 120 with at least 105 in each sub-score. That applies even if your degree was taught in the US or UK. Meeting the scholarship’s threshold is not the end of it, though. If you are shortlisted and submitted anything other than IELTS, you may have to sit IELTS and reach 6.5, because Irish universities may require it. The Representative Office arranges and pays for that test in January/February 2027. Candidates who already have IELTS 6.5 can choose to retake it, and the programme encourages this if you think you can raise your score. One FAQ answer on the page says the report must be dated “no later than September 2025,” which contradicts the “September 2025 or later” rule stated everywhere else. The eligibility section and the other FAQ answers all say “or later,” so treat that as the rule and ask Amideast if in doubt.

What the application needs

Every document goes in as a clear scan, and you keep the originals. The list: a recent passport photo; graduation certificates and full transcripts in English for every higher-education qualification, with the grading scale; two academic references on letterhead from people who taught you personally (professional references are not accepted); your passport identity page and your Palestinian or Jerusalem ID; a current CV; and your English score report. Documents not available in English need a copy certified by the Palestinian Ministry of Education plus a certified translation from a licensed translator. Your passport must be valid for at least six months after your studies end. If it expires before December 2028, you will be asked for a new one if you get through Round II.

The limits worth knowing before you apply

You can apply to the IPSP only if you have applied to the Ireland Fellows Programme no more than once before, so an unsuccessful attempt is not free to repeat indefinitely. There is no age limit, and siblings can apply and are assessed separately. The award does not cover dependants: under the programme’s terms, family members get no practical, visa or residency support and cannot get a visa on the basis of their relationship to the scholar. Every successful applicant also signs a commitment to return home within 14 days of completing their studies.

Work experience: not required, but the target is professionals

The eligibility list sets no minimum work experience, unlike the Africa strand of the wider Ireland Fellows Programme. The programme’s own FAQ still describes its target as “early to mid-career professionals” from Palestine with leadership potential, so recent graduates are not excluded, but your references and course choices should make the case for how the degree fits where you are heading.

Support and contact

Office hours are now virtual only: 10-minute appointments every Monday and Thursday from 11:00 to 13:00, booked through the programme page. Enquiries go to Amideast at WestBank@amideast.org or 02-2408023. The Government of Ireland also asks applicants to flag any accessibility needs, for the English test or other parts of the process, and says requesting accommodations will not affect an application.

Ireland-Palestine Scholarship Programme (IPSP)