Eligibility Criteria

 

Merck Foundation Scholarships are provided to nationals of African Countries, Developing Countries and underserved communities as per the World Human Development Index list of Developing countries. http://hdr.undp.org/en/content/latest-human-development-index-ranking

Merck Foundation Scientific Committee and Scientific Committee of Academic Partners will focus on African countries with a special focus on French-speaking and Portuguese speaking and SIDS (Small Islands Developing State), with the aim to build healthcare capacity and transform patient care in the public sector which are under pressure due to its limited resources.  Therefore, requests from the First Lady office, Ministries of Health (MOH) or Medical Societies are preferable. In case of individual requests, a recommendation letter from MOH or Medical Societies of these countries will be required to indicate your country's gap in a specific specialty and the objective of improving access to equitable and quality patient care in your community is identified and fulfilled. 

Moreover, Merck Foundation Scientific Committee will take in consideration in the selection process the following factors when it is needed:  the Human Development Index, Population and number of eligible applications received from each country and number of scholarships that have been already provided to each country in such specialties.

 

Moreover, Merck Foundation plans to offer English scholarships to candidates applied from French and Portuguese speaking African countries and also to Latin American countries, to give them an equal opportunity to benefit from the online specialty training which is provided only in English. 

 

In case of in-campus Clinical Training Scholarship provided in India, such as Fertility and Embryology Training and Oncology Fellowship, interpreters (French/Portuguese) will be provided to non-English speaking scholars throughout their training program.

 

Ministries of Health and Medical Societies of African and Developing countries can submit requests to: info@merck-foundation.com

 

*Copy of Income proof will be required to support your application– One-month Salary/Pay slip or Salary Statement or 3 months Bank statement.

 

Application deadline for Online Scholarships: 30th June 2026