Madanjeet Singh Scholarship at College of Natural Resources, Bhutan
Fully funded scholarship for one student from each SAARC country (including Pakistan) to pursue a two-year Master's in Natural Resources Management or Conservation Biology at the College of Natural Resources, Royal University of Bhutan, funded through the UNESCO Madanjeet Center for South Asia Forestry Studies.
Quick Facts
Status
Applications OpenFunding
Fully FundedDeadline
Candidate nomination and documents submitted to CNR via SAF Pakistan by early February (Feb 6, 2026 for the July 2026 intake); final committee assessment and online interviews held in late February (Feb 24, 2026 for this cycle)
Country
BhutanAbout the Madanjeet Singh Scholarship at College of Natural Resources, Bhutan
The Madanjeet Singh Scholarship is offered annually by the UNESCO Madanjeet Center for South Asia Forestry Studies (UMCSAFS), housed at the College of Natural Resources (CNR), Royal University of Bhutan, in Lobesa, Punakha. It is one of the very few scholarship routes that brings foreign students, including Pakistanis, to study inside Bhutan rather than sending Bhutanese students abroad. The scholarship was endowed by the late Madanjeet Singh, a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador and founder of the South Asia Foundation (SAF), whose mandate is to build regional cooperation among the eight SAARC nations through shared institutions of higher learning.
Each year, UMCSAFS reserves exactly one scholarship seat per SAARC member country (Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka) for its two-year MSc programmes: MSc in Natural Resources Management and MSc in Conservation Biology. The 2026 cycle covers admission for July 2026 to June 2028. Because only one Pakistani candidate is selected per cycle, the competition within the country is intense but the pool of applicants is generally small compared to larger scholarship programs, since awareness of this route is low among Pakistani students.
The programme is run through Bhutan's SAARC-facing UNESCO chair specifically to train future natural-resource professionals — foresters, ecologists, conservation biologists, and environmental scientists — who can return to their home countries and apply Himalayan-region conservation practices. Bhutan itself is globally recognized for carbon-negative status and strict conservation policy (constitutionally mandated to keep 60% forest cover), so CNR's research environment and field stations offer genuinely specialized training not easily found elsewhere in South Asia.
Selection is coordinated jointly between the South Asia Foundation's national chapter in the applicant's home country (SAF Pakistan) and the College of Natural Resources in Bhutan. A national-level nomination first happens through SAF Pakistan, after which the nominated candidate's documents are forwarded to CNR for review, followed by a joint online interview conducted by a CNR selection committee. Because the process runs through a country-level SAF chapter rather than a direct online portal, applicants should start by contacting South Asia Foundation channels early in the cycle, well before the CNR-side deadline in February.
The scholarship is fully funded for the duration of the two-year Master's: tuition, monthly stipend, book and printing allowance, and a one-time establishment allowance for international scholars are all covered, making it a genuinely accessible route into Bhutanese higher education for a student who might otherwise never consider Bhutan as a study destination.
Eligible Levels
Eligible Fields
Why Choose This Scholarship?
One of the only scholarship pathways that brings a Pakistani student to study inside Bhutan, a destination almost never covered by mainstream study-abroad guidance
Fully funded — tuition, stipend, book allowance, and settling-in allowance are all covered, with no tuition burden on the student or family
Access to a globally distinctive conservation research environment in a country constitutionally committed to environmental protection
Small, low-competition applicant pool since general awareness of this scholarship among Pakistani students is very limited
Backed by a well-established regional institution (South Asia Foundation) with a multi-decade track record of running SAARC scholarship programmes
What the Scholarship Covers
Studying in Bhutan
Bhutan is a small Himalayan kingdom between India and China, globally known for prioritizing Gross National Happiness over GDP growth and for being the world's only carbon-negative country, with a constitutional mandate to maintain at least 60% forest cover permanently. Higher education is centered on the Royal University of Bhutan (RUB), a federated system of colleges across the country; foreign student numbers are small, and most scholarship routes into Bhutan run through bilateral or regional institutional partnerships like this one rather than large national scholarship schemes. English is the medium of instruction at all RUB colleges.
Eligibility Requirements
5 requirements
Documents Checklist
7 documents required
How to Apply - Step by Step
Step 1: Contact the South Asia Foundation's Pakistan chapter (via southasiafoundation.org) to register interest and begin the national nomination process, since only one candidate per country is forwarded to Bhutan.
Step 2: Prepare and submit the BSc transcripts, research proposal, CV, and recommendation letters as required by the SAF Pakistan nomination process.
Step 3: If selected as Pakistan's nominee, SAF Pakistan forwards the candidate's full document set to the Focal Person's office at the College of Natural Resources, Royal University of Bhutan, ahead of the CNR deadline (early February for the July intake).
Step 4: Await the joint committee review at CNR, which evaluates all SAARC nominees' documents in late February.
Step 5: Attend the online interview conducted by the CNR selection committee as part of final candidate assessment.
Step 6: On confirmation of selection, complete visa and enrollment formalities for the July intake and arrange travel to Lobesa, Punakha, Bhutan.
Application Timeline
November-December
SAF Pakistan nomination process opens
Contact South Asia Foundation Pakistan chapter to begin national nomination
Early February (Feb 6, 2026 for July 2026 intake)
Documents due at CNR, Bhutan
Submitted via SAF Pakistan on behalf of the nominated candidate
Late February (Feb 24, 2026 for this cycle)
Joint committee assessment
Late February
Online interviews
Final selection stage
July
Programme intake begins
Two-year MSc runs July to June, two years later
Insider Tips & Pro Tips
Start the SAF Pakistan nomination process early — because only one candidate is forwarded per country, national-level shortlisting can take weeks before documents even reach Bhutan
A strong, specific research proposal in forestry, ecology, or conservation biology significantly strengthens your candidacy at the CNR review stage
Make sure your Bachelor's transcripts clearly show the required 55% per-subject and 60% aggregate minimums, or include an official grading-scale conversion if your university uses a different scale
Reach out directly to the CNR Focal Person's office (via the College of Natural Resources website) to confirm the current cycle's exact deadline, since dates shift slightly year to year
Prepare for the online interview by researching Bhutan's specific conservation policies (60% mandatory forest cover, carbon-negative status) to demonstrate genuine interest in the country's approach
Because this is a single-seat-per-country scholarship, treat the SAF Pakistan nomination stage as the real competitive filter, not just a formality
Important Links & Contacts
🔗 Official Links
RUB International Office
Frequently Asked Questions
5 questions - click any to expand
Yes. Pakistan is a SAARC member and one scholarship seat is reserved for a Pakistani nominee each cycle, selected through the South Asia Foundation's Pakistan chapter.
Yes, it covers tuition, a monthly stipend of Nu. 15,000, an annual book/printing allowance, and a one-time settling-in allowance for international students.
The scholarship funds a two-year MSc in either Natural Resources Management or Conservation Biology at the College of Natural Resources, Royal University of Bhutan.
You must first be nominated through the South Asia Foundation's Pakistan chapter, since only one candidate per SAARC country is forwarded to Bhutan for final selection each cycle.
Bhutan primarily sends its own students abroad rather than funding large intakes of foreign students; direct, verifiable scholarship routes into Bhutan for international students are limited, and this UMCSAFS/SAF programme is one of the few consistently active ones.
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