Fully funded scholarships in Europe for international students 2026-2027

Fully funded scholarships in Europe for international students, 2026-2027. Best Scholarships to Study in Europe 2026–2027 (Fully Funded & Government-Backed). Europe remains one of the most realistic places for an international student to fund an entire degree without going into debt. Between the European Commission’s own Erasmus Mundus program and a long list of national government scholarships, scholarships to study in Europe cover everything from tuition-free German public universities to fully funded UK master’s degrees with a monthly stipend attached.

The catch is that “Europe” isn’t one scholarship system—it’s roughly 30 different ones, each with its own deadline, funding level, and eligibility rules. This guide pulls the major routes into one place so you can figure out which door to knock on first.

Best Scholarships to Study in Europe for International Students 2026–2027-Fully funded scholarships in Europe for international students 2026-2027

Before picking a country, it helps to separate the two broad categories of scholarships in Europe. The first is pan-European: Erasmus Mundus, funded directly by the European Commission, which places you across multiple universities in multiple countries on a single joint degree. The second is national: individual government scholarships like DAAD (Germany), Chevening (UK), or the Eiffel Excellence Scholarship (France), each tied to that country’s own ministry of education or foreign affairs.

Most students end up applying to a mix of both—an Erasmus Mundus program as a first choice, backed up by two or three national government scholarships as parallel applications, since nothing here stops you from applying to multiple routes at once.

Erasmus Mundus Joint Master’s Scholarships (Study Anywhere in Europe)

Erasmus Mundus is the flagship EU-funded program, and it works differently from a typical national scholarship. Instead of enrolling at one university, you join a joint master’s degree run by a consortium of at least three institutions across three different countries, studying at two or more of them during the program and earning a joint, double, or multiple degrees at the end.

Scholarships under Erasmus Mundus cover full tuition, a monthly stipend of around €1,400, travel and installation allowances, and insurance—for up to 24 months. The catalogue lists over 100 active programs across nearly every field, from engineering and public health to human rights and journalism.

Deadlines aren’t uniform: some programs close as early as November, and others run into January or February for a September start the following year. Note also that funding availability varies by consortium and by year—some individual programs (for example, certain security studies and cultural heritage tracks) have gone without EU scholarship funding for specific intakes, so always check the specific program’s current funding status rather than assuming the whole Erasmus Mundus brand guarantees a scholarship.

Fully Funded vs Partial Scholarships in Europe

Not every scholarship in Europe means “free education.” A genuinely fully funded scholarship covers tuition, a living stipend, and health insurance — that’s the standard for Erasmus Mundus, DAAD Study Scholarships, and Chevening. A partial scholarship, more common at the university level (individual UK universities, Italian regional grants, and French Idex awards), covers only a portion of tuition with no stipend attached.

Germany adds a third option that’s easy to miss: most public universities are already tuition-free regardless of scholarship status, so even without a stipend, an international student there mainly needs to cover roughly €992/month in living costs, which can be met through a blocked account, part-time work, or a smaller scholarship layered on top.

Germany: DAAD and Political Foundation Scholarships

DAAD, the German Academic Exchange Service, is the single largest funder of international scholars in Europe, running dozens of programs across bachelor’s, master’s, PhD, and research-grant levels. The flagship Study Scholarship pays roughly €934/month plus health insurance and a study allowance, while the EPOS program targets professionals from developing countries with at least two years of work experience.

Beyond DAAD, Germany’s political foundations—Heinrich Böll, Friedrich Ebert, Konrad Adenauer, Rosa Luxemburg, and Friedrich Naumann—each fund international students aligned with their respective political traditions, typically requiring German proficiency at the B2 level and paying €934–€1,400/month. The Deutschlandstipendium is a smaller but broader option (€300/month, open to all nationalities, applied for directly through your German university rather than centrally).

Deadlines: DAAD’s postgraduate and continuing-education courses close September 23, 2026; doctoral and postdoctoral research grants close August 31, 2026. Full master’s-level study scholarships typically follow an October–December window—confirm exact 2026 dates on the DAAD database for your subject.

United Kingdom: Chevening, GREAT, and Commonwealth Scholarships

The UK government runs three major scholarship routes. Chevening is the most prestigious—a fully funded, one-year master’s degree covering tuition, a monthly stipend of roughly £1,347, and travel costs, aimed specifically at applicants with at least 2,800 hours of professional experience and demonstrated leadership potential. GREAT Scholarships offer partial to full funding at specific UK universities for students from around 18 eligible countries. Commonwealth Scholarships target talented applicants from Commonwealth countries with the potential for global impact.

Beyond these three, individual UK universities run their own merit, subject-specific, sanctuary, and disability scholarships, which are worth checking directly on each institution’s funding page since they don’t route through a central UK government portal.

Deadlines: Chevening’s 2026–27 cycle closed October 7, 2025. The 2027–28 cycle is expected to open in August 2026, following the standard annual pattern toward an early-October deadline—the exact date hadn’t been confirmed on chevening.org at the time of writing, so bookmark the site and check back.

France: Eiffel Excellence Scholarship

France’s flagship international scholarship is the Eiffel Excellence Scholarship, run by the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs through Campus France. It targets future decision-makers in the private and public sectors, paying €1,200/month at the master’s level and €2,100/month at the PhD level, plus transport, insurance, and housing search support. Tuition fees themselves aren’t covered, though French public universities charge relatively low fees to begin with.

One quirk worth knowing: students can’t apply to Eiffel directly. Applications are submitted by the French higher education institution on the student’s behalf, which means your actual deadline is whatever your target university sets internally — usually several weeks before Campus France’s own cutoff.

Deadlines: the 2026 cycle closed January 8, 2026. Based on the program’s recurring pattern, the next call is expected to open around October 2026, closing in early January 2027.

Netherlands, Hungary, Ireland, and Belgium Government Scholarships

The NL Scholarship (formerly the Holland Scholarship) offers a one-time €5,000 grant for non-EEA students starting a full-time master’s at a participating Dutch institution — useful for offsetting first-year costs, though it doesn’t cover full tuition. Deadlines are set per institution rather than centrally.

Stipendium Hungaricum is Hungary’s flagship route, covering tuition, medical insurance, accommodation, and a monthly stipend for bachelor’s and master’s students from partner countries, with an annual deadline that typically falls in mid-January. Ireland’s Government of Ireland International Education Scholarship (GOI-IES) funds around 60 one-year master’s, PhD, and postgraduate diploma places annually; Belgium’s Master Mind Scholarship, funded by the Flemish Ministry of Education, supports one- to two-year master’s study in the Flemish and Brussels regions.

Other European Government Scholarships (Romania, Turkey, Austria, Switzerland, Czech Republic)

Several smaller but genuinely fully funded routes round out the European picture. Romania’s government scholarship covers bachelor’s, master’s, and PhD study for non-EU applicants, with an annual March deadline. Türkiye Bursları, Turkey’s national scholarship, is one of the largest in the world by volume, covering tuition, accommodation, and a monthly stipend, with applications typically opening in February.

Austria’s government scholarships offer monthly awards of roughly €940 for periods up to four months across all study levels. Switzerland’s Government Excellence Scholarships fund postgraduate researchers and postdoctoral candidates. The Czech Republic funds bachelor’s through doctoral study through its national scholarship program, with Czech as the primary language of instruction for most tracks, alongside region-specific routes like the South Moravian Center for International Mobility for technical and natural science students.

Application Timeline for Europe Scholarships

Most competitive European scholarships want applications 10–18 months before your intended start date. For a September/October 2027 intake, that generally means beginning document preparation, language testing, and university applications by late 2026 at the latest—DAAD’s own guidance suggests starting 12–18 months out, and Chevening applicants are advised to spend three to six months on essays alone before the portal even opens.

Working backward from a fall 2027 start: aim to have English or German test scores finalized by mid-2026, university applications submitted by autumn 2026, and scholarship-specific documents (motivation letters, references, and research proposals) ready well before each individual deadline rather than assembled at the last minute.

Eligibility Criteria and Documents Required

Requirements vary by scholarship, but most European routes ask for the same core set: certified academic transcripts, a bachelor’s or master’s degree relevant to your target program, an English proficiency certificate (IELTS 6.0–6.5 or TOEFL iBT 80–90+ for English-taught programs), a statement of purpose or motivation letter, two to three recommendation letters, an updated CV, and a passport copy. German-taught programs additionally require TestDaF or DSH certification; French-taught programs may require a DELF/DALF equivalent. Development-focused programs like DAAD’s EPOS or Chevening typically require two or more years of relevant professional experience on top of the academic requirements.

Common Mistakes to Avoid When Applying

The most common failure point across European scholarships isn’t a weak academic profile — it’s logistics. Missing a deadline that closes at midnight in a specific European time zone, submitting an incomplete document set, or reusing one generic motivation letter across five different programs are the fastest ways to get screened out before anyone reads your actual application. Equally common: assuming every “European scholarship” is fully funded when many, especially at the university level, cover tuition only and underestimating language requirements until there isn’t enough time left to reach the required test score.

Frequently Asked Questions (Latest Google People Also Ask)

Which European country offers the most scholarships to international students?

Germany funds the largest number of international scholars overall through DAAD’s roughly 100,000 annual awards across dozens of programs, helped by the fact that public universities are already tuition-free. For master’s-level fully funded awards specifically, the UK’s Chevening and the EU’s own Erasmus Mundus program are generally considered the most comprehensive, since both cover tuition, a stipend, and travel costs together.

Can I study in Europe for free as an international student?

Yes, in specific cases. Germany’s public universities charge no tuition at all regardless of scholarship status, so a student covering only living costs can study largely for free. On top of that, fully funded scholarships like Erasmus Mundus, DAAD Study Scholarships, and Chevening cover tuition, a stipend, and insurance together, making the degree cost-free in a fuller sense.

What GPA or academic score is needed for European scholarships?

Most competitive programs look for a GPA equivalent to a German grade of 2.5 or better, roughly a 3.0+ on a US 4.0 scale, or an upper-second-class (2:1) UK honors degree equivalent for Chevening specifically. Final-year grades and academic trajectory tend to matter more than early performance, and a strong upward trend can offset a weaker first year or two.

Do I need to know a European language to get a scholarship?

Not necessarily. Most Erasmus Mundus programs, DAAD’s English-taught tracks, and all UK scholarships operate entirely in English, requiring IELTS or TOEFL rather than a local language certificate. That said, German-taught DAAD programs require TestDaF or DSH-2, and even a basic A1–B1 level of the local language strengthens most applications regardless of the instruction language.

Fully funded scholarships in Austria for international students 2027

When should I start applying for scholarships to study in Europe?

Most major scholarships want applications 10 to 18 months ahead of your intended start date. For a September or October 2027 intake, that means starting language tests, university shortlisting, and document preparation by the second half of 2026, since deadlines for programs like DAAD, Eiffel, and Erasmus Mundus fall between September 2026 and February 2027.

Is Erasmus Mundus the same as a regular university scholarship?

No. Erasmus Mundus is a joint program run by a consortium of at least three universities across three countries, funded directly by the European Commission rather than by a single institution or national government. You study at multiple universities during the degree and receive one joint, double, or multiple degrees at completion, which is structurally different from a national scholarship tied to one country and one university.

Conclusion

Scholarships to study in Europe span EU-funded joint degrees through Erasmus Mundus, tuition-free German public universities backed by DAAD, and fully funded national routes like Chevening and the Eiffel Excellence Scholarship, so the right starting point depends more on your field and target country than on chasing the single “best” award. With DAAD’s research and postgraduate deadlines already open and Chevening, Eiffel, and Erasmus Mundus’s next intakes opening through the rest of 2026, now is a practical time to start building the document set every one of these routes will eventually ask for.

Official Scholarship & University Resources (Future Deadlines Only)

Editorial note: As of July 2026, several 2026 government scholarship cycles across Europe have already closed (Ireland GOI-IES, Azerbaijan, Romania’s spring call, Eiffel 2026, Chevening 2026–27, most Italian regional DSU spring calls). Only opportunities with a confirmed future deadline from an official government, EU, or university source are listed below. Everything else is flagged as “expected” rather than given a fabricated date.

Cycles to watch (not yet open with confirmed dates):

• DAAD Study Scholarships (full master’s degree): The main annual application window typically runs October–December; exact 2026 dates were not yet published across all subject areas at the time of writing—check the DAAD scholarship database directly for your subject.
• Chevening Scholarship (UK): the 2026–27 cycle closed on October 7, 2025. Per Chevening’s UK university partner pages, the 2027–28 cycle is expected to open in August 2026, with a deadline following the standard early-October pattern—the exact date is not yet confirmed on chevening.org.
• Eiffel Excellence Scholarship (France): the 2026 cycle closed January 8, 2026. Based on Campus France’s recurring annual pattern, the next call is expected to open around October 2026, closing in early January 2027—confirm on campusfrance.org once published.
• NL Scholarship / Holland Scholarship (Netherlands): deadlines are set per participating institution rather than centrally; the 2026–2027 round largely opened November 2025 and closed by May 2026. Check studyinnl.org for the 2027–2028 opening.
• Stipendium Hungaricum (Hungary): the annual deadline typically falls in mid-January for the following September intake; check stipendiumhungaricum.hu for the confirmed 2027–28 date.
• Government of Ireland International Education Scholarship (GOI-IES): the 2026 deadline (March 12, 2026) has passed; the next cycle typically opens in December/January.