Fully Funded Scholarships for International Students 2026

A fully funded scholarship covers tuition, living expenses, and usually travel and health insurance. These are not mythical — they are real programmes with thousands of places. The catch: they are competitive, and deadlines come early. Here are 30+ options for 2026, organised by funding country.

Government-funded scholarships (by country)

Germany — DAAD

The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) is the world's largest academic funding organisation. Key programmes:

• DAAD EPOS (Development-Related Postgraduate Courses) — Full scholarship for master's students from developing countries. Covers tuition + €934/month + travel + insurance. Deadline: varies by programme (typically October).
• DAAD Research Grants — For master's thesis research and PhD. 1–10 months. €934/month for master's, €1,300/month for PhD.
• DAAD-WISE — Research internships for Indian students in German labs. 8–12 weeks.

UK — Chevening and Commonwealth

• Chevening Scholarship — Fully funded 1-year master's at any UK university. Covers tuition, living (£1,316–1,558/month), flights, visa. Open to 160+ countries. Deadline: November annually. One of the most prestigious globally.
• Commonwealth Scholarship — Master's and PhD for citizens of Commonwealth countries. Covers tuition, stipend, flights. Apply through your national nominating agency.
• Gates Cambridge Scholarship — Full funding for postgraduate study at Cambridge. Covers tuition, living, flights. Extremely competitive (~4% acceptance).

South Korea — KGSP/GKS

• Korean Government Scholarship Program (KGSP) — Full ride: tuition + ₩900,000/month (~€630) + flights + settlement allowance + 1 year Korean language training. For master's and PhD. Apply through your Korean Embassy or directly to partner universities. Deadline: February–March.

Japan — MEXT

• MEXT (Monbukagakusho) Scholarship — Full funding: tuition + ¥144,000/month (~€890) + flights. For research students (master's/PhD). Apply through the Japanese Embassy in your country. Deadline: April–May. One of the most generous government scholarships globally.

Turkey — Türkiye Scholarships

• Türkiye Scholarships — Full funding: tuition + accommodation + ₺3,500–5,000/month + flights + health insurance + 1 year Turkish language course. 14,000+ places, heavily targeting African students. Deadline: January–February. One of the largest scholarship programmes globally by volume.

Hungary — Stipendium Hungaricum

• Stipendium Hungaricum — Full tuition waiver + accommodation or accommodation contribution + health insurance. 5,000+ places across all fields. Apply through your bilateral agreement — check if your country has a partnership. Deadline: January–February.

France — Eiffel Excellence

• Eiffel Excellence Scholarship — €1,181/month for master's, €1,700/month for PhD + flights + insurance. University must nominate you — apply to participating French universities. Deadline: January (university nomination).

USA — Fulbright

• Fulbright Foreign Student Program — Funding varies by country but can cover tuition, living, flights, and insurance. For master's and PhD. Apply through the Fulbright Commission in your country. Deadline: varies by country (typically February–October).

Australia — Australia Awards

• Australia Awards — Full funding for master's and short courses. Covers tuition, living, flights, health insurance, introductory academic programme. For citizens of participating countries in Asia-Pacific, Africa, and Middle East. Deadline: April–May.

EU-wide scholarships

• Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Degrees — Full scholarship: tuition + €1,400/month + travel + insurance for 2-year joint master's across 2+ European universities. Hundreds of programmes across all fields. Deadline: varies by programme (typically October–January). One of the best-funded master's scholarships available.
• Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) — For PhD researchers. Funded positions at European research institutions.

Deadline calendar

How to maximise your chances

Apply to multiple scholarships simultaneously. Most are compatible with each other (you can apply to Chevening, Erasmus Mundus, and DAAD in the same cycle). Start preparing 12 months before the earliest deadline. Tailor each application — generic SOPs get rejected. Get strong recommendation letters from professors who know your work, not just your grades.