Study scholarships for STEM disciplines • DAAD

Overview

Eine Druckversion dieser Ausschreibung (PDF) steht Ihnen in den weiteren Registerkarten (z.B. „Bewerbungsvoraussetzungen“) zur Verfügung.

A print version of this announcement (PDF) is available in the further tabs (e.g. “Application requirements”).

Objective

The aim of the scholarship programme is to support the qualification and employability of young academics and future professionals from developing and emerging countries. It offers the opportunity to continue their academic and professional career in innovation-driving STEM fields in Germany with a Master’s degree in mathematics, computer science, natural sciences and engineering.

Who can apply?

The scholarship programme is aimed at high-achieving students from developing and emerging countries who would like to complete a Master’s degree in the STEM subjects at a German university.
You can apply if you have completed your studies with a first degree recognised in Germany (e.g. Bachelor's degree) by the application deadline at the latest.
If you already have a Master's degree, you cannot apply.

What can be funded?

Funding is available for a complete Master's degree (full-time, on-campus) at a state or state-recognised university in Germany in the STEM subjects of mathematics, computer science, natural sciences and engineering.
Interdisciplinary degree programmes must have a designated STEM focus.
It must be a tuition-free Master's degree programme.
Funding for a Master's programme already started in Germany cannot be granted.

Duration of the funding

Funding is provided for 10 months to a maximum of 24 months.
It depends on the standard period of study of the chosen full-time Master's degree programme.
Please state the entire period for which you wish to apply for a scholarship in your application. For example, if you are planning a 2-year degree programme, you must directly indicate two years as the desired scholarship duration in your application.
After the first year of study, your academic achievements will be assessed. If this shows that you will successfully complete your programme within a reasonable period of time, the scholarship will continue as planned.
The scholarship usually begins on 1st October of the following year, or earlier if you take a German language course prior to the study programme.

Value

Under certain circumstances, you can apply for the following additional benefits after start of funding:

• monthly rent subsidy (see important information for scholarship applicants , section F, point 9)
• monthly allowance for accompanying members of family. Please also read our important information for scholarship applicants / section F, point 3
• In case of a disability or chronic illness: on application, a subsidy may be provided for justified additional costs, incurred in Germany due to the disability, that are necessary to realise the project in Germany and that are not covered by a third party; whether and to what extent a subsidy will be paid will be reviewed and determined on an individual basis (see important information for scholarship applicants , section F, point 8)
• reimbursement of carbon offset payments for air travel

To allow you to improve your language skills, the DAAD offers the following benefits on application (only for a funding period of more than six months):

• Payment of course fees for an online language course after receipt of the Scholarship Award Letter
• if necessary: German language course in Germany before the start of the research project; the DAAD decides whether to fund participation and for how long depending on German language skills and project.
• Allowance for a personally chosen German language course during the scholarship period
• Reimbursement of the fee for a TestDaF or DSH test, which you can take either in your home country after you have received your Letter of Award or in Germany during your funding period.

Please note that the DAAD does not cover tuition fees

important information for scholarship applicants

/ section F, point 7).

Selection

Only complete applications with all mandatory documents will be considered. Incomplete applications will be excluded for formal reasons.
A pre-selection will be made based on the submitted application documents. The pre-selected applicants will be invited to a (digital) interview with an independent selection committee of university teachers. The personal interview is a decisive element in assessing the authenticity of the application and the individual qualities of the applicants and evaluating them appropriately.

The selection criteria are are:
Academic qualification

• academic achievements
• course of studies
• knowledge of the language(s) of instruction or working language(s)
• if applicable, relevant internships, work experience

Quality of the study project

• Quality of the study project and of the preparation (preliminary information, choice of degree pro-gramme, host university and establishment of contacts)
• Integration of the project into the academic career path

Potential of the applicant

• Motivation: academic and personal reasons for the stay in Germany, German language skills (if different from the working language);
• Prospects: Significance of the stay in Germany for further academic, professional and personal development.
• Extracurricular commitment: extracurricular knowledge and skills, social commitment.

In addition, the selection committee will give due consideration to aspects of equal opportunities, on which you can provide information in the application form. Examples of ‘special life circumstances’ are

• disability
• chronic or prolonged illness
• raising children
• caring for relatives
• refugee background
• extensive employment required to finance studies.

For further information on the selection procedure, please refer to the

Important Scholarship Information

/ Section E.

Application requirements
What requirements must be met?

What requirements must be met?
Please check if the following criteria are fulfilled:

• As a rule, your university degree should not date back more than 6 years at the time of the ap-plication deadline. Please read our important information for scholarship applicants / Section A, point 2.
• The legal and subject-specific admission requirements for a Master's degree programme in Germany must be fulfilled. Please note that Master's programmes at German universities are gen-erally consecutive. This means that the Master's programme builds on the Bachelor's pro-gramme.
• Please note that you yourself are responsible for ensuring your application for admission to the German university for your chosen study programme is submitted by the due date. It is therefore important that you find out about admission requirements, application and enrolment deadlines at your host university and regulations regarding entry into Germany in good time. If you have not yet received notification of admission at the time of application, you must submit this before the funding period begins. A Scholarship from the DAAD is only valid if you have been admitted to study im a Master’s programme in Germany.
• Your application cannot be considered, if you have been resident in Germany for longer than 15 months at the application deadline.
• You must demonstrate above-average academic performance.

Language skills

The language of instruction for study programmes in Germany is German. In international programmes, the language of instruction is English, or German and English. The language requirements are set out in the admission requirements for the Master's programmes of the universities. Please check whether you fulfil the necessary language requirements.
When you apply to the DAAD for a scholarship, you must provide proof of your current level of proficiency in the language of instruction (German, English, or German and English) in your chosen study pro-gram. You must have already reached at least level B1.

• If the language of instruction is German, the following certificates are usually eligible: TestDaF, DSH, Deutsches Sprachdiplom der Kultusministerkonferenz (DSD), Goethe-Zertifikat, Österreichisches Sprachdiplom, telc Deutsch and onSET Deutsch.
• If the language of instruction is English, the following certificates can be submitted, for example: Cambridge English, Cambridge Business, IELTS, ISE, TOEFL iBT, TOEFL Essentials, TOEIC, PTE Academic and onSET English.

In the section 'Application procedure' under 'Application documents', find out whether specific certification is required for your country of origin.

Application Procedure
Application deadline

Application deadlines are updated annually in the second quarter. In most cases, they are in the same period as the previous year. You can find the current dates here:

Application documents

Certificates, proof of credits, certifications and translations may be scanned in non-certified form and uploaded to the DAAD portal. The DAAD reserves the right to request certified copies of the documents.
Documents to be uploaded to the DAAD portal:

• Online application form
• Full curriculum vitae in tabular form (max. 3 pages)
• letter of motivation, 1 - 3 pages: statement about the academic and personal reasons for the planned study project in Germany. Please also read our important information for scholarship applicants / Section B, Point 1. Upload the letter of motivation under 'study project/motivation' in the DAAD portal.
• Letter of admission to the study programme at the host university in Germany. If you have not yet received notification of admission at the time of application, you must submit this before the funding period begins.
• Form 'Information about your preferred master programmes' , duly completed (you can enter up to 5 Master‘s programmes). Please note that the DAAD does not consider and formally excludes Master's programmes that charge tuition fees. Upload the form under 'course profile' in the DAAD portal.
• Current overview of grades/ transcript of records with individual grades (to be uploaded under 'transcript of records/academic achievements' in the DAAD portal)
• All university degree certificates already obtained, indicating final grade(s) and transcripts with individual grades for all academic years; if you do not yet have your degree certificate, you must submit it prior to the start of the scholarship at the latest. In this case, upload a provisional doc-ument to the portal instead. Please upload your certificate(s) or the preliminary document under 'university degree certificates' in the DAAD portal.
• Certificate of language(s) of instruction of the chosen study programme (should be no older than 2 years), at least level B1. Please refer to 'Application requirements' to find out which certifi-cates can generally be submitted. Please submit certificates via the DAAD portal under 'language certificate', even if the university does not require proof of language skills.
• One recent, supporting letter of recommendation (on a DAAD-form) from a university teacher which provides information about your qualifications. Please regard the instructions given on the tab 'Submitting an application'.
• Passport/national identity card and personal data page of the passport/national identity card and, if applicable, other documents containing information about your identity and your current residence status. For refugees: Refugee ID card and UNHCR registration/official proof of asylum. Please upload in the portal under ‘miscellaneous’.
• Other documents you think might be of relevance to your application (e.g. certificates of employment, proof of extracurricular engagement)

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If you submit documents in your national language, please include German or English translations.

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The application is made online through the DAAD portal.
Please note that the access to the application portal only appears while the current application period is running. After the application deadline has expired, the portal for this programme is not available until the next application period.

Please note

• Your application is only valid if you submit all the required documents to the DAAD portal by the application deadline.
• The DAAD portal closes at 24.00 hrs. (CET or CEST) on the last application day. If possible, please do not send your application on the final date in case technical problems occur.
• Incomplete applications cannot be considered. Applicants are responsible for ensuring that their applications are complete.
• The application documents remain with the DAAD. Data relating to applicants is saved by the DAAD in accordance with the Federal Data Protection Act and with the EU Data Protection Regulation insofar as this data is needed to process the application.

Submitting an application
General information on the application via DAAD portal

Applications for this scholarship programme are possible in the period June until the stated application deadline.
Click on 'Application portal' at the bottom of the page to go to the DAAD portal. There you will be provided with an online application form to enter your application data.

This is what you have to do:

1. Register in the DAAD portal (Read notes about registering in the portal >> )

2. Request recommendation form
You can generate the recommendation form in the DAAD Portal as a writable PDF under 'Request recommendation form'. It can only be generated during the application period. Please send it to your university teacher and ask him or her to complete the form in full. When you have received it back, upload it in the portal under 'Letter of Recommendation'.

3. Applying online in the DAAD portal (Read notes on applying in the portal >> )

• Prepare application documents
• If necessary, translate documents (unless they are already in German or English).
• Scan paper documents and save in PDF format. You can only upload PDF files to the portal.
• Fill out the application form and upload the application documents to the portal in PDF format. Translations, if applicable, should be uploaded together with the document issued in the original language.
• Submit the application online.

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Please note:
If you have any technical questions or problems your local information and advice centres could not help you with, please do not hesitate to contact [email protected] via e-mail.
Please consider possible processing times of your request when you are planning your application.