The Aalto University Excellence Scholarship is a merit-based tuition fee waiver from Aalto University in Finland. A very limited number go to top applicants who would otherwise pay fees for an English-taught bachelor’s or master’s programme.
Applicants opt in on the admission form, and each programme ranks candidates by its own evaluation criteria; a programme may award none. Recipients study at Aalto in Espoo.
Benefits & funding
- Waives the full tuition fee: €12,000–15,000 a year for bachelor’s and €15,000–20,000 for master’s, by field (rates for study rights from 1 August 2025).
- Runs for the target time (3 years bachelor’s, 2 years master’s), continued yearly if full-time study follows the approved study plan.
- Living costs are not covered; budget at least €800 a month.
Eligibility
- Citizens of countries outside the EU, the EEA and Switzerland who are liable to pay tuition fees, applying to an English-taught bachelor’s or master’s programme.
- Not eligible: holders of a Finnish permit that exempts from fees (such as a permanent P or P-EU permit, an EU Blue Card or temporary protection); doctoral and Finnish/Swedish-taught studies carry no fees.
- Applicants admitted from a waiting list cannot receive it; people on EU sanctions lists are excluded.
- Some international joint programmes use their own scholarship schemes.
Application process
- 1Apply for admission in the period: master’s 7 December 2026–5 January 2027 (15:00 UTC+2, up to two study options); English-taught bachelor’s 7–22 January 2027. Non-EU/EEA/Swiss applicants pay a €100 application fee, with no waivers.
- 2Choose the scholarship option on the same form; it cannot be requested after the period.
- 3The decision comes with the admission decision and cannot be appealed.
Program timeline
Master’s application period opens
Dec 7, 2026
Master’s deadline (15:00 UTC+2)
Jan 5, 2027
English-taught bachelor’s deadline
Jan 22, 2027
Master’s results, at the earliest
Mar 30, 2027
2027-08
Studies start (August–September)