The Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes funds academically strong, socially engaged students in every field and type of higher education. Recipients study full time in Germany or, under the formal rules, partly or wholly elsewhere in the EU or Switzerland.
The scholarship pairs monthly money with mentoring, an interdisciplinary education programme and support for study-related stays abroad. Most candidates are nominated by a school, university or partner organisation; first- and second-semester undergraduates can also self-apply through a computer-based test.
Benefits & funding
- €300 a month for study costs, for every holder.
- Up to €855 a month for living costs, depending on family finances (financial-support page; the overview page still shows €812).
- Possible health and long-term-care insurance support if not insured through parents; a childcare allowance for holders with children.
- Nothing is repaid.
- University mentors, one- or two-week summer academies and extra support for study, research, internships or language courses abroad.
Eligibility
- Full-time study at a state or state-recognised institution in Germany, or part or all of a degree in another EU state or Switzerland; part-time degrees are not funded.
- One BAföG status route: German citizenship; permanent residence, settlement rights or protected status (e.g. recognised refugees) in Germany; or citizenship of an EU member state or EU candidate country (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, Turkey, Ukraine) while studying long term in Germany for a degree, a route the site has applied to Ukrainian and Moldovan students since June 2022.
- No age limit.
- A first consecutive master’s is generally eligible; a change of field during the master’s excludes funding.
- Self-application: full-time undergraduates in their first or second subject semester only, outside art and design, with no earlier Studienstiftung selection.
Can you apply?
Here's who can apply
Decoded from the official rules. A free account checks them against your passport, degree and age in seconds.
Eligible nationalities
Albania · Austria · Belgium · Bosnia and Herzegovina · Bulgaria · Croatia · Cyprus · Czechia · Denmark · Estonia · Finland · France
+ 24 more
Georgia · Germany · Greece · Hungary · Ireland · Italy · Latvia · Lithuania · Luxembourg · Malta · Moldova · Montenegro · Netherlands · North Macedonia · Poland · Portugal · Romania · Serbia · Slovakia · Slovenia · Spain · Sweden · Türkiye · Ukraine
Education required
High School · Bachelor Enrolled · Bachelor
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We only check the criteria we have data for. Always confirm full eligibility on the official page before applying.
Application process
- 1Be nominated by your school, university or a partner organisation, or self-apply through the computer-based test if you are in your first or second semester.
- 2Self-applicants who score well are emailed instructions to submit an application.
- 3Attend a weekend selection seminar: two separate interviews of about 30 minutes, and group rounds with four or five applicants from other fields, including a short talk you prepare and then moderate.
- 4The selection commission decides using the five published criteria.
Program timeline
self-application test registration opens; exact dates not yet published.
January 2027 (expected)
computer-based test.
Spring 2027
selection seminars.
June–July 2027 (usually)