The Faculty of Science at the University of Geneva awards Excellence Master Fellowships to a small group of outstanding students entering one of its master’s programmes. The faculty covers astronomy, biology, chemistry and biochemistry, computer science, mathematics, physics, pharmaceutical sciences, and earth and environmental sciences, and the fellowship follows the holder into whichever of those degrees they are admitted to. Selection is on academic excellence alone: the faculty scholarship commission reads the complete file and looks for applicants who finished among the best of their bachelor year.
Recipients carry no teaching or assistant duties. The 2026 round went to twenty students of roughly fifteen nationalities, from Switzerland and across Europe, Asia and the Americas. The awards are financed by a private Geneva foundation, with one of them funded by the Werner Foundation.
Benefits & funding
- CHF 10,000 to CHF 15,000 per year.
- Granted for one year, then extended for the normal duration of the chosen master’s programme — three or four semesters — if the first semester is passed successfully.
- No teaching or assistant duties are attached to the award.
- Twenty fellowships were granted in the 2026 round.
- The fellowship page describes no support beyond the annual sum; UNIGE registration and living costs in Geneva are not separately addressed.
Eligibility
- Open to students from any university, in any country, who have completed or are completing a bachelor degree with excellent results and are among the best of their year.
- The applicant must meet the admission requirements of the chosen Faculty of Science master’s programme. UNIGE master’s admission requires a degree from a recognised university earned over at least three years, worth at least 180 ECTS credits.
- The applicant must complete the regular UNIGE registration through the Admissions Office. Holders of a foreign qualification register by 28 February for autumn entry and pay a CHF 65 processing fee.
- Students already enrolled in a master’s programme at the Faculty of Science cannot apply.
- No nationality, residency, age, gender or work-experience condition is published.
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.
Education required
Bachelor Enrolled · Bachelor
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Application process
- 1Choose a Faculty of Science master’s programme and check its admission requirements.
- 2Register for that programme through the UNIGE Admissions Office. A personal application link for the fellowship is emailed after registration.
- 3Assemble one PDF file: a scan of the passport or national identity card, a CV of at most two pages, the complete bachelor transcript, a motivation letter describing scientific interests, two reference letters from professors, proof of UNIGE registration, and any GRE or TOEFL results.
- 4Submit through the personal link. The online form opens at the beginning of January each year.
- 5File before the deadline. Incomplete applications are not considered.
- 6The faculty scholarship commission assesses each complete file and publishes the list of recipients.
Program timeline
online fellowship application opens
Beginning of January
fellowship deadline for the 2026 round, and the UNIGE registration deadline for holders of a foreign qualification entering in autumn
Feb 28, 2026
master’s programmes begin
Sep 14, 2026
Beginning of January 2027
next round expected to open, with a deadline expected at the end of February