Top 15 Fully Funded Scholarships for Postgraduate Students 2027

Postgraduate study — a master’s degree, a postgraduate diploma, or a research degree that follows your bachelor’s — is where careers change direction. It is also where the bills get serious. Tuition at a leading university abroad can run from €10,000 to more than $60,000 a year before you have paid for a single month of rent. The good news is that governments, universities and foundations run a small set of genuinely fully funded postgraduate scholarships that cover tuition, living costs, flights and insurance together — and every single one of them is open to international students who plan properly and apply on time.

This guide ranks the 15 strongest fully funded options for postgraduate students targeting 2027 entry. “Postgraduate” here means study after a first degree: taught master’s programmes, research master’s, postgraduate diplomas that build toward a master’s, and — where a scheme funds both levels — doctoral study. Each entry below is a real, currently running programme, checked against its official source in October 2026. Where a programme’s coverage has an important limit — most famously the Eiffel Excellence Scholarship in France, which pays a generous monthly allowance but does not pay tuition — we say so plainly, because a scholarship that leaves you with a tuition bill you cannot pay is not fully funded for you, whatever the marketing says.

Read the at-a-glance table first, then work through the ranked profiles. Use our scholarship directory to browse the full list of awards on StudyGraduate, and compare host universities in our university directory before you commit to a country. If your goal is specifically a research doctorate, our companion guide to the top 20 fully funded scholarships for PhD students 2026/2027 goes deeper on doctoral funding.

At a Glance: The 15 Scholarships Compared

A note on the figures in this table: stipend rates are revised regularly, and several programmes set amounts by cycle or by host country. Treat every figure as the last verified official rate and confirm it on the programme’s own website before you budget around it — the Sources & Verification section at the end lists where each figure comes from.

The Ranked List: 15 Fully Funded Postgraduate Scholarships

1. Chevening Scholarship — United Kingdom

Chevening is the UK government’s flagship postgraduate award, funding a one-year taught master’s at any UK university in almost any subject. It pays your full tuition, a monthly stipend set by region (higher in London), an arrival allowance, a homeward departure allowance and an economy return flight. It is aimed squarely at people with leadership potential: you need at least two years of work experience (2,800 hours) and a clear post-study plan to return home for at least two years. The application — four essay questions on leadership, networking and career plan — opens in August and closes in October in most cycles, a full year before you start. Because the degree is one year, Chevening is often the fastest fully funded route to a UK master’s. Read our dedicated Chevening Scholarship guide for the essay-by-essay breakdown, and check the official site at chevening.org.

2. Fulbright Foreign Student Program — United States

Fulbright is the most famous academic exchange programme in the world, and for postgraduates it funds master’s and doctoral study at US universities through country-by-country competitions run by binational commissions and US embassies. A typical award covers tuition, a monthly living stipend, round-trip airfare and health insurance, though the exact package is set by your home-country programme — some countries fund one year with university cost-sharing for the second. There is no single global deadline: most countries open between February and May for study starting the following year. Fulbright alumni networks are a genuine career asset, and the programme carries a two-year home-residency expectation for many participants. Start with our Fulbright Program guide and the official programme site at fulbright.org, which links to every country programme.

3. Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters — Europe

Erasmus Mundus is the postgraduate scholarship with built-in travel: each Joint Master is delivered by a consortium of universities in at least two European countries, and you study in at least two of them. The scholarship covers participation costs (including tuition charged by the consortium) plus a monthly allowance — €1,400 per month for up to 24 months under the current programme generation — and travel and installation are built into that package. You apply directly to each consortium (up to three in most cycles) between roughly October and January, and you do not need a separate university admission first. Competition is intense but the degree — a joint or multiple master’s from two or more European universities — is exceptionally strong on a CV. Our Erasmus Mundus guide explains consortium selection, and you can browse current catalogues via the Erasmus+ programme pages of the European Commission.

4. DAAD EPOS — Germany

Germany charges little or no tuition at public universities, so DAAD funding is mostly about living costs — and the EPOS programme (Development-Related Postgraduate Courses) is the postgraduate route designed for professionals from developing countries. EPOS funds master’s and doctoral candidates on a fixed list of English-taught, development-focused courses. The verified current rates are €992 per month for master’s students and €1,300 per month for doctoral candidates, rising to €1,400 from February 2026, plus travel subsidies, insurance and possible rent and family supplements. You generally need at least two years of relevant professional experience after your bachelor’s. Deadlines are set by each course, not by DAAD centrally, and most fall between August and October. See our DAAD Scholarship guide and the official database at daad.de. If Germany appeals, also budget for the blocked account requirement (€11,904 per year in 2026) if any part of your stay is self-funded.

5. Australia Awards Scholarships — Australia

Australia Awards are the Australian government’s long-running postgraduate awards for partner countries in the Indo-Pacific, Africa and beyond. They are among the most complete packages on this list: full tuition, a living allowance, an establishment allowance, return airfare, overseas student health cover and an introductory academic programme. Most awards are for master’s degrees, and the scheme is explicitly developmental — you must show how your study will contribute to your home country’s development priorities, and you must return home for at least two years after graduating. Applications are country-specific and typically open in February and close in April. Check eligibility for your country first, because the partner-country list decides everything. Our Australia Awards guide walks through the country programmes; for research degrees, note that the separate Research Training Program (RTP) pays a base stipend of AUD 34,315 in 2026 and AUD 35,550 in 2027 and is applied for through universities, not through Australia Awards.

6. Commonwealth Master’s and Shared Scholarships — United Kingdom

The Commonwealth Scholarship Commission runs several UK postgraduate awards for citizens of eligible Commonwealth countries. The Master’s Scholarships suit candidates from least-developed and vulnerable states who could not otherwise afford UK study, while the Shared Scholarships are jointly funded with UK universities for specific development-themed master’s courses. Recent cycles have paid approved tuition, airfare to and from the UK, and a monthly stipend of £1,712, or £2,000 in the London metropolitan area — confirm the current cycle’s rates on the Commission’s site, as these figures are updated. You apply through the Commission’s portal and, for some strands, a nominating agency in your home country. Full details are in our Commonwealth Scholarship guide.

7. MEXT Scholarship — Japan

Japan’s MEXT (Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology) scholarship funds postgraduate “research students” who progress into master’s and doctoral programmes at Japanese national universities. It covers full tuition exemption, a monthly stipend (the exact yen amount is set per fiscal year and student category — check the current application guidelines), a regional supplementary allowance in some areas, and round-trip airfare. There are two routes: embassy recommendation, which opens around April–June in most countries and involves written exams and interviews, and university recommendation for students already connected to a Japanese university. You do not need Japanese to start — six months of preparatory language education is included where needed. Our MEXT Scholarship guide covers both routes and the exam format.

8. Knight-Hennessy Scholars — Stanford University, United States

Knight-Hennessy is a graduate scholarship community at Stanford open to applicants to any full-time Stanford graduate degree — JD, MA, MBA, MFA, MD, DMA and PhD programmes included. Scholars receive funding for up to three years covering tuition and associated fees, a living stipend covering room, board, books, transport and personal expenses, and an economy travel stipend for one annual trip to and from Stanford. You apply to Knight-Hennessy and to your Stanford degree programme separately, on parallel deadlines in the autumn. The programme selects for independence of thought, purposeful leadership and civic mindset rather than test scores alone. Details are in our Knight-Hennessy guide, and Stanford itself regularly appears at the top of global league tables in our rankings section.

9. Rhodes Scholarship — University of Oxford, United Kingdom

The Rhodes, founded in 1902, is the oldest international postgraduate scholarship and still one of the most generous: it covers all Oxford University and college fees, an annual stipend sufficient for living costs in Oxford, the visa and Immigration Health Surcharge fees, and flights to and from Oxford. It funds full-time postgraduate degrees — master’s and DPhil — for two to three years. Eligibility runs through geographic “constituencies” (countries and regions), each with its own deadline, mostly between June and October, and its own age limits, typically requiring you to be under 25–27 at application. Selection looks for academic excellence plus energy to use talents fully, integrity, and leadership. Because constituency rules differ so much, read your own constituency’s page on the Rhodes Trust site before anything else.

10. Gates Cambridge Scholarship — University of Cambridge, United Kingdom

Gates Cambridge funds outstanding applicants from outside the UK to pursue a full-time postgraduate degree — master’s or PhD — in any subject at Cambridge. The award covers the full University Composition Fee, a maintenance allowance for a single student, one economy airfare, and inbound visa and health surcharge costs, with additional discretionary support for dependants and academic development. There are two application rounds aligned with Cambridge’s funding deadlines, in October (for US citizens resident in the USA) and in December/January (for everyone else). You apply through the university’s graduate application portal and complete the Gates Cambridge section; there is no separate form. See our Gates Cambridge guide for the personal statement approach that works.

11. Eiffel Excellence Scholarship — France

Eiffel needs an honest label. Run by the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, it pays a monthly allowance of €1,200 for master’s students and €2,100 for doctoral candidates (doctoral rate from January 2026) for 12–36 months, plus services such as international travel support, insurance and housing assistance. It does not cover tuition fees. In practice, tuition at French public universities is comparatively low and many Eiffel host institutions waive or minimise fees for scholars, so the package can still leave you close to fully funded — but you must confirm the tuition position with your host institution in writing before you rely on it. You cannot apply directly: a French institution must submit your application, with calls typically opening in October and closing in January. Read the implementation details via Campus France before applying.

12. Swedish Institute Scholarship — Sweden

The Swedish Institute Scholarship targets ambitious professionals from a defined list of eligible countries for master’s study in Sweden, with a strong emphasis on sustainability and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. It covers full tuition fees paid directly to the university and a monthly living allowance — the amount is set per cycle, so verify the current figure on the Swedish Institute site — plus a one-off travel grant. You need documented work experience and leadership experience, and the process is two-step: apply for master’s programmes through Sweden’s central admissions between October and mid-January, then apply for the scholarship itself in February. Sweden’s English-taught master’s catalogue is large, and post-study work routes make this a practical as well as prestigious choice.

13. Manaaki New Zealand Scholarships — New Zealand

Manaaki is the New Zealand government’s scholarship programme for students from eligible partner countries, mainly in the Pacific, Asia, Africa, the Caribbean and Latin America. Uniquely on this list, it explicitly spans postgraduate levels from postgraduate certificates and diplomas through to master’s and PhD study, which makes it one of the very few fully funded routes for a postgraduate diploma abroad. The package includes full tuition, a living allowance, an establishment allowance, medical and travel insurance, and return airfare, plus research and thesis support for research postgraduates. Applications typically open in February and close in March for the following year’s intake, and scholars commit to returning home to contribute to their country’s development. Check the eligible-country and eligible-institution lists each cycle, as both change.

14. Türkiye Burslari (Türkiye Scholarships) — Türkiye

Türkiye Scholarships is a government-funded programme covering bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral levels, with a postgraduate package that includes full tuition, a monthly stipend (set per level and revised periodically — check the current cycle’s table), free accommodation, health insurance, a one-off return flight ticket, and a one-year Turkish language course before your degree. Applications run through a single online portal, usually from January to February, and you list university and programme preferences inside the scholarship application itself rather than applying to universities separately. That single-application design makes Türkiye Burslari one of the simplest postgraduate applications on this list — and one of the most subscribed, so your motivation letter and academic record need to be sharp.

15. Chinese Government Scholarship (CSC) — China

The CSC, administered by the China Scholarship Council, funds master’s and doctoral study at hundreds of Chinese universities. The full (Type A, bilateral) award covers tuition, free university dormitory accommodation (or an accommodation subsidy), a monthly stipend set by level, and comprehensive medical insurance. Type B is applied for directly through universities, which nominate candidates. Teaching is available in English on many postgraduate programmes, and a one-year Chinese language preparatory year can be included for Chinese-taught degrees. Application windows run roughly from December to April depending on route. For a full comparison of the Type A and Type B routes, see our guide to the postdoctoral fellowships list for what comes after a CSC doctorate — and browse Chinese universities through our study abroad section.

Eligibility: Who Can Apply for Fully Funded Postgraduate Scholarships?

Although each programme writes its own rules, postgraduate scholarship eligibility almost always combines the same six elements. First, a completed bachelor’s degree (or final-year status) with a strong result — most programmes expect the equivalent of an upper second-class honours or a GPA around 3.0–3.5 and above, and competitive schemes like Rhodes and Gates Cambridge effectively select from first-class records. Second, citizenship and residency rules: government scholarships such as Chevening, Australia Awards, Manaaki and Commonwealth are restricted to named countries, while university-based awards like Knight-Hennessy and Gates Cambridge are open worldwide. Third, work or leadership experience: Chevening requires two years of work experience, DAAD EPOS generally requires two years of relevant professional experience, and the Swedish Institute requires documented work and leadership experience, whereas MEXT and CSC are open to fresh graduates. Fourth, language proficiency: expect IELTS or TOEFL requirements from universities even where the scholarship itself does not test English. Fifth, a return-home commitment: most government awards require you to leave the host country for at least two years after your award. Sixth, age limits where they exist — Rhodes constituencies and Türkiye Burslari (typically under 30 for master’s applicants) are the main ones to check. Read the eligibility page of your target programme before you read anything else; a single mismatch ends an application before a human ever sees your essays.

How to Apply: Step by Step

1. Shortlist by eligibility, not prestige (12–15 months out). Cross off every programme whose citizenship, age, experience or level rules exclude you. A realistic shortlist is three to five programmes.
2. Secure the academic side. Some scholarships need a university offer first (Gates Cambridge, Swedish Institute, DAAD EPOS course admission in parallel); others place you after selection (Türkiye Burslari, MEXT embassy route). Map which model each target uses.
3. Prepare your core documents once. Transcripts, degree certificate, passport, CV, language scores and two strong referees serve almost every application on this list. Order official transcripts early — this is the step that most often causes missed deadlines.
4. Write the essays as leadership documents, not hardship stories. Postgraduate panels fund future contribution: what you will study, why this country and university, and what you will do afterwards. Be specific with names, modules, supervisors and employers.
5. Submit before the deadline week. Portals fail under load every cycle. Aim to submit seven days early, with PDF backups of every confirmation screen.
6. Prepare for interview. Chevening, Fulbright, Rhodes, Australia Awards and MEXT all interview. Rehearse your study rationale and return plan out loud, with examples.
7. Run a parallel self-funded safety plan. Keep at least one affordable application (for example a no-tuition German public university) alive so a scholarship rejection is a delay, not a dead end. Our tools section includes calculators and trackers to manage this properly.

Required Documents Checklist

• Degree certificate and full academic transcripts (with certified translations where required)
• Passport or national ID, valid beyond your intended start date
• Curriculum vitae in the programme’s preferred format (Europass for some European schemes)
• Two academic or professional reference letters, written for the specific programme
• Study plan, research proposal or statement of purpose, tailored per programme
• English proficiency scores (IELTS/TOEFL) where the university requires them
• Work experience letters for Chevening, EPOS and Swedish Institute applications
• Medical certificate and police clearance — usually requested only after selection, but ITEC-style and some embassy routes ask earlier

Deadlines and Timeline

Treat this table as a planning rhythm, not a promise: every programme publishes its own dates per cycle, and several 2027-cycle dates were not yet published when this guide was checked in October 2026. Where a date above describes a typical window, it reflects the most recent completed cycle.

How to Improve Your Chances

Panels read thousands of near-identical applications, so differentiation comes from specificity. Name the exact programme, modules and supervisors; quote a development priority from your country’s national plan if you are applying to a development scholarship; and make your post-study plan concrete enough to include an employer, a sector and a two-year milestone. Referees should be briefed with your draft essays and the programme’s selection criteria — a generic “she was a good student” letter is a wasted slot. Apply to more than one programme where the rules allow it: Erasmus Mundus permits multiple consortium applications, and nothing stops you combining Chevening with Commonwealth Shared in the same season. Finally, protect your eligibility window: several awards are effectively one-shot at a given age or career stage, so spending a year strengthening your record beats spending it on a rushed, weak application.

Common Mistakes That Sink Postgraduate Applications

• Applying to programmes you are ineligible for — wrong citizenship list, wrong level, or a degree result below the stated minimum.
• Copy-pasting one essay everywhere. Panels can tell; Chevening and Fulbright essays must answer their own questions.
• Assuming “fully funded” means zero personal costs. Visa fees, medical checks, document attestation and pre-departure costs are often yours — and Eiffel does not pay tuition at all.
• Missing the two-application trap. Gates Cambridge, Knight-Hennessy and the Swedish Institute each require a separate university application alongside the scholarship one.
• Weak return-home narratives for government awards that legally require you to go home.
• Submitting in the final 48 hours and losing everything to a portal crash or a missing transcript page.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does “postgraduate” mean for these scholarships?

Study after a bachelor’s degree: taught and research master’s, postgraduate diplomas and certificates, and doctoral degrees. On this list, Manaaki New Zealand explicitly funds postgraduate diplomas and certificates; most other programmes fund master’s and PhD study.

Can I apply for fully funded postgraduate scholarships without work experience?

Yes — MEXT, CSC, Erasmus Mundus, Gates Cambridge and Rhodes do not require work experience. Chevening (two years), DAAD EPOS (generally two years of relevant experience) and the Swedish Institute do.

Which postgraduate scholarship is easiest to get?

None is easy, but acceptance rates differ. Large-volume programmes such as CSC, Türkiye Burslari and Erasmus Mundus (across many consortia) fund far more people each year than Rhodes or Gates Cambridge, which fund dozens. Apply across the volume range.

Do fully funded scholarships really cover everything?

The strongest (Chevening, Australia Awards, Manaaki, Fulbright) cover tuition, living costs, flights and insurance. Eiffel is the exception on this list — it pays a monthly allowance but not tuition — and every scholar should budget for visa and document costs personally.

Can I apply to several of these scholarships in the same year?

Generally yes, unless a programme’s terms say otherwise. Many successful scholars hold offers from two or three schemes and choose. You must decline duplicates promptly and never hold two full awards for the same study period.

What GPA do I need for a fully funded postgraduate scholarship?

Most programmes set the floor around a 3.0/4.0 or upper-second equivalent, but funded scholars at the most competitive schemes typically hold first-class or 3.5+ records plus strong essays and references. The floor gets you read; it does not get you funded.

When should I start preparing for 2027 entry?

Now. Chevening’s window for 2027 entry closes in autumn 2026, and Erasmus Mundus, Eiffel and DAAD EPOS deadlines cluster between October 2026 and January 2027. Document preparation alone takes most applicants four to eight weeks.

Are there fully funded scholarships for postgraduate diplomas specifically?

Yes, but they are rarer. Manaaki New Zealand funds postgraduate certificates and diplomas for eligible countries, and some Erasmus Mundus and DAAD EPOS-adjacent routes include diploma-level postgraduate courses. Our diploma-specific guide covers the vocational diploma routes in depth.

Sources & Verification

Programme structures, coverage and rates in this article were checked in October 2026 against the following official sources: Chevening (chevening.org); Fulbright (fulbright.org and country commission guidance); European Commission Erasmus+ programme pages for Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters; DAAD (daad.de) for EPOS rates of €992/month (master’s) and €1,300/month doctoral, rising to €1,400 from February 2026; Australia Awards (australiaawards.gov.au) and Australian Government RTP base rates of AUD 34,315 (2026) and AUD 35,550 (2027); Commonwealth Scholarship Commission guidance (monthly stipend £1,712, or £2,000 in London, as published for recent cycles — verify for the current cycle); MEXT application guidelines via Japanese embassies; Knight-Hennessy Scholars (Stanford University); Rhodes Trust constituency pages; Gates Cambridge Trust; Campus France for Eiffel Excellence (€1,200/month master’s, €2,100/month doctoral from January 2026; tuition not covered); Swedish Institute (si.se); New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade for Manaaki; Türkiye Burslari (turkiyeburslari.gov.tr); China Scholarship Council for CSC coverage.

Disclaimer: Scholarship amounts, deadlines and eligibility rules change every cycle. Always confirm the current figures and dates on the official programme website before applying. StudyGraduate is an independent information portal, not an agency, and cannot guarantee selection, admission or visa approval for any programme listed here.