Top 20 Fully Funded Fellowships for International Students 2026/2027

“Fellowship” is the most flexible word in international education funding. It can mean a full graduate degree paid for at Stanford or Oxford, a ten-month professional programme in the United States with no degree at the end, a journalism residency at Harvard, or a doctoral research award in Canada. What the twenty fellowships in this guide share is the part that matters most to applicants: the funder pays the core costs — tuition or programme fees where a degree is involved, a living stipend, and usually travel — so that selected fellows do not have to fund the opportunity themselves.

This list deliberately mixes degree fellowships (Knight-Hennessy, Rhodes, Gates Cambridge, Schwarzman, Erasmus Mundus, DAAD EPOS, Australia Awards, MEXT, AAUW, Schlumberger Faculty for the Future and Canada’s CGRS-D) with non-degree professional fellowships (Fulbright’s Humphrey programme, Nieman, Knight Science Journalism, Atlantic Fellows, Mandela Washington, Reagan-Fascell and the Obama Foundation Scholars). That mix is intentional: for a mid-career journalist, civil servant or NGO leader, the right fellowship may not be a degree at all, and applying only to degree programmes is a strategic mistake we see applicants repeat every year.

Two honesty notes before the list. First, amounts: where an official figure was verified for the current cycle, we give it — the Rhodes Trust’s 2026–27 stipend, DAAD EPOS rates, and Canada’s CGRS-D value among them. Where a funder sets amounts by country, host or year and had not published a single figure we could verify, we describe the coverage and tell you to check the official site rather than inventing a number. Second, timing: several 2026/2027 deadlines fall in autumn 2026, and at least one major deadline — Knight-Hennessy for the 2027 cohort — closed on 6 October 2026. Each entry tells you where its cycle stands, so you can separate “apply now” from “prepare now for the next round.” For degree scholarships beyond fellowships, browse our scholarships directory; for the institutions behind these awards, see the universities directory and rankings pages.

At a Glance: The 20 Fellowships Compared

The 20 Fellowships in Detail

1. Knight-Hennessy Scholars — Stanford University, USA

Knight-Hennessy is the largest fully endowed university-wide graduate fellowship of its kind: it funds up to three years of any full-time Stanford graduate degree — MA, MS, MBA, JD, MD, MFA, MPP, DMA or PhD — for citizens and residents of all countries. Stanford’s official funding page confirms the package: a fellowship applied directly to tuition and associated fees, a stipend for living and academic expenses (room and board, books, supplies, local transport, reasonable personal expenses), an annual travel stipend for one economy trip to and from Stanford, a one-time relocation stipend, and supplemental academic enrichment funds in years two and three. You apply to Knight-Hennessy and, separately, to your Stanford graduate programme; both decisions are independent. Eligibility requires a bachelor’s degree received in January 2020 or later for the 2027 cohort (January 2018 for applicants with military service). Status check: the 2027-cohort Knight-Hennessy deadline was 6 October 2026, so new applicants are now preparing for the 2028 cohort, whose window has opened in June in recent cycles — verify on the official site.

2. Rhodes Scholarship — University of Oxford, UK

The Rhodes, founded in 1902, remains the benchmark postgraduate fellowship: it funds study at the University of Oxford for applicants from defined Rhodes constituencies around the world, selected on academic achievement, energy, integrity, and leadership. The Rhodes Trust’s official FAQ states the current funding plainly: Oxford course fees are covered, and for 2026–27 the annual stipend is £21,060, paid as £1,755 per month, from which scholars pay all living expenses including accommodation. After selection, the Trust also covers the fee to apply to Oxford, student visa fees and the Immigration Health Surcharge, two economy flights (to the UK at the start and home at the end), and a settling-in allowance. Standard tenure is two years, with doctoral and some other pathways subject to additional conditions. Check your constituency’s age and citizenship rules carefully — they differ by country and are strictly applied — and note that you apply for Rhodes first and to Oxford after selection.

3. Gates Cambridge Scholarship — University of Cambridge, UK

Gates Cambridge, funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, is Cambridge’s counterpart to Rhodes: a full-cost scholarship for outstanding applicants from outside the UK to pursue a full-time postgraduate degree in any subject at Cambridge. The award is designed to cover the full cost of studying — university composition fee, a maintenance allowance for a single student, economy airfare, and visa and health surcharge costs, with additional discretionary elements for dependants and academic development in some cases. Selection weighs outstanding intellectual ability, reasons for choosing the course, commitment to improving the lives of others, and leadership potential. There are two application rounds aligned with Cambridge’s graduate application deadlines (a US round and a main round in autumn), and you apply through Cambridge’s graduate application portal, completing the Gates section. Because the scholarship decision rides on the university application, your course application quality — references, research proposal for PhD applicants — does double duty. Amounts are reviewed annually; confirm the current maintenance figure on the Gates Cambridge site.

4. Schwarzman Scholars — Tsinghua University, China

Schwarzman Scholars is a one-year, fully funded master’s in Global Affairs at Tsinghua University in Beijing, taught in English and designed around leadership, global affairs and China. The funding covers tuition, room and board in Schwarzman College, round-trip travel to Beijing, a stipend for personal expenses, books and supplies, and a laptop. The programme targets young leaders — applicants are typically aged 18 to 28 — with undergraduate degrees completed before enrolment, and it selects a deliberately global class in which Chinese, US and other international students study together. The application includes essays, a leadership résumé, recommendations and a short video, with finalists interviewed. Schwarzman runs on an earlier calendar than most fellowships on this list, with applications generally due in autumn for the following year’s class; check the official admissions page for the current cycle dates before planning around them.

5. Fulbright Foreign Student Program — United States

Fulbright is the world’s best-known exchange programme, and for most international students it means the Foreign Student Program: graduate study (and in some countries, research) in the United States, administered by binational Fulbright commissions or US embassies in more than 155 countries. Funding typically covers tuition, a living stipend, airfare and health insurance, but the exact package, degree levels supported and fields prioritised are set by each country programme — Fulbright in one country may fund master’s degrees only, while another supports PhDs. That country-level variation is why this guide gives no single stipend figure for Fulbright: quoting one would mislead readers in other countries. Applications run through your home-country commission, usually opening in winter and closing in early spring for study beginning the following year. Our dedicated guide to the Fulbright Program explains the structure; your commission’s page is the authority for your cycle.

6. Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship Program — United States (non-degree)

The Humphrey Fellowship is Fulbright’s professional sibling: a ten-month, non-degree programme in the US for mid-career professionals with a record of leadership and public service. Fellows combine graduate-level academic coursework at a US university with professional affiliations — placements with US organisations in their field. Fields range from public policy, law and human rights to public health, education planning, finance and journalism. Funding covers tuition and fees, a living allowance, airfare, insurance and professional development activities. Humphrey is not for fresh graduates: it expects a first university degree, substantial professional experience (typically five years or more), and limited prior US experience. If you are a civil servant, NGO leader or development professional in Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Nepal, Nigeria or Indonesia, this is often the single most relevant US fellowship — and one of the least applied-to relative to its value, because degree-focused applicants overlook it.

7. Chevening Scholarship — United Kingdom

Chevening, the UK government’s global scholarship programme funded by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, funds a one-year taught master’s at any UK university for emerging leaders from more than 160 countries and territories. The award covers tuition fees, a monthly stipend (rates differ inside and outside London and are reviewed annually), economy return travel, arrival and departure allowances, the visa application cost and related items. Eligibility centres on citizenship of a Chevening-eligible country, an undergraduate degree, and at least two years of work experience. For the 2027/28 cycle, applications opened on 4 August 2026 and closed on 6 October 2026, with studies beginning in September/October 2027 — so the current task for new applicants is preparation for the 2028/29 round: choosing three courses, building the leadership and networking evidence Chevening’s essays demand, and securing the unconditional offer that shortlisted candidates must upload by the summer deadline. Full details are in our Chevening Scholarship guide.

8. Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters — European Union

Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters are prestigious master’s programmes delivered by consortia of universities in at least two European countries — you study in multiple countries and receive a joint or multiple degree. Scholarship holders receive €1,400 per month for up to 24 months, an amount defined as covering travel, visa, installation and subsistence costs, and consortia cannot charge scholarship holders tuition or mandatory participation costs; under the current Erasmus+ Programme Guide, selected projects also cannot charge application fees. You apply directly to the consortium running the programme you want — there is no central Erasmus application — and most programmes accept applications between October and January for the following academic year. You may apply to several programmes (commonly up to three per cycle in practice across consortia — verify each consortium’s rule). Deadlines for 2027 entry are falling between December 2026 and January 2027 right now, making this the most time-sensitive degree fellowship on this list. See our Erasmus Mundus guide for programme-finding strategy.

9. DAAD EPOS — Germany

DAAD’s EPOS programme (Development-Related Postgraduate Courses) funds master’s and doctoral study on a defined list of English-taught, development-focused courses at German universities, for professionals from developing and emerging countries. 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 in current calls, plus travel allowances, insurance, and in some cases rent and family supplements. EPOS is experience-gated: for a master’s, you generally need a bachelor’s completed within the last six years and at least two years of relevant professional experience after the degree. Each course sets its own deadline, many falling between August and October for the following year, and you apply to the course, not to a central DAAD portal. Because German public universities charge little or no tuition on these courses, the EPOS package functions as genuinely full funding. Our DAAD Scholarship guide covers the wider DAAD family, including research grants.

10. Australia Awards Scholarships — Australia

Australia Awards are the Australian Government’s flagship long-term awards for citizens of partner countries — heavily represented across the Indo-Pacific, including Bangladesh, Indonesia, Nepal and Pakistan, with country lists set per round. They fund full-time undergraduate or postgraduate study at Australian universities and TAFE institutions, covering full tuition fees, a living allowance, establishment allowance, return air travel, overseas student health cover and preparatory support such as introductory academic programmes. In return, scholars are expected to return home for at least two years after completing their studies to apply their skills. Applications are country-specific, generally opening in February and closing around April/May each year for study starting the following year, and each country programme publishes its own priority fields (often aligned to development needs — health, education, agriculture, governance). Check your country page on the Australia Awards site; eligibility and fields from a neighbouring country’s page do not transfer. See also our Australia Awards guide.

11. MEXT Scholarship — Japan

MEXT, the Japanese Government (Monbukagakusho) Scholarship, funds undergraduate, master’s, doctoral and other categories of study at Japanese universities through two routes: embassy recommendation (you apply via the Japanese embassy in your country) and university recommendation (a Japanese university nominates you). The package exempts tuition, pays a monthly stipend that varies by level (research students have received around ¥144,000 per month in recent guidance), and provides round-trip economy airfare. Japanese embassies state explicitly that no application fee is charged for MEXT, and warn that anyone demanding a fee or deposit has no connection to the programme. Embassy-track applications for an April/October start typically run in spring of the preceding year, with written exams and interviews for many categories. MEXT’s breadth — it is one of the few major schemes funding full bachelor’s degrees as well as research degrees — makes it a first-choice application for school-leavers and postgraduates alike. Details are in our MEXT Scholarship guide.

12. AAUW International Fellowships — United States (women)

The American Association of University Women (AAUW) has awarded International Fellowships since 1917 to women who are not US citizens or permanent residents, for full-time graduate or postdoctoral study and research in the United States. Awards are made across master’s/first professional degrees, doctoral study and postdoctoral research, with amounts set per category in each year’s call — check the current call for the figures and the application window, which has typically run from autumn to a late-autumn/early-winter deadline in recent cycles. A meaningful share of fellows study at institutions across the US, and AAUW expects fellows to have a plan for contributing to the advancement of women and girls, in their home country or globally. Because AAUW funds study at any accredited US institution rather than one host university, it pairs naturally with university admission and departmental funding offers — applicants often combine it with assistantships in later years.

13. Atlantic Fellows — global programmes hosted including at LSE, UK

Atlantic Fellows is a family of funded fellowship programmes built around equity — in health, social policy, brain health and racial equity — hosted by institutions including the London School of Economics (Atlantic Fellows for Social and Economic Equity) and partners in other regions. Depending on the programme, fellows complete a funded master’s, a non-degree fellowship year, or a combination, joining a lifelong global community of practitioners. Funding typically covers programme fees or tuition and a living stipend for residential periods, but structures differ substantially between the Atlantic programmes, so treat each programme’s page as a separate fellowship that happens to share a name and a community. The common thread is the applicant: practitioners, activists, policy-makers and community leaders whose work addresses inequality, often without conventional academic profiles. If your record is strong in practice but unconventional on paper, read these programmes closely.

14. Nieman Fellowship — Harvard University, USA (journalists)

The Nieman Foundation at Harvard offers one of journalism’s most prestigious fellowships: an academic year at Harvard for mid-career journalists to audit classes, attend seminars and pursue a study plan, alongside a cohort of US and international fellows. International Nieman Fellowships provide a stipend intended to cover living costs during the fellowship year, with the foundation’s published terms setting the current amounts and any housing-related support — verify the figures for your cycle on the Nieman site, as they are updated periodically. Eligibility is experience-based: applicants are working journalists with at least five years of professional experience in news media, including freelancers who can document that record. English proficiency strong enough for university coursework is essential. Nieman is the clearest illustration of this list’s central point: for an established journalist, a funded non-degree year at Harvard can be worth more, professionally, than another degree.

15. Schlumberger Foundation Faculty for the Future — global (women in STEM)

Faculty for the Future, run by the Schlumberger Foundation, supports women from developing and emerging economies pursuing PhD or postdoctoral research in science, technology, engineering and mathematics at top universities abroad. Grants are calculated on actual costs — tuition and university fees, living costs, travel and related items — up to a maximum set per level in the current call, and are renewable annually based on satisfactory progress, which makes the fellowship suitable for the full length of a doctorate rather than a single year. The programme’s long-term aim is explicit: fellows are expected to return to their home countries and build academic and research capacity, particularly as role models and faculty in STEM. Applications are submitted online in an autumn window in recent cycles. Women scientists from Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Nepal, Nigeria and Indonesia have a strong fit for this fellowship — and it is far less widely known than the general scholarships, which keeps its applicant pool focused.

16. Obama Foundation Scholars — Columbia University, USA

The Obama Foundation Scholars programme at Columbia University brings rising leaders from around the world to Columbia for graduate study combined with Obama Foundation leadership programming. The programme has evolved across cohorts — including its structure and the degrees supported — so this guide deliberately describes it in terms of fit rather than fixed figures: it targets applicants with a demonstrated commitment to public service and community impact who are at a pivotal point in their careers, and the funding package is published per cohort on the programme’s official pages. If you are considering it, verify three things in the current call: which Columbia degrees are eligible, what the funding covers, and the application deadlines for both the scholarship and the university. Alumni outcomes emphasise public-interest leadership rather than academia, which should shape how you frame your application essays.

17. Mandela Washington Fellowship — United States (young African leaders)

The Mandela Washington Fellowship, the flagship of the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI), brings young African leaders aged 25 to 35 to the United States for a six-week Leadership Institute at a US university, in tracks covering business, civic engagement and public management. It is fully funded: visa support, round-trip travel, the institute programme, housing and meals are covered, and fellows may also access follow-on opportunities including professional development experiences. Eligibility is citizenship-based (citizens of sub-Saharan African countries listed for the cycle), age-based, and experience-based — applicants must not be US citizens or permanent residents, and alumni of the fellowship cannot reapply. The fellowship suits NGO founders, public servants and entrepreneurs whose next step is network and leadership capital rather than a credential. Applications typically open in late summer/autumn; confirm the current window and country list on the official YALI pages.

18. Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellowship — Washington DC, USA (non-degree)

Hosted by the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), the Reagan-Fascell programme is a five-month residential fellowship in Washington DC for democracy practitioners, journalists, civil-society leaders and scholars from around the world. Fellows pursue an independent project — research, writing, or planning an initiative — with office space, research support and a monthly fellowship stipend intended to cover living costs, plus travel support under the programme’s terms. Two cohorts run each year (autumn and spring), with applications due months in advance. The fit is specific and valuable: if your work concerns democratic development, media freedom, human rights or governance reform, this fellowship funds five months of writing, networking in Washington’s policy community and project design that few degree programmes can match. English proficiency sufficient for research and presentation is required.

19. Knight Science Journalism Fellowship — MIT, USA (journalists)

The Knight Science Journalism Program at MIT hosts mid-career science, technology, health and environment journalists from around the world for an academic year of study, seminars, field trips and independent projects in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Fellows receive a stipend and support under terms published per cycle — check the programme site for the current stipend and what it includes, as these are revised periodically. Applicants typically need at least three years of professional journalism experience with a substantial science-journalism component (staff or documented freelance work). Like Nieman, this is a career fellowship, not a degree route: its value is the cohort, the MIT and Harvard academic environment, and the time to build expertise and a major project. Journalists who cover science part-time should document the volume and depth of that work carefully in the application.

20. Canada Graduate Research Scholarship – Doctoral (CGRS-D) — Canada

This entry carries an important correction to older advice. The Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships, long listed among the world’s top doctoral fellowships, have been discontinued — do not build an application plan around Vanier. The successor doctoral award in Canada’s reformed federal scholarship architecture is the Canada Graduate Research Scholarship – Doctoral (CGRS-D), valued at CAD 40,000 per year for 36 months, administered through Canada’s federal granting agencies and held at Canadian institutions. Doctoral funding in Canada is applied for through your institution and the relevant agency competition, and citizenship and eligibility rules are set in the current call — read them carefully, because the reformed programmes’ eligibility categories differ from Vanier’s and are not interchangeable. For most international doctoral applicants, the practical Canadian strategy combines a CGRS-D application where eligible with university funding packages (assistantships and institutional awards), assessed offer by offer. Use our tools directory — including cost-of-living and deadline tracking — to compare Canadian offers against DAAD, MEXT and Australian packages on equal terms.

Eligibility: Reading the Patterns Across All 20

Five eligibility gates decide almost every fellowship application. Citizenship and constituency: Rhodes is constituency-based, Australia Awards and Mandela Washington are country-list-based, AAUW and Schlumberger are for women, and Knight-Hennessy and Erasmus Mundus are genuinely global. Career stage: Humphrey, Nieman and Knight Science Journalism require years of professional experience and are closed in practice to new graduates, while Chevening requires two years of work experience and EPOS requires relevant post-degree experience. Degree status: degree fellowships require admission to the host institution as a parallel process — you can win the funding and still need the university offer, or hold the offer and miss the funding; plan both tracks together using the study abroad hub. Academic record: research degrees (Gates Cambridge, CGRS-D) weigh research potential and references most heavily. Return obligations: Australia Awards requires scholars to leave Australia for two years after study, Chevening expects scholars to return home, and several government schemes carry similar conditions — read them before you sign, not after.

How to Apply: Step by Step

1. Classify your goal first. Degree, professional year, or short institute? This single decision eliminates half the list and focuses your year.
2. Check the citizenship and stage gates. Verify constituency, age, gender-specific and experience requirements on the official call before writing anything.
3. Map both deadlines. For degree fellowships, record the fellowship deadline and the university application deadline separately — Knight-Hennessy and Gates Cambridge both work this way — in a tracker such as our deadline tools.
4. Start the university application in parallel. Transcripts, references and, for research degrees, a proposal and supervisor contact take months, not weeks.
5. Write to the funder’s criteria, not your CV. Chevening scores leadership and networking essays; Gates Cambridge scores four stated criteria; Humphrey scores leadership and public-service commitment. Mirror the published criteria with concrete evidence.
6. Brief your referees early. Give each referee the criteria, your draft statement and the deadline at least a month ahead; confirm submission, do not assume it.
7. Submit before the final 48 hours. Major portals (Chevening’s system closed at a fixed UTC hour for 2027/28) do not grant extensions for technical problems.
8. Prepare for interviews from the day you submit. Most of these fellowships interview — in person at embassies (Chevening, Fulbright), by panel (Rhodes), or online. Rehearse your project story against the funder’s criteria.

Required Documents

The standard fellowship file contains: passport or national ID; degree certificates and transcripts (with certified translations where required); two or three references — academic for research degrees, professional or mixed for leadership fellowships; a CV that foregrounds leadership and impact, not just duties; essays or a statement of purpose written to the funder’s criteria; a research proposal for doctoral and research fellowships; proof of English proficiency where the university (not usually the funder) requires it; and, at later stages, university offer letters, medical certificates and police or visa documents depending on the scheme. Government schemes add country-specific forms — MEXT’s embassy track, for example, has its own application forms, health certificate format and placement preference form, available from your embassy, such as the Embassy of Japan’s MEXT pages. Build the core file once, in autumn, and adapt it per fellowship rather than rebuilding it twenty times.

Deadlines and Timeline Table

The practical reading of this table: autumn is fellowship season. If you are starting in October 2026, your live options are Erasmus Mundus, EPOS courses with later deadlines, the autumn fellowship windows, and Reagan-Fascell — while your highest-value activity for Knight-Hennessy, Chevening, Fulbright and Australia Awards is structured preparation for the next round. Students who also want a no-fee application strategy should read our companion guide to fully funded scholarships without an application fee, and summer applicants our funded summer schools list.

How to Improve Your Chances

Fellowship selection is criteria-matching at scale. First, apply where your profile is the intended profile: a mid-career public servant is a strong Humphrey candidate and a weak Knight-Hennessy one; a final-year undergraduate is the reverse. Second, quantify impact — people reached, budgets managed, policies changed, papers published — because panels compare evidence, not adjectives. Third, make the fellowship necessary: explain what this specific programme, host and year unlock that your current path cannot. Fourth, for degree fellowships, strengthen the university side — supervisor fit and references decide research fellowships as much as essays do. Fifth, use the alumni and scholar profiles funders publish to calibrate your essays’ level of specificity. Finally, apply to a portfolio: two or three fellowships whose criteria your record genuinely matches, sequenced across the autumn–spring calendar, will outperform a scattershot twenty.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Applying to discontinued programmes. Vanier Canada no longer exists — its successor is CGRS-D. Always check that a fellowship still runs before investing weeks in it.
• Missing the second deadline. Winning a fellowship application while missing the university’s own deadline (or vice versa) is the most common unforced error in degree fellowships.
• Treating non-degree fellowships as consolation prizes. Humphrey, Nieman and Reagan-Fascell are senior-career instruments with their own prestige; applying with a degree-seeker’s framing fails their criteria.
• Ignoring return-home conditions. Several government fellowships expect or require you to return home; discovering this after selection creates real personal and legal problems.
• Reusing one essay everywhere. Funders publish different criteria precisely because they fund different things. Panels can tell.
• Quoting stipend figures from old blog posts. Rates are reviewed annually (Rhodes publishes its figure each year); budget from the current official call only.
• Starting references in deadline week. Senior referees — the kind these fellowships expect — are the least available people in your network. Ask early.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between a fellowship and a scholarship?

In practice, the terms overlap. Scholarships usually mean funding for a degree; fellowships include degree funding (Knight-Hennessy, Rhodes) and funded non-degree programmes for professionals (Humphrey, Nieman, Reagan-Fascell). Always read what a specific programme funds rather than relying on its label.

Which fellowships on this list do not require work experience?

The degree fellowships aimed at recent graduates: Knight-Hennessy (with its recent-degree rule), Rhodes, Gates Cambridge, Schwarzman, Erasmus Mundus and MEXT. Chevening requires at least two years of work experience, EPOS requires relevant post-degree experience, and Humphrey, Nieman and Knight Science Journalism are mid-career programmes.

Can I hold two fellowships at once?

Generally no for major awards covering the same costs — funders prohibit double-funding of the same expenses, and Rhodes, for example, restricts holding other substantive scholarships. Small supplementary grants are sometimes allowed with disclosure. Declare offers to both funders and follow their rulings.

Are these fellowships open to students from Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Nepal, Nigeria and Indonesia?

Most are, with scheme-specific country rules: Chevening, Fulbright, Australia Awards and MEXT operate country programmes or embassy routes in these countries; Erasmus Mundus, Knight-Hennessy and Schlumberger are open regardless of nationality; Mandela Washington is for sub-Saharan African citizens; and constituency or partner-country lists (Rhodes, Australia Awards) must be checked for your specific country.

Do fellowships cover dependants?

Usually not, or only partially. Rhodes states its stipend is for one person only. Some schemes offer limited family supplements (DAAD in some programmes, Gates Cambridge discretionary elements). If you plan to bring family, budget separately and confirm the visa rules for dependants in the host country.

Is the Vanier Scholarship still available?

No. Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships have been discontinued. The successor federal doctoral award is the Canada Graduate Research Scholarship – Doctoral (CGRS-D) at CAD 40,000 per year for 36 months, with eligibility set in its current call.

When should I start preparing?

Six to nine months before your target deadlines. Autumn deadlines (Knight-Hennessy, Chevening, Gates Cambridge) need university applications, references and essays built over the preceding spring and summer. Starting in the deadline month is the single strongest predictor of a weak application.

Do I need IELTS or TOEFL for these fellowships?

The funders themselves rarely set language-test requirements; universities do, as part of admission. Erasmus Mundus consortia set their own language rules per programme. Check the university or consortium requirement for your specific course, and note that interviews and coursework are conducted in English (or the programme’s language) regardless.

Sources & Verification

Details in this article were checked in October 2026 against official or institutional sources, including: Knight-Hennessy Scholars at Stanford — official funding page (tuition fellowship, living stipend, travel and relocation stipends, three-year funding); Rhodes Trust — official FAQ (2026–27 stipend of £21,060 per year, coverage of Oxford application fee, visa, health surcharge, flights and settling-in allowance); DAAD EPOS published rates (€992 per month master’s; €1,300 doctoral, rising to €1,400 from February 2026 — as codified in StudyGraduate’s verified fact base); Erasmus+ Programme Guide reporting (€1,400 per month for Erasmus Mundus scholarship holders; no tuition or application fees charged to scholars by selected projects); Chevening’s official 2027/28 timeline (applications 4 August–6 October 2026); Japanese embassy MEXT pages (no application fee is charged); and Canadian federal programme information on the discontinuation of Vanier and the CGRS-D value of CAD 40,000 per year for 36 months. Where a funder had not published a single verifiable figure, this guide describes coverage qualitatively and directs readers to the official call.

Disclaimer: Fellowship details, amounts and deadlines change yearly. Always confirm deadlines, amounts, eligibility and coverage on the official programme website before applying. StudyGraduate is an information portal, not an agency, and cannot guarantee selection, admission or visa approval for any programme listed.