By the Portlio studio · Published · 9 min read
A fully funded scholarship pays for your studies and your life while you study: tuition, a monthly living allowance, and usually health insurance and travel. Many awards called "full" only cover tuition, so the first skill is reading what an award actually pays.
This guide lists the best-known fully funded programs for the 2027 intake, explains who each one is for, and gives a simple way to choose where to spend your application time.
What "fully funded" should include
Before you add a scholarship to your list, check that it pays for each of these, or that you can cover the gap yourself:
- Tuition and compulsory university fees.
- A monthly living allowance (stipend) that matches the cost of living in that city.
- Health insurance, which many countries require for a student visa.
- A return flight, and sometimes a one-time settling-in allowance.
- Visa and application fees, which are rarely covered and worth budgeting for.
"Full tuition scholarship" and "fully funded scholarship" are not the same thing. A full-tuition award can still leave you with living costs of USD 15,000 or more a year, which a visa officer will ask you to prove.
Government scholarships (the most generous)
Governments fund the largest fully funded programs. Each has its own list of eligible countries, so check yours first.
- Fulbright Foreign Student Program (USA): master's and PhD study, run in each country by the U.S. embassy or a Fulbright commission.
- Chevening Scholarships (UK): one-year master's degrees for people with work experience and leadership potential.
- Commonwealth Scholarships (UK): master's and PhD study for citizens of eligible Commonwealth countries, including Bangladesh.
- DAAD scholarships (Germany): many programs for master's, PhD and research stays, including development-related postgraduate courses.
- Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters (Europe): two-year master's degrees across two or more European universities.
- MEXT (Japan), Global Korea Scholarship (South Korea), Türkiye Scholarships and Stipendium Hungaricum (Hungary): bachelor's to PhD, with tuition, a stipend and usually housing support.
- Australia Awards: master's study in Australia for citizens of partner countries in Asia, the Pacific and Africa.
University scholarships
Universities fund students in two main ways. In the U.S., a small group of colleges admit international undergraduates without looking at their ability to pay and then meet 100% of their demonstrated need, which can mean paying nothing. See our guide to full scholarships in the USA.
For master's and PhD study, funding usually comes from the department: research or teaching assistantships that waive tuition and pay a salary. See fully funded PhD positions and master's scholarships.
How to build a shortlist you can actually win
- Filter by eligibility first: your citizenship, degree level, field, age limits and work experience.
- Read last year's winner profiles. If every winner has three years of work experience and you have none, move on.
- Mix two or three highly competitive awards with several less famous ones (university, regional and country-specific scholarships often have far fewer applicants).
- Put every deadline in one calendar. Many 2027 deadlines fall between October 2026 and February 2027.
- Prepare the common pieces once: CV, statement of purpose, references, transcripts and an English test score.
Our step-by-step guide on how to get a fully funded scholarship covers the essays and interviews.
Many scholarships and every student visa end with an interview. Practice answering out loud with Stamplio, then read the written feedback. Try a practice interview
Official sources
- Fulbright Foreign Student Program
- Chevening Scholarships
- Commonwealth Scholarship Commission
- DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service)
- Erasmus Mundus catalogue
Figures, deadlines and eligibility rules were checked in October 2026 and change every year. Confirm everything on the official pages linked here before you apply. Portlio and Stamplio are not affiliated with any scholarship, university, government or embassy.
Frequently asked questions
- What is a fully funded scholarship?
- A scholarship that pays tuition and your living costs, usually with health insurance and travel. A full-tuition scholarship pays only tuition, so you still need to fund your living costs.
- Can I get a fully funded scholarship without IELTS?
- Sometimes. Many universities accept TOEFL, PTE or the Duolingo English Test, and some accept proof that your previous degree was taught in English. Government scholarships often still ask for a test score, so check each program.
- When should I apply for 2027 scholarships?
- Start 12 to 15 months before your course begins. Many deadlines for 2027 entry fall between October 2026 and February 2027.
About this guide. Written by the Portlio studio as general guidance. It isn't any college's requirements and it can't predict an admissions decision, so check each program's current instructions. Last updated .
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