Fellowships & Scholarships
DAAD Study Scholarship
Deadlines
  • Northeastern: 11/03/2023
  • Fellowship: 11/03/2023
Contact

If you meet the eligibility criteria and are interested in applying for this fellowship, please fill out a preliminary questionnaire. You may contact the office with any questions.

Award Details

Award Website

The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) is the German national agency for the support of international academic cooperation. They are an independent association of the German universities who elect its leadership. They represent the German higher education system abroad, promote Germany as an academic and research destination, and help build ties between institutions around the world. The New York office of the DAAD was founded in 1971 to support academic exchange between the US, Canada, and Germany. The Scholarship provides financial support to over 55,000 individuals per year. The National Deadline varies with each program.

This scholarship is for students entering their final year or those who have received an undergraduate degree in any discipline. This award provides the opportunity to pursue a full Master's degree at a German University or coursework as part of a postgraduate or Master's degree program completed in the home country.

Abroad Award
Term Length: 1 to 2 years
US Citizenship Not Required

  • Students in their last year of undergraduate studies at an accredited US or Canadian university.
  • US or Canadian citizens or permanent residents.
  • Foreign nationals who live in the USA or in Canada by the time of application deadline are eligible, if your last degree was obtained in the US/Canada, or you will have received a degree in the US/Canada before your scholarship starts. All other foreign nationals may need to apply via a different DAAD office.
  • Recent BA/BS or MA/MS graduates who completed their last degree no longer than 6 years ago.
  • US/Canadian students in the first year of a Master’s degree program in Germany may apply to fund their second year.
  • Applicants may not have been living in Germany for more than 15 consecutive months by the time of application deadline.
  • A Master’s degree program in Germany that has already started at the time of the application deadline cannot be funded.

Students must earn admission into the German graduate program they have selected separately.

An independent selection committee consisting of specialist scientists reviews applications.

The Selection criteria are:

Academic qualification

  • Academic achievements
  • School leaving certificate, if applicable
  • Course of studies
  • Knowledge of the language(s) of instruction or working language(s)
  • If applicable, relevant internships, work experience

Quality of the study project

  • Quality of the study project and of the preparation (preliminary information, choice of degree programme, host university and establishment of contacts)
  • Integration of the project into the academic career path

Potential of the applicant

  • Motivation: academic and personal reasons for the stay in Germany, German language skills (if different from the working language);
  • Prospects: Significance of the stay in Germany for further academic, professional and personal development.
  • Extracurricular commitment: extracurricular knowledge and skills, social commitment.
  • Monthly stipend of EUR 934
  • Payments towards health, accident and personal liability insurance cover
  • Travel subsidy, unless these expenses are covered another source of funding.
  • One-off study allowance

Under certain circumstances, you can apply for the following additional benefits after start of funding:

  • Monthly rent subsidy
  • Monthly allowance for accompanying members of family.
  • In the case of a disability or chronic illness: subsidy for additional costs which result from the disability or chronic illness and are not covered by other funding providers.
  • Green Mobility Top Up (Support for climate-friendly travel) or partial reimbursement of carbon offset payments for air travel

To allow you to improve your language skills in preparation for your stay in Germany, the DAAD offers the following benefits:

  • Payment of course fees for an online language course after receipt of the Scholarship Award Letter
  • if necessary: German language course (2, 4 or 6 months) before the start of the study visit in Germany; the DAAD decides whether to fund participation and for how long depending on German language skills and project. Participation in a language course is compulsory if the study programme is taught in German.
  • Allowance for a personally chosen German language course during the scholarship period
  • Reimbursement of the fee for a TestDaF or DSH test, which you can take either in your home country after you have received your Letter of Award or in Germany during your funding period.

Please note that the DAAD does not cover tuition fees

The application procedure occurs online through the DAAD portal. Your reference has to be sent to gradscholar(at)daad.org and by post to the DAAD New York office. See below for more details.

The portal will close automatically at 11 PM Central European Time (5 PM EST/4 PM CST/3 PM MTN/2 PM PST) on the deadline date. Applicants are advised to start the application process at least one week before the closing date.

  • Application documents

    Certificates, proof of credits, certifications and translations may be scanned in non-certified form and uploaded to the DAAD portal. The DAAD reserves the right to request certified copies of the documents.

    Documents to be uploaded to the DAAD portal:

    • Online application form
    • Full curriculum vitae in tabular form (max. 3 pages)
    • Statement about academic and personal reasons for the planned study project in Germany (letter of motivation; 1 – 3 pages). Please also read our important information for scholarship applicants / Section B, Point 1. Please upload the letter of motivation under ‘study project/motivation’ in the DAAD portal.
    • Letter of admission to the study programme at the host university in Germany. If you have not yet received notification of admission at the time of application, you must submit this before the funding period begins.
    • If you are planning to do a second degree or Master’s programme in Germany, you must submit the form ‘Information about your preferred master programmes’. Please upload the form duly completed under ‘course profile’ in the DAAD portal.
    • If you are planning to spend time studying in Germany as part of a second or Master’s degree programme abroad, you must submit proof that credits acquired in Germany will be recognised by your home university.
    • Current overview of grades/ transcript of records with individual grades (to be uploaded under ‘university degree certificates’ in the DAAD portal)
    • University degree certificate indicating final grade(s): the certificate must be subsequently submitted by the time funding starts if you have not yet completed your programme at the time of application. Please upload your certificate under ‘university degree certificates’ in the DAAD portal.
    • Proof of knowledge of language(s) of instruction in the chosen study programme (should be no older than 2 years). Please refer to ‘Application requirements’ to find out which proofs can generally be submitted. Depending on the country, certain proofs may be required, which are listed below, if applicable. Please submit certificates via the DAAD portal even if the university does not require proof of language skills.
    • Other documents you think might be of relevance to your application (e.g. certificates of employment, proof of extracurricular engagementt)
    • All university certificates on all annual examinations with individual grade(s), incl. explanation of grading system.

    If you submit documents in your national language, please include German or English translations.

    To be submitted by post:
    One recent reference from a university teacher which provides information about your qualifications (hand-signed, no digital or scanned signature). Please regard the instructions given on the tab ‘Submitting an application’.
    In a pilot phase the digital submission of references is being tested for some countries. Please note the information given under ‘Application location’.
    The application procedure occurs online through the DAAD portal.
    Please note that the access to the application portal only appears while the current application period is running. After the application deadline has expired, the portal for this programme is not available until the next application period.

    Application location

    Regional Office New York
    German Academic Exchange Service
    871 United Nations Plaza
    10017 New York, N.Y.
    United States of America
    Tel.: +1 (212) /758-3223
    Fax.: +1 (212)/755-5780
    E-Mail.: daad.newyork@daad.de
    WWW.: http://www.daad.org

    Please note

    • Your application is only valid if you submit all the required documents to the DAAD portal on time.
    • For submitting references by post, the postmark date serves as proof that they have been dispatched on time.
    • (If further documents are to be submitted by post, please send them as soon as possible.)
    • The DAAD portal closes at 24.00 hrs. (CET or CEST) on the last application day. If possible, please do not send your application on the final date in case technical problems occur.
    • Incomplete applications cannot be considered. You are responsible for ensuring that your applications are complete.
    • The application documents remain with the DAAD. Your personal data is saved by the DAAD in accordance with the Federal Data Protection Act and with the EU Data Protection Regulation insofar as this data is needed to process the application.

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Interested? Have Questions?

If you meet the eligibility criteria and are interested in a fellowship or opportunity, please fill out a preliminary questionnaire. Contact the office with any questions: