More study abroad scholarships, continuing the countdown. Every one is a full
scholarship that covers the whole cost — not a fee discount, and not one of the
study abroad programs you pay to join. Open to college students and graduates alike,
with every deadline checked against the awarding body.
#8
Australia Awards Scholarships
Australia
100% of tuition + living costs Undergraduate & Postgraduate
🔒 Opens around February Opens 1 February, closes 30 April
What it pays for
Full tuition
Return economy airfare
Establishment allowance
Fortnightly living allowance
Overseas Student Health Cover
Who it’s for
Citizens of participating developing countries, applying from your own country. You cannot hold Australian residency or be applying for one.
The catch
You must return home within two years of finishing. This is a development programme, not a migration route.
Full tuition + ₩1,000,000 a month Undergraduate, Masters & PhD
🟢 Usually open now Embassy track opens September, university track October
What it pays for
Full tuition
₩1,000,000 monthly stipend for graduate students
One year of Korean language training
Return airfare
Settlement and completion grants
Medical insurance
Who it’s for
You and both your parents must hold non-Korean citizenship. Graduate applicants must be under 40, with a minimum CGPA of 2.64/4.0 (or 2.80/4.3, 2.91/4.5, 3.23/5.0).
The catch
There are two separate tracks — through your embassy or directly through a university — and you may only use one. Pick carefully.
Checked 7 September 2026 against
Study in Korea (NIIED) — GKS.
Deadlines move every cycle — confirm before you rely on a date.
#6
MEXT Japanese Government Scholarship
Japan
Full tuition + ¥143,000–145,000 a month Undergraduate, Masters & PhD
🔒 Opens around May Embassy track opens May–June; university track September–January
What it pays for
Full tuition at any Japanese university
¥143,000–145,000 monthly for research students
¥117,000 monthly for undergraduates
Return airfare
Six months of free Japanese language training
Who it’s for
Citizens of any country with diplomatic relations with Japan. Undergraduate applicants need 12 years of schooling and roughly a 2.3/3.0 GPA.
The catch
A regional supplement of ¥2,000–3,000 applies in some areas. Embassy and university tracks have very different timelines.
🟢 Usually open now Usually closes mid-to-late October for the following September
What it pays for
Full tuition
Monthly living allowance
Return airfare
Arrival and thesis grants
Warm clothing allowance
Who it’s for
Citizens of low and middle income Commonwealth countries, or people granted refugee status there. You need a first degree at 2:1 standard or better.
The catch
You are ineligible if you have studied or worked for a year or more in a high-income country. It is aimed at people who have not already had that chance.
You apply directly to the body giving the money — never through an agent, and
never through us. The usual order catches people out: pick your course first, then
apply for scholarships that fund it. Most fully funded scholarships want proof you have a
university place, or at least an application already in progress.
Start your course applications several months before the scholarship deadline.
Chevening, for instance, wants an unconditional offer in hand by July.
Which scholarships for international students are open right now?
Look at the badge on each card. We work it out from today’s date, so any
scholarship available now is marked open, and a closed one tells you which month it
reopens. Nothing here is a stale list from three years ago.
Is an abroad education scholarship the same as a study abroad scholarship?
Yes — people use both, along with “international scholarship” and
“overseas scholarship”, for the same thing: money from a government, university
or foundation to study outside your own country.
The distinction that actually matters is fully funded versus
partial. A partial award might waive 20% of tuition and leave you to find
rent, flights and the rest. Everything on this page is fully funded.
Which study abroad scholarships are the easiest to win?
None are easy, but some are far less crowded. Erasmus Mundus has no nationality
restriction and dozens of separate programmes, each with its own selection. MEXT and the
Global Korea Scholarship run country quotas, so your competition is other applicants from
your country rather than the whole world.
Gates Cambridge and Rhodes are the opposite — famous, and brutally competitive.
How to apply for a scholarship, step by step
One: shortlist courses you meet the entry requirements for. Two: check which of
the twelve awards funds that country and level. Three: get your references and transcripts
translated early — this is what delays most people. Four: write the application
around what you will do after the degree, not what you have done. Five: submit
well before the deadline, because the portals fall over on the last day.
There are scholarships for students at every level here, but almost all of them assume
you already have a course in mind.
Do I ever have to pay to apply?
No. Every award listed is free to apply for. No legitimate body charges a
processing fee. If anyone asks you for money to “secure” or “guarantee”
a free scholarship to study abroad, it is a scam — walk away and report it.
How to get a scholarship to study abroad when your grades are only average?
Stop applying to the ones that screen on grades alone. Chevening weighs leadership
and career plans heavily. DAAD weighs work experience. The Mastercard Foundation weighs
community service. Australia Awards weighs how your subject helps your home country.
A clear, specific story about what you will do afterwards beats a slightly higher GPA at
most of these.
You have the list. Now what?
A shortlist is the easy half. These are the three things that decide whether you win one.