Major International Fellowships and Scholarships Available to Indian Students

International fellowships and scholarships provide funded pathways for Indian students, researchers, and professionals to pursue higher education abroad. These programs cover tuition fees, living allowances, travel expenses, and health insurance. Administered by foreign governments, global trusts, and multilateral bodies, these awards promote academic excellence, cross-cultural exchange, and collaborative research in diverse disciplines.

Government-Funded International Fellowships

Fulbright-Nehru Fellowships (United States)

• Administered jointly by the United States-India Educational Foundation (USIEF) in India.
• Offers Master’s Fellowships, Doctoral Research Fellowships, Postdoctoral Research Fellowships, and Academic and Professional Excellence Fellowships.
• Covers full tuition fees, living stipend, round-trip economy airfare, and health insurance under the J-1 exchange visitor visa.
• Requires applicants to hold a minimum of three years of full-time professional work experience for master’s programs and a commitment to return to India after completion.

Chevening Scholarships (United Kingdom)

• Funded by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) of the UK government.
• Supports one-year taught master’s degree programs at any recognized UK university.
• Fully covers tuition fees, a monthly living allowance, return airfare, arrival allowances, and UK visa application fees.
• Requires a minimum of two years of work experience (2,800 hours) and an obligation to return to India for at least two years post-study.

Commonwealth Scholarships (United Kingdom)

• Funded by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office for citizens of Commonwealth nations, including India.
• Coordinated in India through the Ministry of Education.
• Covers master’s and PhD programs across engineering, science, agriculture, and social sciences.
• Provides approved tuition and examination fees, monthly living stipends, return flights, and warm clothing allowances.

DAAD Scholarships (Germany)

• Administered by the German Academic Exchange Service (Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst).
• Offers programs like the Helmut-Schmidt-Programme (Master’s in Public Policy and Good Governance) and Development-Related Postgraduate Courses (EPOS).
• Provides monthly living stipends (€934 to €1,300), travel grants, health insurance, and study allowances.
• Most German public universities charge zero tuition fees; the grant primarily covers living and research expenses.

Eiffel Excellence Scholarship Programme (France)

• Launched by the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs.
• Administered by Campus France for master’s and PhD levels in engineering, economics, management, and law.
• Provides monthly allowances (€1,181 for master’s and €1,800 for PhD), international airfare, health insurance, and cultural activity allowances.
• Does not cover university tuition fees directly, though public universities waive state enrollment fees for recipients.

MEXT Scholarships (Japan)

• Funded by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) of the Government of Japan.
• Covers undergraduate, master’s, PhD, and specialized training programs.
• Fully covers university entrance examination fees, tuition fees, monthly stipends, and round-trip airfare.

Australia Awards Scholarships (Australia)

• Administered by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) for long-term postgraduate study.
• Covers full tuition fees, return air travel, establishment allowance, contribution to living expenses, and Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC).
• Requires recipients to return to India for two years after completing their degree.

Institutional and Trust-Based Fellowships

Rhodes Scholarship (University of Oxford)

• Established in 1902 by the will of Cecil John Rhodes; managed by the Rhodes Trust.
• Five scholarships are awarded annually to Indian applicants for postgraduate studies at the University of Oxford.
• Fully covers Oxford University and college fees, an annual living stipend, return airfare, and the UK visa and Immigration Health Surcharge.
• Selection criteria focus on academic excellence, leadership qualities, character, and commitment to public service.

Gates Cambridge Scholarship (University of Cambridge)

• Established in October 2000 through a donation from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to the University of Cambridge.
• Supports postgraduate degrees (PhD and Master’s) for citizens of countries outside the United Kingdom.
• Covers the full cost of studying at Cambridge: University Composition Fee, maintenance allowance, single return airfare, and visa costs.

Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters (European Union)

• Funded under the European Union’s Erasmus+ program.
• Students study in at least two different European countries across participating university consortia.
• The scholarship covers participation costs (tuition, library, and laboratory access), full insurance, travel costs, and a monthly subsistence allowance.

Inlaks Shivdasani Foundation Scholarships

• Administered by the Inlaks Shivdasani Foundation for Indian citizens to study at universities in the UK, the US, and Europe.
• Covers master’s, MPhil, and doctoral programs across arts, humanities, social sciences, and design.
• Provides funding up to $100,000 to cover tuition fees, living expenses, one-way travel, and health insurance.

Knight-Hennessy Scholars (Stanford University)

• Fully endowed graduate fellowship for master’s and doctoral degrees across all seven schools at Stanford University.
• Covers tuition, a living stipend, travel grants, and academic enrichment funding for up to three years.

Comparison of Major International Fellowships

Indian Government-Sponsored International Schemes

National Overseas Scholarship (NOS)

• Administered by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and the Ministry of Tribal Affairs.
• Intended for low-income students belonging to Scheduled Castes (SC), De-notified Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Tribes, Landless Agricultural Labourers, and Traditional Artisans.
• Covers master’s and PhD studies abroad in engineering, management, pure sciences, agricultural sciences, and humanities.
• Family income ceiling is capped at ₹8 lakh per annum.

Dr. Ambedkar Post-Doctoral Fellowship

• Administered under the Dr. Ambedkar Foundation to support overseas research for SC/ST scholars.
• Provides funding for postdoctoral research in social sciences, economics, and law.

Facts

• The Rhodes Scholarship, founded in 1902, is the world’s oldest international graduate scholarship program.
• India has a dedicated constituency of five annual Rhodes Scholarships to the University of Oxford.
• The United States-India Educational Foundation (USIEF) was established on February 2, 1950, through a bilateral treaty signed by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and US Ambassador Loy Henderson.
• Fulbright fellows must fulfill the two-year home-country physical presence requirement under the US Immigration and Nationality Act.
• Chevening Scholarships are named after Chevening House, the official residence of the UK Foreign Secretary in Kent.
• The Erasmus Program was founded in 1987 and named after the Dutch philosopher Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam.
• DAAD is the largest German support organization in the field of international academic cooperation.
• The Gates Cambridge Scholarship was established in 2000 through a $210 million donation from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to the University of Cambridge.
• The National Overseas Scholarship scheme is a central sector scheme funded entirely by the Government of India.
• The Japanese MEXT scholarship allows students to apply either through Embassy recommendation in India or direct University recommendation in Japan.