External funding opportunities for postgraduate taught, postgraduate research and post doc researchers are listed below. The Global Opportunities team is not responsible for any external content. 

Fulbright Awards

The Fulbright Awards Programme offers scholarships for academic work in any subject, at any accredited US university. Approximately 20 postgraduate scholarships are offered each year to UK citizens as a contribution toward the first year of postgraduate or doctoral study, or for 'special student research' or 'visiting student research'. Candidates choose and apply to US university departments directly and independently.

Find application details and more information about the Fulbright Awards. 

DAAD - German Academic Exchange Service

DAAD scholarships are available to academic staff and students in Ireland and the United Kingdom for study and research in Germany. Details of the Graduate funding opportunities can be found on the DAAD website. 

Please see the DAAD ‘Short-term Research Grants’ webpage for application deadline information. These grants are for doctoral candidates or early-careers researchers and academics wishing to conduct research stays of up to six months in Germany. More information about application requirements and procedure can be found on the DAAD website: Scholarship Database - DAAD Branch Office in London.

The Association of Commonwealth Universities

Four fully-funded Commonwealth PhD Scholarships are newly available at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore.

The scholarships are available in any research specialism offered by NTU, are open to applicants from any Commonwealth country other than Singapore, and cover full tuition fees, a living allowance and an airfare grant.

For more details, please see the ACU website.

Entente Cordiale scholarships

The Entente Cordiale Scholarship Programme funds around 10 British postgraduate students who want to study in France for up to six months each year.  The awards scheme is funded by the private sector and the French Embassy in London.

Huayu Enrichment Scholarship (HES) 

The Huayu Enrichment Scholarship (HES) is a competitive scholarship programme to help fund UK students on a 3, 6 or 9 months Mandarin language programmes at approved centres in Taiwan. The award scheme is funded by the Taiwan Ministry of Education. 

Chinese Government Scholarship Scheme 

The Chinese Government Scholarship is a scheme for outstanding students that wish to study or conduct research in China, including Postgraduate (Masters and Doctoral students), general scholars and senior scholars. 

MEXT scholarship

Offered by the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, the MEXT scholarship (in Japanese, “Monbukagakusho”), covers admission fees, tuition fees, round trip tickets to/from Japan, and a monthly stipend. This is available to students who are due to graduate from their current academic programme by 25 September 2023. 

MEXT scholarship opportunities at Ritsumeikan University

MEXT scholarship opportunities at Waseda University

MEXT scholarship opportunities for masters program 2024 - IGPAS - Tohoku University

GIST Global Intern Program

The Global Intern Program (GIP) offered by the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST) in South Korea is an opportunity to experience research at GIST by joining a research lab for eight-weeks during the summer to receive valuable training and mentoring from the lab's professor. This internship includes: half of the round trip airfare (up to 1 million KRW), dormitory accommodation, a monthly stipend, and a Korean language course/Korean cultural activities. The dates for 2023 are June 22nd to August 17th. Suitable for both Postgraduate Taught and Postgraduate Research students.

The opportunities listed below may be of interest to you as a University of York graduate. The Global Opportunities team is not responsible for any external content. 

Thouron Award 2024/25

The Thouron Award covers full tuition fees, a stipend, and health insurance for up to two years of postgraduate study at the University of Pennsylvania to as many as 10 final-year students or recent graduates from any university in the United Kingdom.

Students can apply to the majority of full-time degree programmes in Penn’s 12 graduate schools and for those accepted into a PhD programme, Penn typically funds the tuition and fees for the second year. Scholars also receive an annual stipend to cover living costs and to encourage entertainment and travel, which for 2024/2025 is a stipend of $45,000.

To be eligible for the Thouron Award, a U.K. applicant must be: 

• British citizens who normally resides in the United Kingdom
• Have attended U.K. secondary schools
• Graduates of a U.K. university by the summer following their applications
  
  Students have until 1 November 2024 to apply to the award and should apply directly on the Thouron website.

24 MEXT Postgraduate Scholarship

The application window for the 2023 MEXT Postgraduate Scholarship Programme for UK nationals is now closed. The application window for 2024 scholarship is expected to open in April 2023.

This scholarship is tenable for 24 months from April or 18 months from September/October, including six months of Japanese language education, with no prior knowledge of the Japanese language necessary for most subjects. It is offered on an annual basis to those with a minimum of a bachelor's degree, who are under the age of 35 and wish to continue their studies in Japan. Research or study can be undertaken in almost any field so long as it is relevant to a grantee’s field of expertise or previous study, and it is possible to be enrolled onto a Masters/PhD course on this scholarship.

Find out more on the Embassy of Japan website. 

The Chinese University of Hong Kong

The Chinese University of Hong Kong is pleased to launch their flagship “Vice-Chancellor Early Career Professorship Scheme”. Outstanding young talents from around the world are invited to join them as Assistant Professor or Associate Professor. Applicants should be early career academics or researchers, including clinician-scientists, with a PhD or equivalent degree from a reputable institution. Candidates interested in the following four interdisciplinary research areas are especially encouraged to apply, although applications in other fields are also welcome. 

• China: Tradition and Modernity
• Information and Automation Technology
• Innovative Biomedicine
• Environment and Sustainability

Applications closed

Daiwa Scholarships

The Daiwa Scholarship is a unique 19-month programme of language study, work placement and homestay in Japan, following a month of Japanese language tuition in the UK. Daiwa Scholarships offer young and talented UK citizens with strong leadership potential, the opportunity to acquire Japanese language skills, and to access expertise and knowledge relevant to their career goals.

Find more information on the Daiwa Scholarship scheme. 

Email the Foundation for advice about possible applications.

Confucius Institute Scholarship

The Confucius Institute Scholarship provides financial aid for students, scholars and Chinese language teachers worldwide to proceed to a Masters degree in Teaching Chinese to Speakers of Other Languages (MTCSOL) in Chinese universities, or study in such majors as Chinese Language and Literature, Chinese History and Chinese Philosophy.

More application information for Confucius Institute Scholarship. Please let global-opportunities@york.ac.uk know if you apply.

Frank Knox Fellowships

Frank Knox Fellowships were established in 1945 by Mrs Annie Reid Knox as the Frank Knox Memorial to enable students from the UK, along with those from Australia, Canada and New Zealand, to undertake graduate study at Harvard University. Knox had a rich and varied career – as a newspaper publisher, a soldier, a vice-presidential candidate, and as US Secretary of the Navy in the 1940s - and was a highly-regarded politician and businessman. He championed the concept of democracy as government of the people and believed strongly that cross-cultural exchange between Britain and the US was vital for international peace.

In accordance with the Deed of Gift, special regard will be given to personal qualities in the awarding of Frank Knox Fellowships:

“Candidates will be selected on the basis of future promise of leadership. Strength of character, keen mind, a balanced judgement, and devotion to the democratic ideal will be the qualities borne in mind in making the final selection.”

A Knox Fellowship pays full Harvard tuition and mandatory health insurance fees and provides a stipend sufficient to cover the living expenses of a single Fellow for a 10-month academic year. Knox Fellowship funding is guaranteed for up to two years for students in degree programmes requiring more than one year of study. The Committee on General Scholarship, which administers the Fellowship, will consider applications for further funding beyond the second year on a case-by-case basis.

A Knox Fellowship award does not guarantee admission to Harvard. Applicants should therefore submit an admissions application directly with the Harvard Graduate School of their choice. The award of a Knox Fellowship, at interview in January, is contingent upon the applicant gaining admission to the University.

Find out more about the Frank Knox Fellowships and how to apply. 

Kennedy Scholarships

Scholarships are being offered for British graduates to complete a year of postgraduate training at either Harvard or Massachusetts Institute of Technology, tenable across all disciplines for the maximum of one academic year.

Find out more about the Kennedy Scholarships and how to apply. 

BUNAC Educational Scholarships Trust (BEST) Scholarships

The BEST (BUNAC Educational Scholarship Trust) Scholarships offer financial assistance to eligible applicants who are looking to undertake postgraduate study in the USA or Canada. They are funded by the BEST Scholarship Trust which is an independent trust administered by BUNAC on behalf of the BEST trustees.

A number of scholarships are awarded each year from a fund of £60,000 allocated for the BEST Scholarships. 

Candidates must:

• Be UK passport holder
• Be currently, or have been engaged in full-time tertiary education at a university or college of higher education in the United Kingdom
• Have already applied for, but not yet started a postgraduate course in the US or Canada. The postgraduate qualification must be awarded by a US or Canadian institution
• At the judging stage, preference is given to those whose proposed study in North America is likely to do most to further transatlantic understanding and/or to those who are required to go to the US or Canada to do a specific course.

The BEST Scholarships are top-up funds, not the prime source of funding and candidates should be actively looking to secure funding from other sources while in the process of applying to BEST. Candidates cannot already be engaged in their course of study in North America at the time of application although they should be looking to apply to courses in their chosen field.

The closing date for complete applications is 14th March 2024.  Application forms are available online. 

Indonesian Darmasiswa Scholarship Programme

The Ministry of Education and Culture, Republic of Indonesia offers a scholarship of Darmasiswa Programme to foreign students (including students from UK and Ireland) of any major to study in Indonesia for six months or one year.

The main purpose of the Darmasiswa program is to promote and increase the interest in the language and the culture of Indonesia among the youth of others countries. It has also been designed to provide stronger cultural link and understanding among participated countries.

Applications can be made through the Indonesian Embassy Administration Selection by the Ministry of Education and Culture and Ministry of Foreign Affairs Academic Selection by the Ministry of Education and Culture and Directorate General of Higher Education.

For further information, please visit the Indonesian Education Attached website.

Scholarships in Mexico

In the past there have been opportunities for students via of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Mexican Agency for International Development Cooperation (AMEXCID) which offered foreign citizens interested in studying for a specialization, Masters degree or doctorate, conducting graduate-level research, or those taking part in an undergraduate or graduate-level academic mobility programme in Mexico, to participate in the Mexican Government Scholarship Program for International Students.

Find further application information for Scholarships in Mexico. 

Queen Elizabeth Commonwealth Scholarships 

The Queen Elizabeth Commonwealth Scholarships (QECS) offer fully-funded, two-year Masters scholarships to Commonwealth citizens. Through them, successful applicants can travel to a range of countries, where they can study a variety of courses and benefit from the expertise provided by leading universities. Developing new skills, gaining a qualification and experiencing life in another country through a scholarship is of huge benefit both to the individual and their home country. 

Eight fully-funded Masters scholarships are available, hosted by member institutions in nine countries across the Commonwealth including: Fiji, Ghana, Mauritius, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Vanuatu. Further details of the scholarships including eligibility, host universities, and details on how to apply are available on the ACU website.

Applications close on 24th May 2024 at 16:00 (UTC+1).

Tohoku University

Tohoku University are offering an international degree programme, IGPAS (International Graduate Program for Advanced Science) for October 2024 admission.

IGPAS is a graduate degree-seeking programme in English at the Graduate School of Science, Tohoku University, for international students who wish to pursue a Master of Science and/or Doctor of Philosophy (Science) degree in Mathematics, Physics, Astronomy, Geophysics, Chemistry, or Earth Science.