Scholarships for Pakistani Students: Fully Funded Options Abroad

How to read this list of scholarships for Pakistani students

Every award here is open to international students, which includes Pakistani nationals, unless the listing says otherwise. Read three things before anything else: the degree level, what the award actually pays, and the deadline. A tuition waiver and a full stipend are very different offers, and mixing them up wastes months.

Start with your degree level. Bachelor's awards are few and competitive, master's awards are the largest group, and PhD funding usually comes with a stipend. Then check whether the award is full or partial. A 50% tuition reduction still leaves a large bill, while a full waiver plus a monthly grant covers most of your costs.

Use the filtered list for this page to see what is open now, and the scholarship finder to widen the search by country or subject.

Fully funded scholarships for Pakistani students: tuition plus stipend

These awards pay tuition and a monthly allowance. They are the strongest options if you cannot fund living costs yourself.

• Swedish Institute Scholarships for Global Professionals covers full tuition, a monthly living allowance, insurance and a one-time travel grant for master's study in Sweden.
• ETH Zurich Excellence Masters Scholarships pay a grant for living and study expenses plus a tuition fee waiver for the regular duration of the master's.
• University of Geneva Excellence Masters Fellowships are worth a yearly amount for Master of Science study, granted for one year and extended if you pass.
• UNIL Master’s Grants in Switzerland for Foreign Students pay a monthly stipend for the duration of the master's and exempt you from fixed registration fees.
• Flinders International Postgraduate Research Scholarship (FIPRS) covers international tuition, a living allowance and a relocation allowance for research degrees.
• Warwick Chancellor’s International Scholarships pay full academic fees plus a maintenance stipend for PhD research.

Stipend-based awards usually ask for a research proposal or a strong academic record. Read the listing for the exact conditions before you write anything.

Tuition fee waivers and partial awards for Pakistani students

Most scholarships for Pakistani students abroad are tuition waivers. They cut your fee, sometimes to zero, but you still pay living costs. That is workable if you have savings, a family contribution or a part-time plan.

Note that some of these waivers cannot be combined with another scholarship, so check the terms before you accept two offers.

Master's and MS scholarships for Pakistani students

Most Pakistani students going abroad are looking for MS funding, and this is where the choice is widest. Beyond the Swedish and Dutch waivers above, several programmes pay a monthly amount.

• Université Paris-Saclay International Master’s Scholarships pay a yearly amount monthly from September to June, plus a travel allowance.
• Ampère Excellence Scholarships for International Students at ENS de Lyon pay a monthly sum for one academic year, renewable under conditions.
• Government of Flanders Master Mind Scholarships for International Students give a yearly grant plus a tuition fee waiver.
• Danish State Tuition Fee Waivers and Scholarships at Roskilde University cover tuition and add a monthly scholarship for up to 22 months.
• Danish Government Scholarships for Non-EU Students can be a full or partial tuition waiver and/or a grant towards living costs.
• JFUNU Scholarships for MSc in Sustainability Programme for Developing Country Students pay a monthly allowance for up to 24 months, with tuition possibly waived.
• ADB-Japan Scholarship Program for Developing Countries in Asia and Pacific covers tuition, monthly subsistence and housing, books, insurance and travel at participating institutions.

For a subject-specific shortlist, see the economics and finance scholarships and the science and technology scholarships.

Bachelor's, PhD and research funding

Undergraduate funding abroad is thinner. The International Scholars Program at University of British Columbia gives need-and-merit awards to international undergraduates, with a deadline of 15 November, and the ICSP Scholarships at University of Oregon USA offer a renewable partial tuition waiver.

At doctoral level, the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships (Vanier CGS) pay a yearly amount for three years, but you must be nominated by a Canadian institution. The University of Manitoba Graduate Fellowships pay yearly amounts for master's and PhD students and are open to all nationalities, with faculty deadlines.

Research students should also read the environmental management scholarships and the development studies scholarships.

Who these scholarships suit and who should look elsewhere

They suit you if you have a strong academic record, you can wait a full application cycle, and you are ready to sit an English test and gather documents months in advance. Students targeting master's study in Sweden, the Netherlands, Switzerland, France or Belgium have the most options.

Look elsewhere if you need funding to start in the next few weeks, or you want a full ride for a bachelor's degree with no family contribution. Bachelor's awards are limited, and most of the awards here are partial or tuition-only. If you need a stipend, focus on the fully funded group in the first section.

How to apply for scholarships for Pakistani students: step by step

1. Pick your degree level and country. Use the scholarships by country pages to see what each destination offers.
2. Shortlist three to five programmes with deadlines that fit your timeline. Write the dates in one calendar.
3. Apply for admission to the university first where the listing requires it. Many scholarships only consider students who already hold an offer.
4. Sit your English test early. Some awards require a minimum score, and results take time to arrive.
5. Prepare your documents: transcripts, degree certificates, passport, motivation letter, references and, for research degrees, a proposal.
6. Submit the scholarship form before the deadline, not on the day. Portals slow down near closing.
7. Track each application in a simple table and check your email, including spam, for requests for missing documents.

For help writing the personal statement, read the scholarship tips.

Documents and selection: what decides the outcome

Most rejections come from paperwork, not from weak grades. Keep a folder with your transcripts, degree certificates, passport copy, English test result, CV, motivation letter and two academic references. Certified translations are often required if your documents are not in English.

Selection usually weighs academic results first, then the fit between your plans and the programme. A motivation letter that names the specific courses and professors you want to work with reads far better than a generic one. For research awards, the proposal and your supervisor's support matter most.

Common mistakes Pakistani applicants make

• Confusing a tuition waiver with a full scholarship and arriving without living costs covered.
• Missing the admission deadline because the scholarship deadline was later.
• Applying to awards that exclude your nationality or degree level. Read the eligibility line twice.
• Submitting the same motivation letter to every university.
• Leaving the English test until after the scholarship deadline.
• Ignoring awards that require nomination by the university, such as the Vanier CGS.

Other funding routes and related lists

If the awards above do not fit, widen your search by country and subject. The scholarships in Sweden, scholarships in the Netherlands, scholarships in Switzerland and scholarships in France pages list the national options in one place.

Students considering other destinations can check the scholarships in Canada, scholarships in Australia, scholarships in the United States, scholarships in the United Kingdom, scholarships in Germany, scholarships in Belgium, scholarships in Italy, scholarships in Japan, scholarships in Singapore and scholarships in New Zealand.

Subject lists are useful too: medicine scholarships, engineering scholarships, law and public policy scholarships, humanities scholarships, social sciences scholarships, natural sciences scholarships, IT scholarships, MBA scholarships, journalism scholarships, education scholarships, agriculture, forestry and fisheries scholarships, peace scholarships, political science scholarships, human development scholarships and health scholarships. If you have no fixed subject, browse the any field of study scholarships.

Some awards listed on this site are from past rounds and are kept for background only, including the TUBITAK Graduate Scholarships for International Students, the OFID Scholarship Award for International Students and the Slovak Government Scholarships for Selected Developing Countries. Check the official page for the current round before relying on them.