Swiss Government Excellence Scholarships for 2024-2025 : Fully Funded Scholarship in SwitzerlandNovember 8, 2023 by Digital Vaults Editorial Team
Every year, the Swiss Confederation awards their Government Excellence Scholarships to qualified students so that they can study in Switzerland. This is to promote international exchange and research cooperation between Switzerland and more than 180 other countries around the world.
These scholarships are available for those who already have their Bachelor’s degree and wish to go for their graduate degrees in Switzerland. These scholarships are mainly for those who haven’t been to Switzerland before.
- Country of origin: Switzerland
- Funded by: ETH Zurich
- Type: Fully Funded
- Education level: Bachelor’s/Master’s/PhD/Postdoctoral
- Duration: 3 or 4 semesters
- Deadline: 15 December 2023
Types of Scholarships
There are several types of scholarships available, including the following:
Research Fellowship
The selected applicants can be postgraduate researchers from all academic fields and young medical doctors. They can then study at one of the 10 Swiss cantonal universities, the 2 Swiss federal institutes of technology, the public teaching and research institutes, or the universities of applied sciences.
The duration is just for the academic year 2024-25, and this cannot be extended. The scholar then receives CHF 1,920 per month to help with the living costs.
Eligibility requirements include:
- Master’s degree or equivalent achieved (degree certificate) before July 31 2023
- Date of birth after December 31 1987
- A research proposal including a timeframe
- The mandatory letter from an academic host professor
The selection of the scholarship recipients will be based on the following:
- The candidate’s academic profile, research capacity and motivation
- The research project’s originality and methodological soundness
The quality and context of supervision and potential for future academic cooperation.
Find list of fully funded scholarship for international students here.
PhD Scholarship
This is for highly qualified postgraduate students with the required degrees to start their PhD. They can then go for their PhD at one of the 10 Swiss cantonal universities, the 2 Swiss federal institutes of technology, or the Graduate Institute.
- The scholarship starts on September 1, 2023, and lasts 12 months. However, this can be extended for up to 36 months, though this will be based on the achieved academic results after each year.
Scholarship recipients then get CHF 1,920 per month.
The eligibility requirements and the selection criteria are all similar to the Research Fellowship:
Eligibility requirements include:
- Master’s degree or equivalent achieved (degree certificate) before July 31 2023
- Date of birth after December 31 1987
- A research proposal including a timeframe
- The mandatory letter from an academic host professor
The selection of the scholarship recipients will be based on the following:
- The candidate’s academic profile, research capacity and motivation.
- The research project’s originality and methodological soundness.
- The quality and context of supervision and potential for future academic cooperation
You can check our full list of Phd scholarships for international students here.
Postdoctoral Scholarship
This is for scientists who are still early in their careers and who wish to undertake postdoctoral research. They can then study at one of the 10 Swiss cantonal universities, the 2 Swiss federal institutes of technology, the public teaching and research institutes, or the universities of applied sciences.
The duration is just for the academic year 2023-24, and this cannot be extended. The scholar then receives CHF 3,500 per month to help with the living costs.
Eligibility requirements include:
- PhD degree achieved after December 31 2019, and before July 31 2023
- A research proposal including a timeframe
- The mandatory letter from an academic host professor
The selection of the scholarship recipients will be based on the following:
- The candidate’s academic profile, research capacity and motivation
- The research project’s originality and methodological soundness
- The quality and context of supervision and potential for future academic cooperation
Art Scholarship
Are you a young artist with just a Bachelor’s degree and want to take up your Master’s? If that’s the case, then you may be able to begin your initial Master’s studies in Switzerland at any Swiss conservatory or university of the arts.
However, this is a limited scholarship, and it’s not available in all countries. It’s only available for the citizens of the countries with which Switzerland has a reciprocity agreement for art scholarships.
The duration is for the 12 months of the academic year 2023-24, but this can be extended up to 21 months depending on the Master’s program you picked. The scholar then receives CHF 1,920 per month to help with the living costs.
Eligibility requirements include:
- A Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) completed before July 31 2023
- Date of birth after December 31 1987
This must be the applicant’s first Master’s degree, and all applications for a second Master’s degree will be rejected
The selection of the scholarship recipients will be based on the following:
- The candidate’s artistic profile, qualifications, and motivation
- The artistic maturity and potential of the submitted portfolio
- The number of available study places at the host institute
How to Apply for These Scholarships?
Actually, there is no single set of steps to apply for these scholarships. It depends on the country you’re from.
You should head to the official website and select the continents and country you’re from. Here you can then obtain the particular steps you need to take.
However, this is a common application procedure:
- Download and read the Application Guidelines for Swiss Government Excellence Scholarships.
- Select your country of origin (the country listed on your passport).
- Check the available scholarships for your country.
- Check the application deadlines.
- Contact the Swiss Embassy of your country (or the competent national institution on the country list).
Ask for the Application Package for the Swiss Government Excellence Scholarships.
The Federal Commission for Scholarships for Foreign Students (FCS) is the awarding body responsible for choosing recipients.
Scholarship Academic Supervisor
In many cases, you will need the mandatory letter from an academic host professor as part of your application. And you will have to find this academic host professor. It would be best if you talked to any contacts you may have at your university to find anyone there who knows of anyone in Switzerland who can be your academic host professor. It would help if you also looked up potential names at various Swiss university websites.
Just make sure this person works in your field and that they possess the necessary qualifications. Then you need to directly contact this professor and convince them to be your scholarship host professor.
This may take weeks or even months, so good luck.
Deadline
Sep to Dec. Deadline varies depending on country.
