Merit scholarships for international students enrolled at Universität Hamburg
With its merit scholarship program, Universität Hamburg supports outstanding international students in all subjects and at all degree levels. The awarding of a merit scholarship allows recipients to concentrate fully on their studies and gives them the opportunity to develop their skills.
You meet the application requirements if you
- have been enrolled in your subject at Universität Hamburg for at least 2 semesters and are pursuing a degree. Students in 2-year master’s degree programs can apply after 1 completed semester. Doctoral researchers are unfortunately excluded from applying;
- do not hold German citizenship;
- are not eligible for the federal student loan scheme (International students fulfilling the requirements of Section 8 of the German federal training assistance act (Bundesgesetz über individuelle Förderung der Ausbildung, BAföG) cannot be funded)
Funding amount and funding duration
The maximum monthly funding sum is €992.
Merit scholarships are awarded for 2 semesters (total of 12 months). You can reapply for a merit scholarship. The maximum funding duration is 2 years.
Application deadlines
The application deadlines are:
15 April (funding period: 1 October – 30 September of the following year)
15 October 2025 (funding period: 1 April – 31 March of the following year)
Please note that in October 2025 the merit scholarships will be awarded for the last time in October. From 2026, the call for applications will only take place once a year on the application deadline of April 15.
Important note on the application deadline October 2025:
When applying for a merit scholarship, you must present the following documents to the program coordinator on one of the dates mentioned in the ‘Application’ section (see ‘Application’ section for more information):
- Non-EU citizens: your residence permit
- EU citizens: your identity card and your registration certificate of your residence ("Meldebescheinigung") in Germany