Polytechnic Institute of Coimbra (Coimbra/Portugal) - IPC Merit Awards

IPC Merit Awards

You will receive a one-off cash payment of five times the Portuguese national minimum monthly wage for the year in which it is granted. The amount is not fixed and increases in line with rises in the minimum wage. In the year 2025/26, this amount was approximately 4,350 EUR; in the year 2024/25, it was approximately 4,100 EUR. The Directorate-General for Higher Education (DGES) will pay the amount directly to you. The Polytechnic Institute of Coimbra (now the Universidade Politécnica de Coimbra) awards the scholarship in accordance with Portuguese regulations to support its best students.

Who can apply

• University: You study at the Polytechnic Institute of Coimbra, at one of its six schools (ESAC, ESEC, ESTGOH, ESTeSC, ISCAC or ISEC).
• Level: All degree programmes are taken into account: short vocational degree programmes (CTeSP), Bachelor’s degree programmes (Licenciatura) and Master’s degree programmes (Mestrado).
• Field of study: Any subject.
• Full year passed: You passed all the modules in your degree programme last academic year.
• Grades: Your ECTS-weighted average mark for these modules is at least 16.0 out of 20 (‘Very Good’). Courses passed by means of credit points are not included in this average.
• Nationality: Any nationality can apply.

How to apply

You do not need to submit a separate application. Each school draws up a ranking list of its eligible pupils based on their weighted average and publishes this list in its administration system. You then have 10 working days to lodge an appeal. The final list is forwarded to the DGES, which notifies the selected pupils by email.

How realistic are your chances?

For 2022/2023, the Polytechnic Institute of Coimbra awarded a total of up to 24 merit-based scholarships. These are allocated to the six faculties in proportion to their student numbers, with each faculty receiving at least one scholarship.

Our guide Scholarships in Portugal brings together further funding options for students looking beyond this merit-based award.