Escola Superior de Saúde de Santa Maria - Bolsas de Mérito at Santa Maria Health School

Bolsas de Mérito at Santa Maria Health School

You receive a one-off merit award equal to five times the Portuguese monthly minimum wage that applies at the start of the academic year. It is paid as a single fixed sum. In 2024 the minimum wage was 820 EUR per month, so the award came to about 4,100 EUR. The exact figure follows whatever the minimum wage is in the year you receive it. The Portuguese Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education pays for the award, not the school. It rewards one academic year of outstanding results. The award goes to students at the Escola Superior de Saúde de Santa Maria (ESSSM), a private health-sciences college in Porto.

Who can apply

• Where you study: You are enrolled at the Escola Superior de Saúde de Santa Maria in Porto.
• Level: You are on a bachelor's degree (licenciatura), a master's degree, or a short vocational higher-education course (CTeSP).
• Field of study: Any course the school runs, such as Nursing, Physiotherapy, Occupational Therapy or Gerontology.
• Passed everything: In the previous academic year you passed every course unit on your study plan.
• Grades: Your average mark across those units was at least 16 out of 20 ("Very Good").
• Financial need: None required. The award is based purely on merit, whatever your income.
• Nationality: Any nationality can apply.

How to apply

You do not submit an application. The school picks the eligible students with the best results and reports its choice to the national higher-education authority (DGES). The award is decided once a year.

How realistic are your chances?

The number of awards each year equals the previous year's student total divided by 500, rounded up. ESSSM is small (around 400 students), so in practice it grants just one award per year. That means you need the best record in the whole school to win it.