Chinese Government - Chinese Government Scholarship-EU Program

What the EU Window scholarship covers

This is a full scholarship for EU citizens to study at a university in mainland China. You will receive:

• Full tuition waiver
• A free room in a student hall of residence on campus, or a monthly housing allowance instead
• Health insurance
• A monthly living allowance of around 400 EUR: approximately 2,500 CNY for undergraduate students, 3,000 CNY for Master’s students and 3,500 CNY for PhD students

The funding covers the entire duration of your study programme. It may also include a preparatory Chinese language phase, provided this is specified in your letter of acceptance. The costs are covered by the Chinese Ministry of Education; administration is handled by the China Scholarship Council; and the Chinese Mission to the EU processes applications from Europe.

Who can apply

• Nationality: You are a national of an EU Member State. Chinese nationals are not eligible to apply.
• Where you study: You are studying at a specific university in mainland China. Hong Kong and Macau are not included.
• Field of study: The range is wide and includes, amongst other things, the natural sciences, engineering, agricultural sciences, medicine, economics, law, business administration, education, history, literature, philosophy and the fine arts.
• Level and age: To enrol on a Bachelor’s degree programme, you must have completed secondary education and fall under 25. To enrol on a Master’s degree programme, you need a Bachelor’s degree and must fall under 35. To pursue a PhD, you need a Master’s degree and must fall under 40. There are also programmes for visiting students (general scholarship holders, under 45) and for experienced researchers (under 50).
• Language: For degree programmes taught in Chinese, you will need HSK level 3 (undergraduate and general scholarship holders) or HSK level 4 (postgraduate and PhD students). The HSK is the standard test of Chinese language proficiency. If you are studying the Chinese language as a subject in its own right, no HSK is required. For programmes taught in English, IELTS or TOEFL results are required.
• Pre-admission: Before you apply, you must already have a certificate of preliminary admission, a letter of invitation or confirmation from the tutor at your chosen university.
• Health: You are in good physical and mental health.
• No double funding: You may not receive another scholarship from the Chinese government at the same time.

How to apply

First, contact the Chinese university of your choice to obtain a pre-admission document. Then register on the CSC system at studyinchina.csc.edu.cn (Type A, agency number 00006) and submit all documents online. Applicants for a Bachelor’s degree programme must also sit the China Scholastic Competency Assessment (CSCA) test in advance and upload their test results. The deadline is 8 February 2026, and results are usually announced in July or August.

How realistic are your chances?

This application window is restricted to EU citizens, so the pool of applicants is smaller than for the Chinese government’s global scholarship. The real hurdle is that you must secure provisional admission to a university yourself, and places at individual universities are limited. If you clearly meet the age and qualification requirements, have your language certificate and provisional offer of a place to hand, and apply well in advance of the February deadline (Chinese universities close at the end of January for the winter break), your chances are good.