Scholarships in Austria

Scholarships in Austria

1. General situation

Many people still think Austria is expensive to study in. It is not. There are plenty of scholarships, tuition fees are minimal for EU/EEA/Swiss citizens, and a student ID gets you a whole range of discounts. Austrian universities are also moving up in the international rankings, helped by the strong performance of several institutions in specialist medical research. Austria offers scholarships to a wide range of students, both domestic and international.

On fees: EU/EEA/Swiss students pay no tuition within the standard duration of studies plus two tolerance semesters, only the students' union contribution (ÖH-Beitrag) of €26.20 per semester (roughly €52 per year). Only once you exceed the standard duration by more than two tolerance semesters does a fee of €363.36 per semester apply. In practice this means a Bachelor’s (6 semesters) becomes fee-liable from semester 9, a Master’s (4 semesters) from semester 7, a doctorate (6 semesters) from semester 9, and a diploma programme such as Medicine (12 semesters) from semester 15. For diploma programmes, the „standard duration plus two tolerance semesters” rule applies per study section. The ÖH contribution is due in any case, even when you are exempt from the tuition fee. Non-EU citizens pay €726.72 per semester (about €1,453 per year) from the first semester, plus the ÖH contribution; exemptions exist for students from the least developed countries and for certain residence titles. Payment deadlines are 5 September for the winter semester and 5 February for the summer semester. Living costs run at roughly €1,000-1,400 per month in Vienna and €800-1,100 per month in Graz.

2. Types of scholarship and granting institutions

Austria has a diverse range of scholarships covering several areas. As you would expect, awards exist for those who have demonstrated academic excellence either in pre-university work or during their first degree. Students from poor backgrounds will also find scholarships that let them continue their studies. Funding opportunities support foreign students coming into Austria at undergraduate or postgraduate level and researchers who wish to specialise in a particular area. Beyond these main categories, a smaller number of scholarships target women working in scientific disciplines and people from a background of innovation who wish to pursue their ideas and technical excellence further.

The central agency is the OeAD (Austria’s Agency for Education and Internationalisation), a non-profit company of the Republic of Austria, financed mainly through the responsible federal ministry (BMFWF), alongside other ministries, the Austrian Development Agency and the European Commission. The OeAD administers the largest scholarship programmes, but the money itself comes from a wide range of sources, some governmental and some dedicated research funders. Crucially, the OeAD does not offer scholarships that cover an entire Bachelor, Master or PhD in Austria - full-study scholarships are rare in the country. If you are looking to have an entire degree funded, the most realistic route is an Erasmus Mundus Joint Master’s Degree (see section 6).

3. Availability and conditions

Availability depends heavily on the field. There are many more scholarships in medical and biomedical research than in most other subjects. Many awards are designed with specific students in mind: some are for local students only, others specifically for foreign students. The conditions for each award are set individually, so before starting an application check that the scholarship matches your previous experience, achievements and research aspirations.

4. Scholarships for foreign students

The Austrian scholarship scheme for foreign students is largely administered through the OeAD. A number of awards exist because Austria wants to increase the percentage of foreign students at its universities. Some are targeted by subject and are most applicable to those coming from within the EU; others are targeted at specific countries outside the EU, both to build international research cooperation and to offer high-quality university education to those who may not be able to afford it, or have access to it, in their home countries.

A note on state student support: the Austrian Studienbeihilfe (state student aid) is primarily available to Austrian citizens and equivalent groups. EU/EEA citizens can qualify under certain conditions. Non-EU citizens are not automatically excluded: you can claim Studienbeihilfe if you hold a „Daueraufenthalt-EU” long-term residence title in Austria, or if you are a family member of an EU migrant worker in Austria or of an Austrian citizen. The same criteria apply to stateless persons; recognised refugees are also eligible. British citizens count as EU/EEA-equivalent if they were resident in an EU member state before 1 January 2021, otherwise as third-country nationals. The standard maximum rate is €923 per month (€11,076 per year), with a basic amount of €404 per month; self-supporting students can receive up to €1,082 per month, and up to €1,121 per month from age 27. The annual earnings limit is €17,212 (2026).

5. Typical OeAD scholarships

Typical scholarships in Austria run through the OeAD and can last from a single semester up to several years, depending on the funding source and its purpose. There are, for example, funded PhD arrangements that pay tuition and also provide a stipend to the student in exchange for a set amount of teaching.

Named OeAD programmes worth knowing about:

• Ernst Mach Grant - the flagship research-stay grant. Master’s applicants receive around €1,050 per month, PhD applicants around €1,150 per month, for 4-10 months, with health insurance and tuition fees included and a travel allowance of up to €1,000. Age limits are 35 (Master’s) and 40 (PhD). It funds research stays, not full degree programmes. Variants include Ernst Mach Worldwide, ASEA-UNINET, the Follow-up Grant and Ernst Mach for universities of applied sciences (FH). The Ernst Mach Ukraine special programme (€715 per month) expired on 30 June 2026 and is only being extended for existing grantees from summer semester 2025. The regular application deadline is 1 March - check the OeAD portal for the exact date in your intake.
• Franz Werfel Scholarship - for university teachers focusing on Austrian literature, €1,150 per month for 4-9 months (extendable up to 18). Deadlines: 1 March and 15 September, applications via grants.at.
• Richard Plaschka Scholarship - for post-doctoral researchers and PhD candidates working on Austria-related historical topics, €1,150 per month for 4-12 months (extendable up to 18). Deadlines: 1 March and 15 September.
• Marietta Blau Grant - for outstanding doctoral candidates at Austrian universities writing part of their thesis abroad, 6-12 months, funded by the BMFWF. Application deadline: 31 January.
• Bertha von Suttner Scholarship - an OeAD programme for doctoral candidates working on migration, integration and intercultural dialogue.
• Erhard Busek Scholarship - an excellence scholarship that funds a two-year (24-month) Master’s degree in Austria for highly qualified students from non-European developing countries, with a focus on STEM and English-taught Master’s programmes, at €1,300 per month plus a one-off travel allowance of up to €1,200. It does not cover tuition fees, and no new applications are planned for 2026.

Beyond the OeAD, individual universities run their own awards. The Leistungsstipendium (merit scholarship) pays €750-1,500 and is disbursed directly by the university under §§57-61 of the Student Support Act; it is independent of income (no means test) and rewards outstanding performance, typically a grade average of 2.0 or better. International students can apply once Austrian grades are on file. The uni:docs Fellowship at the University of Vienna pays doctoral candidates €30,000 per year and is one of the most generous single awards on offer.

6. European route: Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters

Because full-study funding within Austria is scarce, the Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters route is often the more realistic option for an entirely funded Master’s involving Austrian universities. For the 2027/28 intake, the application window is expected to run from October 2026 to January 2027. There is no central application - each consortium sets its own deadline and you apply directly to the programme you have chosen. Verify the current window on the European Commission’s Erasmus+ pages before applying.

Another EU-level award worth flagging is the Study a Master’s in Europe Scholarship 2026, a one-off US$5,000 grant open to international students starting a Master’s in Europe. Applications close on 15 May 2026 at 12:00 CEST. The application must be in English; shortlisted finalists then have seven days to submit supporting documents.

7. Five unusual scholarships in Austria

Alongside the mainstream schemes, Austria hosts a number of unusual awards worth applying for if you fit the profile.

7.1 Mannagetta Scholarship (Austrian Academy of Sciences)

The Johann Wilhelm Ritter von Mannagetta Foundation, a private foundation established in 1661, awards scholarships through the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW). The main modern grant is worth €25,000 over 8-12 months and supports the completion of doctoral theses in the humanities, cultural and social sciences at an Austrian university, with an annual budget of €100,000 for early-career support in the humanities, cultural and social sciences and medicine. The next application deadline is 20 October 2026 at 14:00 CEST. Alongside the completion grant, the Johann Wilhelm Ritter von Mannagetta Prize for Medicine (cancer research) is worth €15,000 and closes on 1 October 2026. Contact: stipref@oeaw.ac.at, at the Academy’s address Dr. Ignaz Seipel-Platz 2, 1010 Vienna. A separate, older Mannagetta bursary stream of up to €2,500 per year has historically been listed for Austrian students who are members of the Catholic Church and whose parents do not reside in Vienna; verify current eligibility with the foundation directly.

7.2 AK-Wissenschaftspreis of Upper Austria (Category A)

The Chamber of Workers and Employees of Upper Austria (Arbeiterkammer Oberösterreich) awards this prize annually for doctoral theses and published scholarly articles. Category A carries a total prize fund of €9,000, split between up to three winners at the jury’s discretion. There is no thematic restriction, but the work must relate to the interests of the AK Upper Austria. Applications require a CV, a covering letter, a 3-5 page summary in German, and the work itself in either German or English.

7.3 Scholarship Foundation of the Republic of Austria

This foundation was established by federal law on 19 December 2005 and endowed by the Austrian Reconciliation Fund with €25,829,220.98; only the interest is spent, the capital is preserved. It targets Master’s and PhD students who are descendants of forced labourers, or applicants from states that suffered particularly under Nazi-era forced labour recruitment. In the 2007/2008 academic year, up to 100 four-month scholarships were awarded to doctoral candidates and post-docs. Applications are made online, and there is no legal entitlement to an award.

7.4 Eduard Wallnöfer Foundation / Prize (Tyrol)

Founded in 1978 as a gift from Tyrolean industry for the 65th birthday of provincial governor Eduard Wallnöfer, the foundation is administered by the Federation of Austrian Industries (Tyrol chapter). It recognises research and study projects from North, East and South Tyrol in technical, scientific and cultural fields, and applicants must be citizens of Austria or Italy and permanent residents of Tyrol or South Tyrol. Awards run up to €5,000 per grant; more recently, two prizes of €10,000 each have been awarded annually, with the most recent round in 2023 (€20,000 in total). The next application phase is expected to open in March 2026.

7.5 Gabriele Possanner State Prize (gender studies)

The Gabriele Possanner State Prize is an Austrian federal award given every two years since 1997 by the federal ministry responsible for science and research on the recommendation of an expert jury. The main state prize is worth €10,000. Two additional promotion prizes recognise individual academic work contributing to gender democracy - the amount for these promotion prizes has been reported inconsistently in secondary sources, so confirm the current value with the ministry before applying. The 2026 award ceremony is scheduled for 25 June 2026; the current application round is closed.

8. Where to search

The official Austrian database is grants.at, run by the OeAD on behalf of the federal ministry. It lists over 1,200 scholarships, research grants, prizes and internal university funding options, filterable by country of origin, target group (Bachelor, Master, doctorate, postdoc), subject and type of funding. It is the natural starting point alongside the European Funding Guide’s own search when hunting for something that matches your profile.