Finding Scholarships
Welcome to our scholarship database!
Here you will find information about our DAAD scholarship programmes for international students and
researchers as well as offers from other selected funding organisations.
Bridge Scholarships Iran • DAAD
Overview
Eine Druckversion dieser Ausschreibung (PDF) steht Ihnen in den weiteren Registerkarten (z.B. „Bewerbungsvoraussetzungen“) zur Verfügung.
A print version of this announcement (PDF) is available in the further tabs (e.g. “Application requirements”).
Objective
The "Bridge Scholarships Iran" offer Iranians, who have left their home country due to the current political situation and are already in Germany, an opportunity to build or continue their academic career. The aim of the programme is to support researchers from Iran with bridge scholarships to start or continue their research project as part of a doctorate or postdoctoral phase at a state or state-recognised higher education institution resp. non-university research institution in Germany.
These grants are intended to enable them to initiate and prepare their academic future prospects in a secure environment, with the support of their respective host institution. In the long term, the aim is to integrate them into the education and labour market in Germany, if a return to Iran is not possible.
Who can apply?
Researchers from Iran from all disciplines are eligible to apply,
- who have already been accepted as doctoral candidates at a state or state-recognised higher education institution resp. non-university research institution in Germany or who have a confirmation of supervision, or
- who have received a letter of invitation from a state or state-recognised higher education institution resp. non-university research institution in Germany as a postdoctoral researcher or university lecturer,
- who can prove that they have Iranian citizenship (no dual citizenship),
- who, as a rule, are already in Germany with a valid residence permit at the time of the application deadline,
- who, as a rule, have not been staying in Germany for longer than 15 months at the time of the application deadline. However, this does not exclude applications from Iranians who have come to the Federal Republic as part of their studies, a doctorate or other academic projects and have therefore been in Germany for some time.
What can be funded?
Research projects with the aim of obtaining a doctoral degree or implementing a research project at a state or state-recognised higher education institution resp. non-university research institution in Germany.
Doctoral students
- individual projects under the supervision of a university teacher (doctoral supervisor) in Germany or
- participation in a structured doctoral programme
- individual projects in cooperation with a university teacher in Germany
University lecturer
- individual projects in cooperation with a university teacher in Germany
Duration of the funding
3 months; the length of the grant is decided by the DAAD and depends on the project in question and the applicant's work schedule. The funding must be completed by 31 January 2024 at the latest.
Value
Scholarship benefits in accordance with the respective current version of the scholarship guidelines of the Federal Foreign Office include:
- depending on the academic level, monthly payments of
- 1,200 euros for doctoral candidates
- 2,000 euros for postdoctoral researchers
- 2,150 euros for (assistant) professors
- payments towards health, accident and personal liability insurance cover
- monthly rent subsidy
- monthly allowance for accompanying family members
- in the case of a disability or chronic illness: subsidy for additional costs that result from the disability or chronic illness and are not covered by other funding providers: Further information
Additionally, it is important to note that while in receipt of the DAAD scholarship, full-time employment is not permitted. However, part-time employment will be considered, but any amount above 520 EUR (gross) per month will be deducted from the DAAD scholarship.
Selection
The selection of candidates will be carried out by a selection committees appointed by the section ST33 – Middle East, North Africa of the DAAD.
1) Academic qualification
Documented by the higher education certificate regarding the last qualifying degree for doctoral and postdoctoral candidates resp. academic achievements and recent publications which must be documented in the curriculum vitae and a list of publications for university lecturers)
2) Quality of the research project
Documented by an acceptance as a doctoral candidate (if applicable) and letter of recommendation resp. confirmation of supervision or letter of invitation, research proposal anda time schedule
3) Personal motivation for the scholarship
Documented by a letter of motivation describing the current personal risk situation as well as outlining the future prospects in Germany made possible by a scholarship
In addition, in order to ensure equal opportunities, the selection committee may take into account special life circumstances, about which the candidate can provide information in the application form. For more information on the selection procedure, go to Important Scholarship Information / Section E.
Further information
You can find a PDF of the Call for Scholarship Applications here.
Application requirements
What requirements must be met?
For all applicants:
- You should be of legal age (usually at least 18 years old) at the time of application.
- As a rule, your last degree as an applicant for a doctoral scholarship resp. your employment at a higher education institution or non-university research institution in Iran as an applicant on postdoctoral or university lecturer level should not date back more than 6 years at the time of the application deadline. Please read our Important scholarship information / Section A, Point 2.
- Your application cannot be considered, as a rule, if you have been resident in Germany for longer than 15 months at the application deadline. This does not exclude applications from Iranians who have come to the Federal Republic as part of their studies, a doctorate or other academic projects and have therefore been in Germany for some time.
Application Procedure
Application deadline
29 September 2023
Selection planned for October 2023.
Earliest start of scholarship, as a rule, 01 November 2023.
Application documents
Documents to be uploaded to the DAAD portal:
For all applicants:
- Online application form
- Full curriculum vitae in tabular form (max. 3 pages)
- Statement about academic and personal reasons for the planned study or research project in Germany (letter of motivation; 1-3 pages). Please also explain your current personal risk situation as well as outline the future prospects in Germany made possible by a scholarship. Please also read our Important Scholarship Information / Section B.
- Valid Iranian identification document*. Please upload under "Miscellaneous" in the DAAD Application Portal.
- Valid residence permit for Germany. Please upload under "Miscella-neous" in the DAAD Application Portal.
- Confirmation that no dual citizenship exists. Please upload under "Miscellaneous" in the DAAD Application Portal.
Additionally for doctoral candidates who are carrying out an individual project under the supervision of a university teacher (doctoral supervisor) or who are participating in a structured doctoral programme:
- Most recent university degree certificate indicating final grade(s): the certificate must be subsequently submitted before the grant-supported research begins if it is not available at the time of application
- A proposal, prepared and formulated by yourself, as well as a description of previous research work (max. 10 pages in total). A proposal is an extensive and detailed description of the research project which has been discussed with the academic adviser. Please also read our Important Scholarship Information / Section B.
- Letter confirming supervision by a university teacher in Germany, which refers to the applicant’s proposal and confirms that the host institute will provide a workplace
- Schedule of planned research work
In case you have already started your doctorate:
- if applicable, acceptance as a doctoral candidate as well as a statement of the doctoral supervisor on the current progress of the doctoral thesis (can be included in the letter confirming the supervision
If participating in a structured doctoral study programme is planned:
- Letter of admission to a doctoral study programme, this can be subsequently submitted until the application deadline if it is not available at the time of application
- Proof of existing contacts to the coordinator of the doctoral programme in the form of copies of correspondence
- Most recent university degree certificate indicating final grade(s): the certificate must be subsequently submitted before the grant-supported research begins if it is not available at the time of application
- A proposal, prepared and formulated by yourself, as well as a description of previous research work (max. 10 pages in total). A proposal is an extensive and detailed description of the research project which has been discussed with the academic adviser. Please also read our Important Scholarship Information / Section B.
- Letter from host confirming academic cooperation, which refers to your proposal and guarantees that a workplace will be provided
- Schedule of planned research work
- List of academic publications (max. 3 pages)
- Comprehensive statement about research project (max. 10 pages). Please also read our Important Scholarship Information / Section B, point 2.
- Time schedule and itinerary (host institutes / academic hosts) of the planned research stay
- Confirmation from the academic host in Germany; the confirmation must refer to your project and guarantee that the host institute in Germany will provide you with a workplace.
Application location
Online via DAAD portal
Please note
- Certificates, proof of credits, certifications and translations may be scanned in non-certified form and uploaded to the DAAD portal. All candidates have to upload German or English translations of documents submitted in the national language. The DAAD reserves the right to request certified copies of the documents, if necessary.
- When choosing your university, please take into account that the DAAD generally does not cover tuition fees.
- The application is done online via DAAD portal. Please note that access to the application portal is only displayed as long as the current application deadline is running. After the application deadline, the portal is not available for this programme.
- Your application is only valid if you submit all the required documents to the DAAD portal on time. The DAAD portal closes at 24.00 hrs. (CET or CEST) on the last application day. Incomplete applications cannot be considered. You are responsible for ensuring that your applications are complete.
- The application documents remain with the DAAD. Your personal data is saved by the DAAD in accordance with the Federal Data Protection Act and with the EU Data Protection Regulation insofar as this data is needed to process the application.
Contact and Consulting
Information and advisory centres
Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst
German Academic Exchange Service
Section ST33 – Middle East, North Africa
Kennedyallee 50
53175 Bonn
Ms Claudia Garbers and Mr John Dzaba
E-mail: iran-bridge-scholarships@daad.de
Submitting an application
General information on the application via DAAD portal
You can access the DAAD portal by clicking "Application portal" at the end of the page. Here you will find an online application form in which you can enter your application data.
This is what you have to do:
Register in the DAAD portal (Read notes about registering in the portal >>)
Applying online in the DAAD portal (Read notes on applying in the portal >>)
- Download and complete the online application form
- Prepare application documents
- If necessary, translate documents (unless they are already in German or English).
- Scan paper documents and save in PDF format. Please note that you can only upload PDF files to the portal.
- Upload the completed application form and the other application documents to the portal in PDF format. Translations, if applicable, should be uploaded together with the document issued in the original language.
- Submit the uploaded application documents online.
Please note:
If you have any technical questions or problems your local information and advice centres could not help you with, please do not hesitate to contact our technical Portal hotline: +49 (0228) 882-8888 or via e-mail portal@daad.de, open every weekday from 9.00 am to 12.00 pm (CET/CEST).
Please consider this when you are planning your application.