Finding Scholarships

Overview

Objective

The programme aims at fostering strong, internationally oriented higher education systems in Latin America with the capacity to contribute to sustainable development. To this end, scholarships are granted for development-related Master or doctoral studies for individuals who plan to pursue a career in teaching and / or research at a higher education institution in Latin America.

By training future academic and professional leaders, the programme contributes to the following long-term impacts:

• Qualified professionals’ involvement in the solution of development related problems in Latin America
• Graduates strengthening education and research in Latin America
• Structural strengthening and regional networking of partner institutions and partner universities

To achieve these long-term impacts, the following outcomes have been formulated as programme objectives:
Programme objective 1: Graduates have qualified to take over responsible positions in their or for their region of origin
Programme objective 2: The participation of women and underprivileged groups is reinforced
Programme objective 3: Organizational, financial and personal capacities of partner institutions are strengthened

Who can apply?

As part of the “In-Region Scholarship Programme”, the DAAD offers scholarships for PhD and Master studies. The programme is supported by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and designed primarily for university staff in the first line, whilst also catering to the public sector demand of academically trained personnel.
The target group for scholarships is graduates from Central America and the Dominican Republic with a Master’s degree if applying for a doctoral Programme , who want to pursue PhD courses or with a first academic degree if applying for a Master’s programme, who want to pursue Master’s courses,

• in another Central American country
  (In-Region scholarships are designed for students who want to participate in a study programme in a country of their home region (here: Central America /outside their home country/in the country for which they do not have a residence permit).

Applicants for a PhD degree

• postgraduates with a first academic degree, who have successfully completed a two-year university Master’s degree (or equivalent) with above average results (at least: Second Class/Upper Division or equivalent, if applicable);
• clearly show motivation and strong commitment;
• have thorough knowledge of the language of instruction;
• have completed their last university degree not more than 6 years ago at the time of application;
• must be nationals or permanent residents of a Central American country (except Costa Rica) and the Dominican Republic;
• should be a) staff member of a public university, b) or a candidate considered for teaching or research staff recruitment, c) or from the public sector and/or d) Alumni of the DAFI-programme. Fresh graduates, professionals and other candidates who do not fit in the above- mentioned areas are also invited to apply for the programme.
  Please note: the host institution might have additional requirements for admission to the university.

Please note: The host institution might have additional requirements for admission to the university.


Applicants for a Master’s degree

• graduates with a first academic degree, who have successfully completed a three-year university degree with above average results (at least: Second Class/Upper Division or equivalent, if applicable)
• clearly show motivation and strong commitment;
• have thorough knowledge of the language of instruction;
• have completed their last university degree not more than 6 years ago at the time of application;
• must be nationals or permanent residents of a Central American country (except Costa Rica) or the Dominican Republic;
• should be a) staff member of a public university, b) or a candidate considered for teaching or research staff recruitment, c) or from the public sector and/or d) Alumni of the DAFI-programme. Fresh graduates, professionals and other candidates who do not fit in the above- mentioned areas are also invited to apply for the programme.

Please note: If you have already received a Master's scholarship from the DAAD, further Master's funding from the DAAD is not possible.

Please note: The host institution might have additional requirements for admission to the university.


Female applicants, refugees with recognised refugee status and candidates from other less privileged regions or groups are especially encouraged to participate in the programme.

What can be funded?

The In-Region Scholarship Programme supports studies in subject areas with strong relevance to national development.

Duration of the funding

Funding is provided for the usual duration of a course – generally, up to a maximum of 24 months for Master's and up to three years (36 months) for the PhD degree programme.

Please note that the maximum duration of the scholarship consists of the year you apply for, plus the time left to the end of the regular period of studies in that programme. For example, if you apply for a DAAD scholarship starting in your second year of studies of a three-year programme, the maximum duration of the scholarship will be two years.

The standard period of study and the start date are based on the Affiliate Agreement between the host university and the DAAD.

Please note: if you arrive later, the duration of your scholarship will be shortened accordingly.

Value

Generally:

• Monthly scholarship
• Study and research allowance
• Thesis publishing costs
• Tuition fees*

*Please note that in some cases not all fees and costs mentioned in the official fee structure of the host institution can be covered by DAAD in full, e.g. if the agreement with the funding organisation prevents the DAAD from funding certain items in the fee structure or if items that are included in the fees are supposed to be covered through the individual scholarship benefits. The DAAD will transfer the fees directly to the host institution.

Only applicable for In-Region scholarship holders:

• Travel allowance
• Health insurance
• Family allowance (if your husband, wife or children) accompanying you to your host country; a separate application needs to be submitted for the family allowance upon admission to the programme

For further information, in particular the respective amounts, please see the call for applications of the degree programme you wish to apply for.

DAAD In-Region scholarship holders in the framework of research-based Master programmes are also
a) encouraged to apply for a short-term research stay in Germany for 2 up to 6 months.

Please note:

• The short-term research stay in Germany should preferably be communicated in the application for the regular scholarship and can only be awarded if the necessary financial means are available.
• If you would like to apply, please note that the funding period for a short term research stay in Germany is part of the In-Region programme and the regular study period of the programme may not be exceeded by the short term research stay in Germany. It must be included in the regular study period of the In-Region programme. Further information will be provided upon request via the DAAD Portal after you have received your In-Region scholarship.

The short-term research scholarship includes:

• a monthly scholarship payment for living costs
• health/accident/personal liability insurance
• a flat-rate travel allowance

All DAAD In-Region scholarship holders are also
b) invited to apply for different Summer Schools in Germany (four weeks)
c) invited to participate in further training possibilities such as E-Trainings and/or Soft Skill Trainings.

Further details regarding additional benefits and the corresponding application processes will be provided after admission to the scholarship programme.

Selection

All applicants must submit a complete application for the programme via the DAAD Portal. This is a standard uploading area for all programme applications and some documents may not be mandatory for your application. Please refer to your programme call to check which documents are required.
Please be aware of the DAAD’s application deadline as well as of the deadline of the respective programme you are applying for.
The specific application instructions regarding each host institution are listed in the respective calls for applications (linked below).

Further information

Application deadline
Deadlines may differ. Please see below for individual deadlines mentioned for the respective call.

Currently open calls:
(In-Region scholarships only)

Costa Rica

• Center for Tropical Agricultural Research and Education (CATIE), Subject fields:
  
  Master in Agroforestry and Sustainable Agriculture
  Master in Economy, Development and Climate Change
  Master in Management and Conservation of Tropical Forest and Biodiversity
  Application Closing Date in the DAAD Portal (for all candidates): 15.04.2025

• Universidad Nacional de Costa Rica (UNA), Subject fields:
  Master in Tropical Diseases
  Application Closing Date in the DAAD Portal (for all candidates): 15.04.2025

Further calls which are currently not open:
Please find below the list of the degree programmes funded within this scholarship programme including the links to the respective calls for applications that have already been expired or will be announced in August 2025.

Costa Rica

• University for Peace (UPEACE), Subject fields:
  
  Master in Environment, Development and Peace
  Master in Conflict Resolution, Peace and Development
  Application Closing Date in the DAAD Portal (for all candidates): 22.03.2025

• Universidad de Costa Rica (UCR), Subject fields:
  
  Master in Atmospheric Sciences
  Master in Biology
  Master in Hydrology
  Application Closing Date in the DAAD Portal (for all candidates): 15.03.2025

• Instituto Tecnológico de Costa Rica (ITCR) y Universidad de Costa Rica (UCR), Subject fields:
  Academic Doctorate in Engineering
  Application Closing Date in the DAAD Portal: 04.03.2025