Maastricht University Scholarships 2027-28: Full List, Amounts, and Eligibility for Indian Students

Maastricht University Scholarships 2027-28: What’s Actually Available

Maastricht University runs four scholarship programs that Indian students can realistically target, and they are not interchangeable. Most of what ranks online today talks about only one of them, usually with numbers from an older cycle. Here is what is actually available for 2027-28.

Counselor insight: Most Indian applicants only discover the Academic Achievement Scholarship after they have been rejected for the High Potential round. Check your target faculty’s page for it now, since it has a separate, lighter application process and doesn’t compete for the same 18 seats.

The NL-High Potential Scholarship is the one worth planning your year around, so the rest of this guide focuses on it in detail, with the other three covered where they matter for your specific profile.

Maastricht University NL-High Potential Scholarship: Eligibility, Amount, and Deadlines

This is the flagship Maastricht University scholarship, jointly funded by the university’s own scholarship fund and the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science. For the 2027-28 academic year, it offers 18 full scholarships to non-EU/EEA students admitted to a participating master’s program.

Eligibility requirements:

• You hold citizenship of a country outside the EU/EEA, Switzerland, or Suriname, and can obtain a Dutch entry visa (MVV).
• You do not hold dual EU/EEA or Swiss nationality.
• You have applied for, or been admitted to, a participating full-time master’s program at Maastricht University for 2027-28.
• You have never completed a degree-seeking program in the Netherlands (exchange semesters are fine).
• You are 35 years old or younger at the start of the academic year.
• Your most recent transcript shows a GPA of 7.5 out of 10 or higher, which Maastricht confirms is equivalent to 75 out of 100 or 3.0 out of 4.0.

What it covers: a full tuition fee waiver, living expenses of Rs.22.1 lakh (€20,150) for a 13-month one-year master’s or Rs.42.5 lakh (€38,750) for a 25-month two-year program, health and liability insurance worth Rs.76,900 (€700), and visa application costs. Airfare is not included, and accepting the scholarship means accepting the room UM allocates you, which is not suitable for a spouse, children, or pets.

Key dates for 2027-28: applications open 1 October 2026 and close 1 February 2027 at 23:59 CET. Your program’s own admission deadline is typically 8 December 2026, and this is separate from the scholarship deadline. If your program charges a handling fee, you’re responsible for paying it by 10 December 2026, since the scholarship does not cover it. Your reference letter must reach UM by the same 1 February deadline, and applications with missing reference letters are treated as incomplete.

Exchange rate used: Rs.109.86 per EUR. Verify the current rate before finalizing your budget.

Other Maastricht University Scholarships for Bachelor’s and Master’s Applicants

If a bachelor’s degree is what you’re chasing, the NL-High Potential Scholarship isn’t an option since it’s restricted to master’s applicants. The UM Global Studies Scholarship is the relevant route instead: it offers one full scholarship per year, a tuition waiver plus stipend, specifically for top-performing bachelor’s applicants to the Global Studies program from Global South countries, which includes India.

For master’s applicants connected to UM’s Brightlands campus programs, the UM Brightlands Talent Scholarship offers four full scholarships a year with similar coverage to the High Potential award, but it applies only to Brightlands-linked master’s degrees such as data science and smart services fields.

Counselor insight: Students often assume “Maastricht scholarship” means one single form. It doesn’t. Confirm which of these four programs your specific master’s or bachelor’s degree is eligible for before you start gathering documents, since each has a separate application track.

Maastricht University Scholarships Documents Checklist for Indian Applicants

Maastricht University Scholarships Planning Calendar for Indian Students

• June to August 2026: Shortlist your eligible master’s program and confirm it participates in the High Potential Scholarship for 2027-28.
• September 2026: Register on Studielink and begin your program application before the scholarship portal opens.
• 1 October 2026: The scholarship application window opens. Start your form early rather than waiting for the deadline rush.
• November 2026: Request your GPA conversion letter from your college registrar while the semester is still active and staff are reachable.
• 8 December 2026: Typical deadline for your master’s program application itself (confirm your specific program’s date).
• 10 December 2026: Deadline to pay any handling fee your program requires, if applicable.
• January 2027: Chase your referee to confirm they will submit the letter directly to UM before the deadline.
• 1 February 2027, 23:59 CET: Final scholarship application and reference letter deadline.
• March 2027: Faculties shortlist the top-ranked applicants, typically around the top 5%.
• April to May 2027: Shortlisted candidates may be invited for an online interview.
• June 2027: Results are announced; accepted students begin their MVV visa application.
• July 2027: Housing is allocated as a mandatory part of the scholarship; confirm you accept the terms.
• August to September 2027: Travel and begin the academic year.

Are You Eligible for a Maastricht University Scholarship? A Decision Framework

If you are a final-year BCom student with an 8.2 CGPA graduating in May 2027, you meet the GPA threshold comfortably. Apply to your target master’s program the moment Studielink opens in September 2026, and submit your scholarship application well before 1 February 2027 rather than at the deadline, since incomplete submissions cannot be fixed afterward.

If you are a working professional with a 3-year employment gap and a 7.8 CGPA from your undergraduate degree, your GPA still qualifies since Maastricht evaluates your transcript, not your current activity. Use a current employer as your referee instead of a former professor if your college contacts are hard to reach, since UM accepts either.

If you are a BTech student with a 7.2 CGPA, you fall short of the 7.5/10 cutoff for the High Potential Scholarship. Rather than applying anyway, check whether your target faculty offers the UM Academic Achievement Scholarship, which has a separate, less GPA-rigid process, and build a parallel education loan plan since your odds here are genuinely low.

Maastricht University Scholarships Acceptance Rate: The Real Odds

Maastricht University states directly that only about 2% of NL-High Potential Scholarship applicants are awarded the scholarship each year, and preference in tie-break situations goes to candidates ranking in the academic top 5% of the applicant pool. No ranking website currently states this figure, which is precisely why most applicants go in with unrealistic expectations.

Counselor insight: Treat this scholarship as an upside you apply for after securing admission, not as your primary funding plan. Indian families budgeting for a Maastricht master’s should build their financial plan around full self-funding or an education loan for study abroad, and treat the scholarship as a possible reduction to that number rather than the number itself.

What to Do If You Miss the Maastricht University Scholarships Deadline

If you miss the 1 February deadline, there is no late window. Maastricht does not accept partial applications or allow you to add documents after submission, so your only realistic option is to apply again in the next cycle, with your documents ready from day one this time.

If your GPA falls just under 7.5/10, don’t wait for a borderline chance. Check your target faculty’s UM Academic Achievement Scholarship page immediately, since it evaluates differently and only competes for one award per faculty rather than 18 across the whole university.

If you’re rejected after applying, you can still enroll using self-funding or a loan since your admission offer to the master’s program itself is independent of the scholarship outcome.

Many Indian students also supplement their budget with part-time work in the Netherlands once enrolled, which UM permits within visa limits.

3 Takeaways on the Maastricht University Scholarships

1. Confirm your GPA meets the 7.5/10 (75%) threshold before building your entire budget around a Maastricht University scholarship, since only 2% of applicants are selected.
2. Apply to your master’s program via Studielink well before the 8 December program deadline, since your scholarship application depends on it and cannot be submitted with missing documents.
3. Build your financial plan around self-funding or an education loan first, and treat the scholarship as a possible reduction to that number rather than your primary funding source.

Verified by: LeapScholar’s Netherlands counseling team, with hands-on experience guiding Indian students through Studielink applications, Dutch scholarship rounds, and IND visa processes.

Have questions about your Maastricht University scholarships application? Book a free session with a LeapScholar counselor.

Frequently Asked Questions About Maastricht University Scholarships