Eiffel Scholarship Program For International Students 2022: Overview, Eligibility & Process

When it comes to choosing a destination for studying abroad, Europe has it all, from world-class education to the dynamic culture and high standards of living. While the tuition fees may be manageable, living expenses in countries like France can be higher for international students. But thanks to scholarships like Eiffel scholarships, aspiring students can pursue higher studies in French educational institutions without burning a hole in their pocket.

The Eiffel Excellence Scholarship program of excellence by the French government has been financially aiding students who wish to pursue master’s and PhD in France since 1999. Read this blog to know if you are eligible for the Eiffel scholarship. This blog talks about the scholarship in detail, including its eligibility criteria, the application process, selection procedure, and more.

Eiffel Scholarship Program of Excellence

The Eiffel scholarship program was initiated by the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs of the French government. It aims to enable higher education institutes in France to attract top international students for enrolling in their master’s and PhD programs. It also aims to train the future foreign decision-makers in public and private sectors and gives them an opportunity in priority areas of study. The Eiffel scholarship encourages applicants of up to 25 years from developing countries at the master’s level and applicants of up to 30 years of age from developing and industrialized countries at the PhD level. Further, the scholarship has two different components as follows:

• Master’s component: It offers funding for 12 to 36 months duration to financially aid international students to earn a master’s degree in a French higher education institute.
• Doctoral component: It offers funding of up to 12 months to international students for doctoral research in France as a part of a joint doctoral course.

Supported areas and levels of study:

The Eiffel scholarship mainly provides for a master’s and a doctorate in two disciplinary fields covered by seven areas of study. These are: Science and Technology

• Biology and Health
• Engineering Sciences
• Ecological Transition
• Mathematics and Digital

Humanities and Social Sciences

• History, French language, and Civilization
• Economics and Management
• Law and Political Science

French higher education institutes nominate candidates for the Eiffel scholarships for the following courses:

• Master’s degree programs
• Engineering programs
• Joint doctoral programs in partnership with partner institutions abroad (with joint supervision of dissertation and/or a dual degree)

Amount awarded

Following are the benefits included in the Eiffel scholarship:

• For master’s level: The scholarship provides a monthly allowance of €1,181 to the holder, of which €1,031 is a maintenance allowance and €150 is an additional stipend. It is awarded for:
• Maximum 12 months for students entering the second year of the master’s degree
• Maximum 24 months for students entering the first year of the master’s degree
• Maximum 36 months for students entering an engineering degree course
• For doctorate level: The scholarship provides a monthly stipend of €1,700 to doctoral candidates for a maximum of 12 months.
• Additional benefits: The scholarship provides various other benefits such as housing allowance, international air travel (round trip tickets to and from home country), reimbursement for local transportation, other transport within France (train travel), and health insurance coverage. Moreover, it covers cultural activities such as weekend trips, short stays, sports or recreational activities and shows/performances to give the international students a glimpse of French culture and life.

However, scholarship recipients must note that if their activities do not comply with its objectives, the scholarship will be terminated. Also, the scholarship does not cover tuition fees for both components. But international students enrolling in public educational institutions are exempted from the tuition fees if they are holders of French government scholarships.

Latest updates on Eiffel Scholarship Program 2022

Here are some important dates for the Eiffel scholarship application in 2022:

• Online applications submission: week of 27th September 2021
• Application deadline for submission on Campus France: 7th January 2022
• Results publication: week of 4th April 2022

(students must also contact their institution who is submitting their Eiffel application to check the institution’s deadline for submitting students’ application materials) The list of scholarship awardees is published on the official website of Campus France. The results are typically announced at the beginning of April so that the students who have applied for other scholarships learn early if they are selected for the Eiffel scholarship or not. However, applicants must note that the Eiffel scholarship cannot be held in concurrence with another scholarship by the French government or the Erasmus+ scholarship or Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie scholarship. In such cases, candidates can only choose one scholarship, and if they choose to give up the Eiffel scholarship, they need to inform Campus France immediately.

Eligibility criteria

Now that you know plenty about the Eiffel scholarship, here are the eligibility criteria you need to fulfil if you want to apply for it:

• Nationality: The scholarship is for non-French nationals, and if candidates have two nationalities, of which French is one, they are not eligible.
• Age: To apply for the master’s component, candidates must be 25 years old or under at the time of the application. And for the doctoral component, candidates must be 30 years old or under at the time of the application.
• Targeted academic levels: As discussed above, the scholarship is only intended for international students seeking to study at the master’s or doctoral level. And only courses that are recognized by the French government are eligible. As for the academic qualifications required, candidates can get in touch with their chosen institute in French since the institution will be submitting the applications.
• Language proficiency: The language skills of candidates must meet the requirements of the academic program they are applying for. French institutions shall ensure the same while applying for non-French speaking candidates.

How to apply?

For Eiffel scholarships, only applications submitted exclusively by French educational institutions are accepted. Applications submitted from other sources (such as directly by students or by foreign institutions) are not considered. So here are the steps you can follow to apply for the Eiffel scholarship:

• Contact the international relations department of your chosen French institute via its website, email or telephone to learn about their requirements, procedures, and deadlines for submitting the application. You can choose an institute that best fits your plan of pursuing higher studies in France.
• After you make an application with the institution, it accepts and supports your application for the Eiffel scholarship.
• Then, the institution completes and submits your application form online on your behalf, ensuring all the guidelines are met. Candidates can stay in touch with the university to keep updated about the progress of their application.

Documents required:

Candidates may be asked for the following documents by their universities to make an application for the Eiffel scholarship.

• Copy of valid ID/passport
• Academic transcripts of all the years of higher education
• CV
• Research proposal/project proposal
• Statement of Purpose
• Two recommendation letters from previous professors/institute
• Language proficiency test score certificates (English and/or French), if necessary

Selection procedure

The selection for Eiffel scholarship recipients is made by a committee composed of seven panels of experts (one for each area of study). The panel members do not evaluate applications from the institutions they are affiliated with. The committee ranks applicants on the basis of the following criteria:

• Candidates’ qualifications as indicated by their academic achievements, and for doctoral candidates, the originality of their research topic
• Institution’s international policy: The institution that is nominating the candidate should be able to demonstrate its international excellence initiatives. It should also show its quality of welcoming international students, particularly concerning the Eiffel scholarship program candidates.
• Cooperation and partnership policy of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs (depends on the priority it assigns to certain countries, particularly with respect to the Eiffel program)

Depending on the scoring of the candidates and the number of Eiffel scholarships available, the committee:

• Awards 70% of the scholarships to the highest scoring candidates
• Awards remaining scholarships to admissible candidates from institutions that have not received a scholarship yet. (the committee sets a minimum threshold for admissibility)

Conclusion

All in all, the Eiffel scholarship is available in all higher education institutions in France for international students and targets master’s and doctoral studies. We hope this blog helped answer a lot of your questions about the Eiffel scholarship. If you are planning to study in France, the Eiffel program can be a great option. Reach out to our experts at Leap Scholar and start your French journey today!

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