About

Every year, DAAD invitees UC San Diego to nominate one (1) priority candidate out of two programs: the Study Scholarship (excluding architecture and artistic fields) and Research Grants:

Study Scholarships (excluding architecture and artistic fields) are available to highly qualified nominees who have received an undergraduate degree of all disciplines for a full master's degree program at a German university, or for study at a German university as part of a postgraduate or master's degree program completed in the home country.
- What can be funded?
  - a whole postgraduate or Master's degree program completed at a state or state-recognized university in Germany
    or
  - one year of study in Germany as part of a second or Master's degree completed at your home university. The general condition is that the academic credits you gain in Germany are recognized by your home university. Moreover, the standard period of study at your home university should not be exceeded as a result of the study year in Germany.
  - Funding for a Master's program already started in Germany cannot be granted.
- Duration of the funding
  - Depending on the length of your chosen program, the scholarship is intended for visits of between 10 and 24 months
Research Grants-One Year Grants are available to highly qualified candidates who:
- are doing your doctorate at a university or research institution outside Germany or
- have already completed your doctorate (post-doc, up to 4 years after completing your doctorate)
- You cannot apply if you are doing your entire doctorate at a German university.

They also offer many additional opportunities for students to study or do research in Germany. For more information on the other DAAD funding opportunities please visit their Scholarship Database.

The nominated candidate from UC San Diego will receive preferential status in the highly competitive selection procedure for these grants. Candidates nominated by DAAD’s partner universities compete in a separate pool with a high probability of being awarded a scholarship. Students are also welcome to apply without a UC San Diego nomination, but they will run in the open competition with candidates from all over North America.

Although the nominated candidate will enjoy a high priority in the DAAD selection process, please note that the final decision on all grant applications will be made by DAAD’s Selection Committee in New York City. The Selection Committee is an independent group of distinguished US, Canadian, and German scholars representing a cross-section of disciplines and universities. Applicants will be chosen according to DAAD criteria and standards.

Nomination Process

Internal Nomination Materials:

Curriculum Vitae
Letter of Motivation: academic and personal reasons for your planned project in Germany, taking account of the following question: What do you hope to gain from your project in Germany (personally, professionally, for your career)?
Reference Letter

Please note that once the UCSD nominee is selected, they will be required to submit a full application to DAAD with the requirements linked below:

Study Scholarship Checklist:

Research Grant Checklist:

Graduate departments/programs can each submit one nomination by October 1, 2025.
Please submit all nomination materials as one single PDF file via InfoReady Portal
If you have any questions, please send an email to gradfellowshipnoms@ucsd.edu which will create a ticket in the Services & Support portal.

trueRecipients

Award Year	Student Name	Department
2023-24	Bas Toenissen	Philosophy
2024-25	Nathanial James	Anthropology

DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service)

Updated Information