About DAAD
DAAD available Master and PhD Scholarships! The German Academic Exchange Service(DAAD) is offering In-Country/In-Region scholarships for different Master and PhD programmes for students from Sub-Saharan African countries at selected institutions for a wide range of disciplines, including (among others): Molecular Biology and Human Genetics (MBHG), Urban Studies – Southern Urbanism, Development Studies at ISD, Computer Science, Aquaculture and Fisheries. A web seminar will take place on March 13, 2025 where all details of the scholarship program and the currently open calls will be explained
In-Country/In-Region Programme in Developing Countries
The In-Country/In-Region scholarship programme supports the training of future professionals and managerial staff in developing countries, in particular university teachers. Support is available for postgraduate programmes and for doctorates.
Background
In many developing countries top-level university teachers are scarce, especially in the area of development-related subjects. This limits the quality of university education: due to the small number of highly qualified lecturers it is not possible to provide enough adequate study places. A well-developed higher education sector is essential for training the professionals and managerial staff that can be highly conducive to the political, economic, and social success of developing countries.
The In-Country/In-Region programme in developing countries aims to contribute to train highly qualified professionals and managerial staff for sustainable development in the partner countries and for the development of top-quality, cosmopolitan universities. The programme thus offers scholarships to future university teachers from developing countries for postgraduate courses and for doctorates. They study at universities in their home country or at highly qualified institutions in the region, some of which are organised in networks.
The partner universities and partner institutions in the respective countries are intermediaries, but profit directly from the programme through tuition fees. The regional focus of the programme is sub-Saharan Africa; however, very similar programmes are run in Central America, South America, South and South-East Asia, and the Middle East.
Programme objectives
The objective of the programme is to qualify graduates for taking on positions of responsibility in development-related areas in teaching and research. It also aims to promote the participation of women and disadvantaged groups and to strengthen the organisational, financial, and personnel capacities of the partner institutions.
Impact
In the year 2023, 267 new scholarships were awarded within the programme. Disadvantaged groups in particular profit from the support offered through the programme. In the year 2023, 38,2 per cent of the scholarships in the programme went to participants from least developed countries (LDC). The percentage of women almost reached 38,6 per cent. By reaching a higher level of education, scholarship holders increase their chances of appropriate employment and obtaining a leadership position. A significant number of alumni of the programme confirm that their partcipation in the programme benefitted them greatly in their career development. 55 host institutions are supported through tuition fees.
In order to achieve the intended programme objectives even more efficiently, the DAAD targets the needs of developing and newly industrialised countries with its funding instruments and evaluates the impact of its funding programmes. In 2014, the DAAD introduced a comprehensive result-oriented monitoring system in order to further improve the quality and transparency of its work.
Information for prospective scholarship applicants
The In-Country/In-Region Scholarship Programme supports academics with a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in the regions of Subsaharan Africa, Central and South America, South and Southeast Asia, as well as the Middle East, with a scholarship for a consecutive Master’s degree or a PhD. Scholarships are awarded in the applicants home country/country of residence (in-country scholarships) or in their home region (in-region scholarships).
Scholarship funding
The DAAD In-Country/In-Region Scholarship usually includes:
- tuition fees
- monthly scholarship rate
- study and research allowance
- printing allowance for the final thesis
- only for In-Region Scholarship holders: travel allowance and usually funding for health insurance
Open Scholarship Calls (Start of Study in Autumn 2025)
Deadline: April 9th, 2025
- Currently DAAD is offering In-Country/In-Region scholarships for different Master and PhD programmes for students from Sub-Saharan African countries at selected institutions ICIR Overview Programmes. [pdf-file]
- Check out the DAAD Scholarship Database for further details! You can find the link below!
- OPEN CALLS 2025 (Scholarship start date between August and November 2025): Overview of the programmes: ICIR_Overview Open Calls 2025 [pdf-file]
- OPEN CALLS, Start of study in 2025: Fact Sheet with all relevant information and contacts: ICIR_Fact Sheet 2025 [pdf-file]
- The DAAD plans to offer a virtual information session for interested applicants on Thursday, 13th of March 2025: Click here to join the meeting (Microsoft Teams)
Calls for scholarship applications in the DAAD scholarship database
In the scholarship database, you will find PDF documents for each individual call for applications. In the PDF documents, you will find the required information regarding the application process. There are different application processes depending on the programme region and the host institutions as well as other partners involved. The PDF documents can be found in the section „More detailed/further information“.DAAD as well as the participating host institutions will be happy to assist you in your application for a DAAD scholarship. The contact information of the contact persons for each programme can also be found in PDF “call for scholarship applications” documents.