NRF-DAAD In-Country Scholarship

Together with the National Research Foundation (NRF) in South Africa, the DAAD awards funding opportunities for Master and PhD degrees at South African Universities to South African citizens or permanent South African residents as part of its In-Country/In-Region Scholarship Programme.

The NRF-DAAD In-Country Scholarship is jointly awarded by the DAAD and the NRF to full-time Master and PhD students in all fields of study registered at any South African university. A South African citizenship or a permanent South African residency is a requirement for the scholarship. Applicants must be 30 (Masters) or 32 (PhD) years of age or younger in the year of application. The NRF’s minimum academic requirement for postgraduate funding is 65%.

NRF-DAAD In-Country Scholarship holders are eligible for exciting funding and networking opportunities in addition to the scholarship they have received for their full-time Master or PhD degree in South Africa:

Scholarship holders are eligible to apply for a short-term research stay in Germany. More information here: NRF-DAAD Short-term Stay Germany Leaflet

Scholarship holders are eligible to apply for one of five interdisciplinary summer schools offered in Germany during their funding period:

– University of Frankfurt – Environmental and Remote Sensing Data Analysis via Geospatial Technologies in Research and Teaching (8th September – 30th of September 2024)

– Hamburg University of Applied Sciences (HAW Hamburg) – Education and Research orientated Training in Health Sciences (1st August – 31st August 2024)

– Heidelberg University – Enhancing Academic Qualifications in Teaching and Research in Global Health (1st August – 29th August 2024)

– University of Applied Sciences Cologne (TH Köln) – Climate Change Adaptation: Risk Assessment and Design of Interventions (CC-Adapt) (31st August – 22nd September 2024)

– University of Leipzig – Innovators, Doers and Entrepreneurs [at] summer school (IDEAS) (1st September – 24 September 2024; Virtual Conference: 27 – 30 May onboarding week, 22 – 26 July self-learning course) : “Innovators, doers and entrepreneurs [at] summer school” (IDEAS)

The NRF-DAAD In-Country Scholarship is thus especially interesting to applicants who would like to gain research experience in South Africa and Germany.

Applications are made directly to the NRF in July of each year.

Please note: The name of the Call is ‘NRF Postgraduate Scholarships’.

The NRF Postgraduate Scholarship Call for funding in 2024, including closing dates can be accessed via the link: https://www.nrf.ac.za/dsi-nrf-postgraduate-student-funding-for-the-2024-academic-year/.
Once on the NRF Connect system, select the First-time doctoral scholarship application template, and select ‘NRF-DAAD’ scholarship under the application you are applying for.
NRF Postgraduate Scholarships Call documents are accessible via the link: https://www.nrf.ac.za/nrf-call-for-proposals-for-funding-in-2023-and-2024/
Please refer to the Application and Funding Guide document from the link for step-by-step guidance on completing the application on the system.