What "fully funded" really covers: five scholarships compared

"Fully funded" is the most searched phrase in scholarships, and one of the least precise. On one award it means fees, a monthly stipend, flights, visa costs and a child allowance. On another it means a monthly allowance and a capped airfare, with tuition left to you or your university. Both get called fully funded on social media. This guide compares what five well-known awards actually pay for, using only their official pages, so you can read any listing with the right questions in mind.

There's no official definition

No regulator or standard sits behind the phrase. Funders describe their own packages in their own words, and aggregator sites often round them up. A scholarship that covers fees and living costs for the scholar alone is usually what people mean, but the details that decide whether you can actually take up a place sit in the small print: how big the stipend is against local rent, whether flights are paid or reimbursed later, who pays the visa and health surcharge, and what happens if you have a partner or children.

So treat "fully funded" as a prompt to check, not an answer.

Five awards, side by side

[Gates Cambridge](https://www.gatescambridge.org/programme/the-scholarship/) is close to the fullest package you'll find. It pays the University Composition Fee in full, a maintenance allowance of £23,152 for 12 months at the 2026-27 rate (pro rata for shorter courses), one economy airfare at the start and end of the course, and inbound visa costs plus the Immigration Health Surcharge. There's also discretionary money: academic development funding, a child allowance of up to £12,793 a year for one child, fieldwork maintenance and parental leave. What it doesn't cover: partner costs, bench fees or equipment, and the maintenance can be reduced if you have a salary or another scholarship. (OpenDoors listing)

[Commonwealth Shared Scholarships](https://cscuk.fcdo.gov.uk/scholarships/commonwealth-shared-scholarships/) cover full fees, a stipend of £1,712 a month (£2,000 in London) at current levels, an approved return airfare, a thesis grant where applicable, a study travel grant and a contribution to the TB test. According to the scholar handbook, the visa fee and health surcharge are waived if you declare the scholarship on your visa application. The family support is narrow: a child allowance goes only to single, widowed or divorced parents, it's described as a contribution, and there are no fares for dependants. (OpenDoors listing)

[Schwarzman Scholars](https://www.schwarzmanscholars.org/frequently-asked-questions/) pays for tuition, fees, room and board, travel to and from Beijing at the start and end of the year, in-country study tours, required books and supplies, a laptop, health insurance and a personal stipend. Because accommodation and meals are included, the stipend matters less than on other awards. Passports are the scholar's own cost and there's no funding for spouses or partners. (OpenDoors listing)

[Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters](https://erasmus-plus.ec.europa.eu/programme-guide/part-b/key-action-2/erasmus-mundus-action) follow EU-wide rules. Scholarship holders get €1,400 a month for the length of the programme, and they can't be charged tuition or other mandatory participation costs. The consortium covers full insurance. Here's the catch people miss: there's no separate flight or visa payment. The monthly allowance is meant to contribute to travel, visa, installation and living costs together. Some programmes let you take part of it upfront. GLOCAL, run by a consortium led by the University of Glasgow, offers either €1,400 a month or €1,275 a month plus three €1,000 advances for visa, travel and settling in. (OpenDoors listing)

[France Excellence Eiffel](https://www.campusfrance.org/system/files/medias/documents/2026-10/reglementation_bourse_eiffel_2027_EN.pdf) is the one most often described as fully funded when it isn't, at least on fees. The 2027 rules set a monthly allowance of €1,200 for master's students and €2,000 for PhD students, reimburse the cheapest return airfare up to a cap, provide health insurance and help with housing. Tuition and course fees are not paid by the programme, apart from a fee exemption at Ministry of Higher Education public institutions for national degrees and engineering diplomas. Language courses and airfare above the cap aren't covered either. (OpenDoors listing)

Where the gaps usually are

Across these five, the same weak points come up again and again.

• Family. Not one of the five guarantees money for a partner. Child support ranges from a discretionary allowance (Gates) to a restricted contribution (Commonwealth) to nothing stated. If you'd move with family, this is the first thing to check.
• Getting there. Flights are paid outright on some awards, reimbursed after you've bought them on others (Eiffel needs receipts, and the cap is set by country), and folded into the monthly allowance on Erasmus Mundus. Reimbursement means you need the cash before you travel.
• Visa and health surcharge. For the UK in particular, the Immigration Health Surcharge is a large upfront cost. Gates covers it and the Commonwealth handbook says it's waived, but many awards don't mention it.
• Stipend against the city. €1,200 a month goes further in some French cities than in Paris, and £1,712 goes further in most of the UK than in London, which is why the Commonwealth pays more there. Compare the figure to real rents, not to your home costs.
• The first month. Stipends often arrive after you've paid a deposit and the first month's rent. Advances like GLOCAL's help; otherwise budget for a gap.

How to read any listing

When you find an award described as fully funded, open the official page and look for the funder's own list of what's included. Then answer seven questions: Are fees paid, waived or not mentioned? How much is the stipend, for how many months, and is it a rate that changes each year? Are flights paid, reimbursed or included in the stipend? Who pays the visa and any health surcharge? Is health insurance provided? Is there anything for a partner or children? What would you still need to pay yourself?

If the official page doesn't answer one of these, email the funder before you commit to the application. It's a normal question and most programmes answer it.

Also check how you apply. Eiffel, for example, doesn't take applications from students: French universities nominate the candidates they want, so your route in is through the institution's own deadline, which comes before the national one in early January.

Deadlines for these five

Commonwealth Shared Scholarships close at 16:00 GMT on 8 December 2026. Gates Cambridge closes on 8 December 2026 or 6 January 2027, depending on your course. GLOCAL's scholarship deadline is 13:00 UK time on 14 January 2027. Eiffel nominations from French institutions close in early January 2027. Schwarzman's latest round for US and global applicants closed in September 2026, and dates for the next one haven't been published yet. If two of these overlap for you, our December deadlines plan covers briefing referees before the holiday break.

Next step

Pick the two or three awards you're most likely to apply for and write down, for each, what's covered and what you'd pay yourself. If you'd like a shortlist to start from, OpenDoors builds a profile from your CV and shows every open scholarship you're eligible for, with a summary of what each one requires from its official page. You can also browse the fully funded master's and PhD guides, or everything listed under scholarships.