Does the Indian Government Offer Scholarships to Study Abroad?

7,70,000 Indian students currently study abroad. The number is expected to rise to 20 lakhs by 2024.

Two of the biggest concerns of these students? Getting admission to a reputed college/university and finding funding for the associated expenses.

Scholarships solve the latter problem. We know the next question popping into your mind:

Here’s a guide offering the answer. In the next five minutes, the guide will tell you about 5 popular Indian government scholarships to study abroad.

However, before you shortlist your coveted scholarships, you’ll need to choose a college from the thousands out there. Use SelectRight — our AI-powered university search tool — to make your work easier. More on SelectRight later. Back to scholarships for now.

Note: the information is true at the time of writing. That’s April 2022.

5 popular Indian government scholarships to study abroad

Fullbright-Nehru Master’s Fellowship

The Fullbright-Nehru Master’s fellowship is one of the most popular Indian government scholarships to study abroad that help Indian students wishing to pursue a Master’s degree at U.S. universities.

The study abroad scholarship is based on merit.

Eligibility criteria

• Applicants must have completed the equivalent of a U.S. bachelor’s degree from a recognised Indian university securing at least 55% marks. The eligible degrees include a four-year bachelor’s degree, a completed Master’s degree, or a full-time postgraduate diploma.
• If the duration of the bachelor’s degree is less than 4 years, the applicant must have at least 3 years of full-time professional work experience by the application deadline. The work experience must be relevant to the proposed field of study.
• Applicants must have experience in leadership and community services.

Benefits

• Funding for tuition, living costs, sickness and accident coverage as per the U.S. government guidelines.
• J-1 visa support.
• Round-trip economy class air travel allowance from the applicant’s home city to the host U.S. institution.

Duration

One to two years.

Check out the official scholarship page for more information.

Agatha Harrison Memorial Fellowship

The Agatha Harrison Memorial Fellowship is one of the fully-funded scholarships for Indian students that helps one student to study at St. Anthony College, Oxford University London, for one academic year.

The study abroad scholarship is based on merit.

Eligibility criteria

• Applicants must have at least 60% marks in Postgraduation.
• Applicants must have a PhD degree in the chosen subject field or published works of equivalent to much recognition.
• Applicants must specialize in History, Political Science, or Economics.

Benefits

• All expenses covered up to £29,944.85.
• Round-trip economy class air travel allowance for the candidate and their spouse (If they stay in the UK with the scholar for a full year).
• Six high table dinner allowances.

Duration

One year. However, the Indian government can renew the scholarship for another year if they believe the candidate’s performance is satisfactory.

Check out the official scholarship page for more information.

Fullbright-Kalam Climate Fellowship

The Fullbright-Kalam Climate Fellowship is one of the Indian government scholarships to study abroad that funds researchers working towards studies and research related to climate change.

The government offers the study abroad scholarship on three levels — Doctoral research, Postdoctoral research, and Academic and Professional excellence.

Eligibility criteria

• Applicants must have a paper or article published or presented.
• The applicant’s PhD supervisor must recommend them stating the registration date, topic, comments on their research, and the need for the fellowship.
• The expected submission date for the PhD thesis mustn’t be earlier than 3 months after the end date of the scholarship.

Benefits

• A monthly stipend.
• J-1 visa support.
• Round-trip economy class air travel allowance between India and the U.S.
• Accident and Sickness Program allowance as per the U.S. government guidelines.

Duration

Six to nine months.

Check out the official scholarship page for more information.

National Overseas Scholarship

The National Overseas Scholarship is one of the Indian government scholarships for studying abroad that helps students from the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe categories.

The study abroad scholarship offers 100 seats for the SC category and 20 seats for the ST category in a year.

The scholarship is applicable for:

• Pure and Applied Sciences
• Medicine
• Agricultural Sciences
• Management
• Accounting
• Finance
• Commerce

For SC students and:

• Engineering
• Technology
• Science

For ST students. However, choosing a college with these subjects can be an overwhelming task; thanks to the 1000s of options you have. Use SelectRight to make the most informed decision.

On SelectRight, we offer unbiased personalised college recommendations by analysing 6 million data points. Write to us at grad@stage.gradright.com to know more.

Eligibility criteria

• Applicants must belong to Scheduled Castes, Denotified Semi-Nomadic and Nomadic tribes, traditional artisans, or landless agricultural labourers.
• Applicants must have scored at least 55% marks in bachelor’s degree (when applying for Master’s) or in Postgraduation (when applying for PhD).
• Applicants must be below 35 years of age.
• Applicants can’t have more than one sibling who received the scholarship.
• The applicant’s combined family income must be lower than Rs. 6,00,000.

Benefits

• Maintenance allowance of $15,400 or £9,900 (For students in the UK) per year.
• Visa fees.
• Round-trip economy class air travel allowance.
• Tuition, books, and living costs.
• Medical insurance.

Duration

Till the course is complete.

Check out the official scholarship page for more information.

Dr Ambedkar Scheme of Interest Subsidy on Educational Loan for Overseas Studies

The Dr Ambedkar Scheme of Interest Subsidy is one of the scholarships for Indian students to study abroad that offers interest subsidies to meritorious students from Other Backward Classes (OBC) and Economically Backward Classes (ECW).

The Indian government offers the scholarship for Master’s, PhD, and M.Phil studies.

Eligibility criteria

• Applicants must have secured admission in the approved courses at Master’s, PhD, or M.Phil levels abroad.
• Applicants must have received a loan from a selected bank under the Education Loan Scheme of the Indian Banks Association (IBA) for the purpose.
• EBC candidates must not have a combined family income of more than Rs. 2.50 lakhs.

Benefits

The Indian government will pay the interest for the education loan received from IBA for the moratorium period, i.e., up to one year after the course period.

Duration

Up to one year after the course period.

Check out the official scholarship page for more information.

Indian government scholarships to study abroad — knowing the options is only the beginning

Only 19% of Indian students qualify for scholarships. Thus, knowing your options for Indian government scholarships to study abroad resembles getting to know the battlefield. The real fight lies ahead.

However, before you decide on study abroad scholarships from Indian government, you must choose a college. Not an easy task, considering there are 1000s of them. You can’t make your choices based upon what you heard from your seniors, your uncle, or on random blogs on the internet.

Put your trust in SelectRight. Why? We offer:

• Transparent and unbiased college recommendations based on your needs. We use 6 million data points across over 10,000 STEM, MBA, and CS programs to offer you the same.
• Guidance on aspects such as application review, LOR review, or SOP review from unbiased industry experts.
• Practical and relevant advice from current students or alumni of your college of choice.