Maastricht University NL-High Potential Scholarship 2027: Who Gets It and How to Apply

If you’re a non-EU student aiming for a master’s in the Netherlands, the Maastricht University NL-High Potential Scholarship 2027 is one of the few awards that pays tuition and a monthly living stipend. Maastricht gives out only 18 of them for the 2027-2028 intake. The first deadline is 10 December 2026, not February, and that catches people out every year.

Quick facts

Who is eligible

The rules are stricter than the headline suggests, so go through them one at a time.

Nationality. You need a passport from outside the EU/EEA, Switzerland and Surinam. If you hold a second nationality from any EU/EEA country or Switzerland, you’re out, even if you’ve never lived there.

Visa position. You must qualify for a Dutch entry visa (MVV) and residence permit. If you already live in another Schengen country on a residence permit, that permit must stay valid until at least 2 September 2027. If it expires sooner, you can only apply from your home country through an MVV application. Check this before you spend a weekend on your motivation letter.

A complete programme application. This is the quirk that matters most. Your application to a participating master’s must be submitted in full by 10 December 2026, with every admission requirement met. A missing English test score or transcript can knock you out of the scholarship, even though the scholarship form isn’t due until 1 February.

Participating programmes only. Only the master’s programmes on Maastricht’s participating list qualify. Open that list before you pick your programme, not after.

Admission-stage requirements. By 1 February 2027 you must have met all registration requirements except legal residence, tuition payment and the hard copy of your diploma.

Maastricht’s pages for earlier years said preference goes to candidates who don’t yet hold a master’s degree. The current page I could read was cut off before that section, so confirm it. The official page doesn’t state a minimum GPA in the part I could access, so check there for any cutoff. Don’t rely on blogs for it.

What it covers

Maastricht’s page confirms two things: a tuition fee waiver and a monthly stipend. The exact figures for 2027-2028 should be taken from the official “Amount” section.

Older versions of the page, and sites that copied them, described a package of about €34,000 for the 2025-2026 and 2026-2027 intakes. That package included a €1,225 monthly stipend (€15,925 over 13 months), and the award lasted 13 months for a one-year master’s and 25 months for a two-year master’s. Earlier years also had the university arranging housing and visa costs. They also had a rule that you must accept the room Maastricht offers or lose the scholarship, and that the room isn’t suitable for partners or children. The 2026-2027 page said these amounts could change for 2027-2028. Treat them as last year’s numbers.

How to apply, step by step

1. Pick a participating programme (this week). Compare the participating list against your degree and your admission chances. An admission rejection ends your scholarship chances too.
2. Check your visa route (1-2 days). Confirm where you’d collect your MVV, and look at your residence permit’s expiry date if you’re in another Schengen country.
3. Gather admission documents (2-6 weeks). Transcripts, degree certificates, an English test result if your programme requires one, and anything else on the programme page. Language tests and certified transcripts are what usually run late.
4. Submit your programme application by 10 December 2026. Apply through Studielink, as with earlier years. Submitting the full file is the real test, since a half-finished file counts as a missed deadline. Aim to finish by the end of November.
5. Get your UM student number. After applying you get a student ID, which you need to open the scholarship form.
6. Complete the scholarship application form (about 1-2 weeks). Log in with your UM account, fill in the online form, and upload the required documents. Earlier-year guides mention a motivation letter in Maastricht’s template, but confirm the current document list on the official page.
7. Submit by 1 February 2027. Don’t wait for the last evening. Earlier cycles reportedly said no changes after submission.
8. Wait for results. Earlier-year guides put announcements around April. Keep your visa and housing plans flexible until you hear.

Competitive reality check, and who should skip it

Eighteen awards for the entire world is a small number. The page doesn’t give an acceptance rate, so I won’t guess one. A few third-party sites claim roughly 2%, but I couldn’t trace it to Maastricht, so treat it as unconfirmed. Treat this as a very competitive award, not a long shot you throw an hour at.

The usual ways to lose it are mundane. Applicants submit an incomplete programme file by 10 December, apply to a programme that isn’t on the participating list, or hold a dual EU nationality they forgot about. A generic motivation letter also hurts, because the scholarship is about your potential and what you’ll contribute, not just your grades.

This isn’t for you if you’re an EU/EEA citizen, if you need to bring a partner or children and can’t use the housing arrangement described in earlier years, or if you can’t get an English test result and transcripts together by early December. Apply to Maastricht’s other funding options instead of forcing it.

FAQ

Can I apply if I already have a master’s degree?
Earlier years gave preference to people without one. Ask hhp.scholarship@maastrichtuniversity.nl before investing time.

Do I need to apply to the programme first?
Yes. You need a UM student number from your programme application to open the scholarship form.

I live in Germany on a residence permit. Am I out?
Not necessarily, but your permit must be valid until at least 2 September 2027. If it isn’t, you can only apply from your home country via an MVV application.

Does it cover tuition and living costs?
It includes a tuition waiver and a monthly stipend. Check the official “Amount” section for the 2027-2028 breakdown.

Can I apply with a dual nationality?
Not if the second nationality is from an EU/EEA country or Switzerland.

Official link and what to check next

Read the full terms and the participating programmes list on the official Maastricht University NL-High Potential Scholarship page.

On MastersGrant, look next at other fully funded master’s scholarships in the Netherlands, such as Orange Knowledge-style and university-specific awards, and at Erasmus Mundus joint master’s programmes. Both are worth applying to alongside this one, since a single award at these odds shouldn’t be your only plan.