What DAAD Scholarships for Development-Related Postgraduate Courses in Germany actually covers.
The DAAD Development-Related Postgraduate Courses programme funds graduates from developing countries, including most of Africa, to pursue Masters and doctoral degrees at German universities in fields directly relevant to sustainable development. Because eligibility is tied to the OECD-DAC list of aid-recipient countries, applicants from the large majority of African nations qualify, making this one of the most established and Africa-friendly funding streams in Europe. The scholarship pays a monthly stipend of EUR 992 for graduates or EUR 1,300 for doctoral candidates, and adds health, accident and personal liability insurance, a travel allowance, and in some circumstances rent subsidies and family allowances. Because tuition at German public universities is generally free, the stipend goes toward living well while studying. The programme is aimed at working professionals: applicants are usually already employed in development-related roles, must hold a relevant first degree, and are expected to have at least two years of professional experience and an above-average academic record placing them in the top third of their cohort. The list of eligible courses spans a broad set of disciplines including economics and business administration, development cooperation, engineering, mathematics, regional and urban planning, agricultural and forest sciences, environmental sciences, medicine and public health, social sciences, education, law and media studies. One important practical note: this is an umbrella programme covering many individual Masters and PhD courses, and each course sets its own application deadline, generally falling between August and October. Prospective applicants should identify their target course in the DAAD scholarship database and confirm its specific deadline and requirements rather than relying on a single date.
Who can apply.
Open to masters, phd applicants seeking to study in Germany.
Open to applicants from across the African continent. Confirm specific nationality eligibility on the official application page.
Every academic discipline is accepted.
This programme does not restrict by field. Research proposals across humanities, sciences, engineering, agriculture, and medicine are all accepted.
From here to submitted.
Scholar Africa helps you discover, shortlist, and track. The application itself is submitted on the provider's site.
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Save itAdd this to your shortlist so we can recommend similar scholarships and remind you of the deadline.
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Prepare your documentsMost providers ask for the same set — transcripts, references, a personal statement, ID. Use the checklist below to track progress across all your applications.
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Apply on the provider's siteSubmit on the provider's site before October 31, 2026 · 107 days left.
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Track the outcomeAdd to your tracker so you can update the status as the provider responds (shortlisted, interview, decision).
Document checklist
Checks are local to this device — they're not stored. Always confirm exact requirements on the provider's official application page.
What we checked, when we checked it.
Scholar Africa runs a link-liveness check on every listing before it goes live and an admin manually reviews every scholarship submitted by providers. DAAD Scholarships for Development-Related Postgraduate Courses in Germany is awaiting manual review. Five deeper checks (contact, organisation, winners, third-party, formal audit) are on the roadmap.
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Other scholarships worth a parallel application.
Same eligibility window or destination. Many strong applicants apply to three or four programmes per cycle.