Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung International Scholarship Programme

Who can apply

German language proficiency at a minimum B2 level, demonstrated for example by a Goethe-Institut certificate, is mandatory even for English-taught programmes
Master's applicants must intend to enrol in a four-semester MA programme at a German university
Bachelor's applicants must have already completed at least two semesters of a BA programme at a German university; this cannot fund the start of an undergraduate degree
Minimum funding period is four semesters; most three-semester LLM programmes do not qualify
Human medicine and dentistry leading to a state examination are excluded, as are medical specialisation programmes and PostDoc research
No age limit, and no bridge funding is available for a scholarship that is about to end

A monthly stipend, not a tuition scholarship or a way to start a degree

This is a monthly stipend for students already on their way into a German university, not a tuition scholarship and not a way to fund the start of a degree from scratch. Bachelor’s applicants have to have already completed two semesters in Germany, and master’s applicants have to be enrolling in a four-semester MA programme specifically. German at a minimum B2 level is a hard requirement even if the degree itself is taught in English, because the seminar programme and mentoring that come with the scholarship run in German.

What the money actually covers

The money itself: up to 992 euros a month for bachelor’s, master’s or postgraduate study, or up to 1,400 euros a month for doctoral candidates, plus optional extras on request such as a health insurance subsidy, a family allowance, and a child allowance. Tuition is reimbursed only in exceptional cases and capped at 750 euros a semester; enrolment, re-registration and semester ticket fees are never covered, so budget for those separately.

Two different deadlines depending on where you’re applying from

Two different deadlines apply depending on where you’re applying from. If you already live in Germany, the domestic-route deadline is fixed, 15 July at noon CET every year, so this year’s window has passed and the next is 15 July 2027. If you’re applying from your home country instead, you go through your local Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung office, and only some offices run a round in a given year, each with its own schedule, so check whether your country’s office is participating before preparing an application. If you’re specifically applying from Kenya, Uganda, South Sudan, Tanzania or Ethiopia, the KAS-SAIIA Scholarship Programme is a separate, Africa-specific KAS track worth checking alongside this one.

CDU-affiliated but financially independent, dating to 1955

KAS itself traces back to 1955, when it began as the Society for Christian Democratic Educational Work, before taking Konrad Adenauer’s name in 1964 in honour of West Germany’s first Federal Chancellor. The foundation states it is politically affiliated with the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) but financially and organisationally independent, which is part of why its scholarship programme runs on Federal Foreign Office funding rather than party funds, even though it’s built around Adenauer’s own political legacy and values.