Swedish Institute Scholarships

Overview

The Swedish Institute (SI) is now launching the Swedish Institute Scholarships for Global Professionals (SISGP), a new scholarship programme which replaces Swedish Institute Study Scholarships (SISS).

SISGP offers scholarships to a large number of master’s programmes starting in the autumn semester 2019. Check the list of master’s programmes that are eligible for SISGP.

To begin with, apply for a master’s programme at universityadmissions.se, between 16 October 2018 – 15 January 2019.
Apply for an SI scholarship between 4-14 February 2019, follow the instructions below.

An estimated 300 scholarships will be available for full-time master’s studies in Sweden starting in the autumn semester 2019. Usually 1-3 % of the applicants are awarded a SISGP scholarship.

What's included

The scholarship covers:

Tuition fees: directly paid to the Swedish university by us
Living expenses of SEK 10,000/month
Travel grant of SEK 15,000 *
Insurance against illness and accident
Membership of the SI Network for Future Global Leaders(NFGL) – a platform to grow professionally and build your network while in Sweden
Membership of the SI Alumni Network after your scholarship period – a platform for continued networking and further professional development

* The travel grant is a one-time payment for the entire study period. The grant is not applicable to students already living in Sweden.

The scholarship does not cover:

Additional grants for family members
Application fee to University Admissions

Scholarship period

The scholarship is intended for full-time one-year or two-year master’s programmes, and is only awarded for programmes starting in the autumn semester. The scholarship is granted for one academic year (two semesters) at a time. It will be extended for programmes longer than two semesters, provided that the student has passed his/her courses/credits.

The scholarship period cannot be changed or extended beyond the awarded scholarship period, nor can the scholarship be transferred to a study programme other than the awarded master’s programme.

The competition for SI scholarships is very high. We recommend that you also look for other scholarship opportunities from your government, from organisations in your country, or from Swedish universities.

Criteria

Work experience

You must have minimum of 3,000 hours of demonstrated employment.

Leadership experience

You must have demonstrated leadership experience from your current or previous employment.

University admissions

You must be liable to pay tuition fees to Swedish universities, have followed the steps of university admission, and be admitted to one of the eligible master’s programmes by 4 April 2019.

Country of citizenship

You must be a citizen of a country that is eligible for the scholarship programme.

Who we are looking for

The Swedish Institute Scholarships for Global Professionals (SISGP) programme is part of the Swedish government’s international awards scheme aimed at developing global leaders who will contribute to the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It is funded by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Sweden and administered by the Swedish Institute (SI). The programme offers a unique opportunity for global professionals to develop professionally and academically, to experience Swedish society and culture, and to build a long-lasting relationship with Sweden and with each other.

The goal is to enable the scholarship holders to play an active role in the positive development of the societies in which they live. Ideal candidates are ambitious young professionals with academic qualifications, demonstrated work and leadership experience, ambition to make a difference by working with issues which contribute to a just and sustainable development in their country in a long term perspective, and a clear idea of how a study programme in Sweden would benefit their country.

Priority will be given to applicants with a strong and relevant professional background and demonstrated leadership experience.

Required documents

You should only submit the required documents listed below in your online scholarship application. We will not consider any other documents than the required ones. You must complete your application in English. Use our forms and templates provided below, and complete them according to the instructions both below and in the templates/forms, or else your applications will be disqualified. Kindly note the length limitation for your answers and the documents.

A motivation letter: you must use the SISGP form for motivation letter 2019/2020. You need to fill in and upload the motivation letter as a PDF-file on the application portal during the application period.
A Curriculum Vitae (CV): you must use the SISGP template for CV 2019/2020 and the CV should not exceed three pages. It’s up to you to decide which parts are relevant for your application. Additional pages will not be considered.
Two different letters of reference: you must use the SISGP form for letter of reference 2019/2020. At least one letter of reference must be based on your work experience. It will be a merit if the second letter of reference is based on your involvement in networks or civil society organisations outside of your regular work. The letters should be signed by the referee and stamped with an official stamp of the referred organisation or a notary office. The form(s) should be typed, then printed, signed and stamped; and then be uploaded as one PDF-file. You can find more information in the instruction in the form and in our FAQ.
Proof of work and leadership experience: you must use the SISGP form for proof of work and leadership experience 2019/2020. The work and leadership form should be signed by the referee and stamped with an official stamp of the referred organisation or a notary office. The form(s) should be typed, then printed, signed and stamped; and then be uploaded as one PDF-file. You can find more information in the instruction in the form and in our FAQ.
A copy of your passport: your personal data including name, citizenship and photograph must be shown clearly. Copy of passport should be included together with the CV as a last fourth page. It is your responsibility to ensure that you have a copy of your valid passport to include.

Make sure you have a complete application

A complete application must consist of:

a completed motivation letter
a CV
two valid and completed letters of reference
valid and completed proof of work and leadership experience
a copy of your valid passport

If your application is missing one of the required documents above, it will be disqualified.

If you apply to several master’s programmes

You need to submit a separate copy of your scholarship application for each eligible master’s programme that you have applied to. For example, if you have applied to the maximum of four master’s programmes on universityadmissions.se, you must submit four separate and complete online scholarship applications. Each application must have all the required documents attached. You may use the same documents for each application, or create unique ones for each master’s programme. You should use the same account at the application portal to submit all your scholarship applications and you should provide the same e-mail address for all your scholarship applications.

Data protection and integrity

The Swedish Institute (SI) is a public agency. As such, all applications received by SI are in the public domain. We use the personal information you give us to process your application. If your application is granted, we will continue to use this personal information in order to handle your scholarship. We deal with this information in accordance with the Swedish Principle of Public Access to Information and the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Your personal information is handled by SI employees as well as outside experts who have signed a contract of compliance. For more information please read SI’s privacy policy.