Bachelor's Scholarships Scholarships

Finding bachelor’s scholarships as an international student

Undergraduate scholarships work differently from postgraduate funding.

At master’s and PhD level, students may find large government programmes, research assistantships or funded academic positions. At bachelor’s level, a much larger share of funding comes directly from universities.

This means students should not search only for phrases such as “government scholarship.”

A good undergraduate scholarship strategy should include university merit awards, need-based financial aid, national scholarships, foundation programmes and country-specific government opportunities.

The most important question is not simply whether a university has scholarships.

It is whether international students are eligible for the specific scholarship you are considering.

Undergraduate funding can range from small awards to complete support

Bachelor’s scholarships vary enormously.

Some provide a few thousand dollars toward tuition.

Others cover full tuition.

A smaller number provide very comprehensive support including tuition, accommodation, living expenses and other costs.

For a four-year degree, this distinction matters.

A USD 10,000 scholarship may sound substantial, but if the university costs USD 50,000 per year, the student still faces a very large financial burden.

Always calculate the amount remaining after the scholarship.

Scholarship duration matters more at undergraduate level

A bachelor's programme normally lasts several years.

A scholarship might be:

one-time, renewable annually, guaranteed for a fixed period, or renewable only if certain academic conditions are maintained.

This makes undergraduate funding different from a one-year master's scholarship.

Suppose a university offers USD 20,000.

If that award is USD 20,000 once, its total value is USD 20,000.

If it is USD 20,000 per year for four years, its potential total value is USD 80,000.

Always check the wording.

Full tuition is not the same as full funding

A full tuition scholarship removes the university tuition charge, but students may still need to finance accommodation, food, insurance, books, transport, visas and flights.

Some undergraduate scholarships go much further.

For example, the University of Toronto’s Lester B. Pearson International Scholarship covers tuition, books, incidental fees and full residence support for four years. The university currently selects about 37 Pearson Scholars each year.

That is a much more comprehensive package than a tuition-only award.

Lester B. Pearson Scholarship for 2027

The University of Toronto has already published the application timeline for students beginning in September 2027.

Eligible applicants must be international students requiring a Canadian study permit, must be in their final year of secondary school in 2026/27 or have graduated no earlier than June 2026, and must be entering their first undergraduate degree at the University of Toronto. Students already attending post-secondary education are not eligible.

The current 2027 timeline includes a school nomination deadline of 9 October 2026, a University of Toronto admission application deadline of 16 October 2026 for Pearson candidates, and a scholarship application deadline of 6 November 2026.

This is a good example of why bachelor’s applicants need to start early.

Waiting until January to search for scholarships would already be too late for this particular opportunity.

School nomination can be required

Some undergraduate scholarships cannot be applied for independently.

The Pearson Scholarship requires students to be nominated by their secondary school, and each high school may nominate only one student each year.

Applicants should therefore check whether a scholarship requires:

school nomination, counsellor nomination, university nomination, or no nomination at all.

If nomination is required, contact your school early.

Your school may need time to confirm eligibility and decide which student to nominate.

UBC International Scholars Program

The University of British Columbia also operates a significant need-based scholarship programme for international undergraduate students.

Its International Scholars Program is aimed at students with outstanding academic performance, leadership and significant financial need. For the 2027 intake, applicants must be entering directly from an accredited secondary school, applying for their first undergraduate degree and able to demonstrate that meaningful financial support is necessary for them to attend UBC.

UBC says applications for the September 2027 intake will open in early October 2026. The current deadline to apply to UBC and submit the International Scholars Program award application is 15 November 2026 at 11:59 p.m. PST.

Again, major undergraduate scholarships can close months before the academic year begins.

Need-based and merit-based scholarships are different

Students should understand the distinction.

A merit scholarship is usually awarded primarily for achievement, which can include academic results, leadership, activities or talent.

A need-based award considers whether the student and their family can realistically afford the university.

UBC’s International Scholars Program, for example, conducts a financial assessment and requires applicants to demonstrate significant financial need. UBC also states that applicants to this programme are not simultaneously considered for its merit-based international award route.

Do not assume that excellent grades alone will satisfy a scholarship specifically designed around financial need.

Financial need must be documented honestly

Need-based programmes can ask for information about:

family income, family assets, expenses, number of dependants and other available resources.

This is not a section where applicants should simply write that their family cannot afford university.

Supporting documentation may be required.

Use accurate information.

Do not conceal property, income or other resources if the scholarship asks for them.

A need-based application should present the real financial situation clearly.

Merit scholarships can still be substantial

Not every strong undergraduate award requires financial need.

UBC’s International Major Entrance Scholarship, for example, is merit-based. For the 2026/27 academic year, awards range from CAD 10,000 to CAD 25,000 per year and can be renewed for up to three additional years.

This illustrates why students need to distinguish between comprehensive need-based funding and renewable merit scholarships.

Both can be valuable, but they solve different financial problems.

MEXT undergraduate scholarship

Government scholarships can also provide substantial bachelor's funding.

Japan's MEXT Undergraduate Scholarship is one of the major examples.

The official 2027 MEXT Undergraduate Scholarship guidelines are already published.

For the 2027 embassy-recommendation route, applicants generally must have been born on or after 2 April 2002 and must meet the required secondary education qualifications. Applicants must also be willing to learn Japanese and, in principle, undertake their studies in Japanese unless they qualify for direct placement under the relevant rules.

This is a good reminder that a fully funded undergraduate scholarship may involve significant language and cultural expectations.

What MEXT 2027 covers

The 2027 MEXT undergraduate award currently provides an allowance of ¥117,000 per month, with an additional regional allowance of ¥2,000 or ¥3,000 in designated areas.

Entrance examination, matriculation and university tuition fees are waived. MEXT also provides qualifying economy-class travel to Japan and return travel after successful completion, subject to the conditions in the scholarship guidelines.

For most recipients completing preparatory education before university, the standard scholarship period runs for five years from April 2027 to March 2032. Certain programmes such as medicine, dentistry, veterinary medicine and six-year pharmacy courses have longer funding periods.

This is genuine long-term undergraduate funding, not a one-year award.

Undergraduate scholarships may include preparatory education

Bachelor’s applicants should check whether the scholarship starts directly with university study.

MEXT, for example, can include one year of preparatory education in Japanese language and other subjects before the main undergraduate degree.

Other government scholarships may also include:

language training, foundation study, academic preparation or orientation.

This can make the total scholarship period longer than the normal degree duration.

Read the structure carefully before assuming you will begin your major immediately after arrival.

Singapore offers another model

The NUS International Undergraduate Scholarship is open to exceptional international applicants from all countries except Singapore.

NUS currently requires strong high-school results, leadership potential and an outstanding co-curricular record. Eligible students are considered through their undergraduate admission application rather than submitting an initial separate scholarship application.

The current scholarship provides 100% coverage of subsidised undergraduate tuition after the Singapore Ministry of Education Tuition Grant, a S$5,800 annual living allowance, a S$5,000 annual accommodation allowance, and a S$1,750 one-time computer allowance.

This is substantial support, but students need to understand what “subsidised tuition” means.

Scholarship conditions can exist outside the scholarship itself

Singapore is a useful example.

The NUS scholarship requires recipients to take the Singapore Ministry of Education Tuition Grant.

International students accepting that government tuition subsidy may be subject to a service obligation after graduation under the applicable Tuition Grant rules.

This shows why applicants need to read both:

the scholarship conditions and any separate funding agreement connected with the scholarship.

A scholarship can say “no scholarship bond” while another subsidy used to finance the tuition may carry its own obligation.

Automatic consideration can save an application step

Some universities automatically consider international admission applicants for scholarships.

NUS currently lists several international freshman scholarships, including the ASEAN Undergraduate Scholarship, Science & Technology Undergraduate Scholarship and NUS International Undergraduate Scholarship, as awards for which eligible students are considered through the undergraduate admission process.

This does not mean every university works this way.

At another institution, students may need a separate form, essay or nomination.

Always check the application method.

Admission deadline and scholarship deadline may differ

This is one of the easiest mistakes to make.

A university might accept normal undergraduate applications until January or February while its major scholarship deadline closes in October or November.

UBC, for instance, currently lists 15 November 2026 as the International Scholars Program deadline for international applicants, while its general Winter Session undergraduate application deadline is 15 January 2027.

A student who focuses only on the normal admission deadline can miss the funding completely.

Record the scholarship deadline separately.

Start scholarship research before finishing high school

Students often think they should graduate first and then look for scholarships.

That can be too late.

Many undergraduate scholarships are designed specifically for students currently in their final year of secondary school.

The Pearson 2027 process, for example, begins with school nomination months before students graduate.

Ideally, students should begin researching major scholarships during the year before university entry.

This gives time to prepare academic documents, tests, essays and nominations.

Current university students may be ineligible for freshman scholarships

Many of the largest undergraduate awards are reserved for students entering university for the first time.

Pearson specifically excludes students already attending post-secondary studies.

NUS also states that transfer applicants from local or overseas universities are not eligible for its International Undergraduate Scholarship.

Applicants who have already started university should search specifically for:

transfer scholarships, current-student scholarships, exchange funding or scholarships available for continuing undergraduates.

Do not assume a freshman scholarship will accept you.

Academic results matter heavily

Undergraduate scholarship committees have less professional or research history to evaluate than postgraduate committees.

High-school academic performance can therefore carry significant weight.

Competitive scholarships may examine:

grades, class ranking, examination results, difficulty of subjects and consistency across several years.

One weak result does not necessarily make every scholarship impossible, but applicants to highly competitive awards should understand that they are competing with students with excellent academic records worldwide.

Leadership is frequently important

Top undergraduate scholarships often evaluate more than grades.

Pearson looks for academic achievement, creativity and leadership potential.

UBC’s International Scholars Program also looks for leadership and exceptional contributions to the applicant’s community.

NUS similarly highlights leadership and co-curricular achievement alongside academic results.

Students should therefore begin keeping evidence of meaningful activities before application season.

Leadership does not require a famous title

You do not need to be president of a national youth organisation.

Useful examples can come from school, volunteering, sports, entrepreneurship, family responsibilities or community projects.

The important thing is demonstrating what you did.

“Member of Environmental Club” tells a committee very little.

Explaining that you organised a recycling initiative, coordinated volunteers and improved participation gives them something concrete to evaluate.

Quality is better than collecting activities

Students sometimes join ten clubs during their final year simply to make their CV look impressive.

Depth usually tells a stronger story than a long list of activities with little involvement.

A student who has spent three years developing one meaningful community project may have much more to discuss than someone who joined fifteen organisations without taking responsibility in any of them.

Scholarship preparation should not become an exercise in collecting certificates.

Your personal essay needs a real voice

Undergraduate applications often ask broad personal questions because applicants may not yet have long professional histories.

Strong essays can explain:

what shaped you, what you care about, how you have acted on those interests and what you hope to do next.

Avoid trying to sound like a university professor.

A clear, mature student voice is more convincing than complicated vocabulary that does not sound natural.

Do not turn every essay into a speech about “changing the world.”

Specific goals are stronger.

Use examples rather than adjectives

Instead of writing:

“I am hardworking, resilient and passionate.”

Give the reader evidence.

Explain a situation where you continued despite difficulty, improved an academic weakness, helped solve a problem or took responsibility.

The committee can then decide whether your actions demonstrate resilience.

You do not need to repeatedly tell them what qualities you have.

Do not invent hardship

Some students believe scholarship essays need a dramatic poverty story.

They do not.

If financial hardship is relevant, explain it truthfully.

If your family is financially stable but cannot afford a USD 70,000 international education, say that accurately.

Do not create tragedies that did not happen.

False information can destroy an otherwise strong application.

Recommendation letters

Undergraduate scholarships may ask for references from people such as:

teachers, school counsellors, principals or activity supervisors.

Choose people who know you.

A teacher who taught you for two years and can describe your academic development may provide a stronger recommendation than a senior school official who only knows your name.

Give the referee enough time and explain what scholarship you are applying for.

School nominations need preparation

If only one student can be nominated, your school may need to conduct its own internal selection.

Do not assume the principal will nominate you immediately because you ask.

Approach the school early and provide clear official information.

For Pearson, the University of Toronto warns that it does not work with agents to recruit students or offer Pearson Scholarships. Candidates can only enter the process through an eligible secondary-school nomination and the university's official system.

This is also an important scam warning.

Standardised tests vary by university

There is no worldwide undergraduate scholarship test.

Depending on the destination and university, applicants may encounter:

SAT, ACT, national examinations, university entrance examinations, English tests or programme-specific assessments.

Some universities are test-optional.

Others require tests.

Government scholarships may run their own examinations.

Always check the current admission year because test policies can change.

English requirements are separate from scholarship eligibility

A scholarship might say international students are eligible, but the university can still require proof of English ability.

Possible evidence includes IELTS, TOEFL, Duolingo English Test, Cambridge qualifications or recognised English-medium schooling.

The scholarship provider and university may use different thresholds.

You normally need to satisfy both.

“No IELTS” needs careful interpretation

Many scholarship posts advertise:

No IELTS required.

That may mean the university accepts another test or allows an exemption based on previous English-medium education.

It does not automatically mean there is no English-language requirement.

When The Scholarship Circle publishes such an opportunity, the safer wording is to explain the accepted alternatives rather than presenting “No IELTS” as a guarantee.

Apply to universities you can actually afford

A partial scholarship at an expensive institution can still leave an impossible gap.

For example:

University cost after tuition and living expenses: USD 65,000 per year.

Scholarship: USD 15,000 per year.

Remaining cost: USD 50,000 per year.

Over four years, the remaining cost could be roughly USD 200,000 before inflation and other expenses.

That scholarship is financially useful but may still be unrealistic for many families.

Do the calculation before applying.

Need-based aid can sometimes be stronger than merit aid

Students frequently focus on scholarships with impressive names and miss universities that provide significant need-based assistance.

For families unable to finance expensive international education, need-based funding can sometimes produce a better result than a fixed merit scholarship.

The difficulty is that international financial aid policies vary dramatically between universities.

Some institutions provide significant support.

Others provide almost none.

Research this before paying application fees.

Country choice matters

The cost of a bachelor's degree abroad is affected by both university tuition and the country's wider education system.

In some destinations, public university tuition may already be relatively low.

In others, tuition can be very expensive but universities offer larger scholarships.

Do not assume the country with the biggest scholarships is automatically the cheapest destination.

Compare the final amount you would need to finance.

Living costs accumulate over several years

A difference of USD 300 per month may not sound huge.

Across four years:

USD 300 × 12 × 4 = USD 14,400.

The city therefore matters.

Research housing, food, transport and insurance costs before choosing between universities.

A scholarship in a smaller university city may stretch much further than the same stipend in an expensive capital.

Accommodation support is extremely valuable

For undergraduate students, housing can be one of the largest costs.

Scholarships providing residence support can therefore be worth much more than their tuition value alone suggests.

Pearson’s full residence support for four years is one reason its package is so substantial.

NUS currently provides an annual S$5,000 accommodation allowance under its International Undergraduate Scholarship.

When comparing offers, calculate housing support separately.

First-year expenses can be unusually high

Before the first scholarship payment arrives, students may need money for visas, flights, deposits, bedding, transportation, SIM cards and other setup costs.

Government programmes sometimes cover airfare or provide arrival allowances.

University scholarships often do not.

Even with excellent funding, having accessible emergency money before travel is useful.

Scholarship renewal requirements

A renewable undergraduate scholarship may require students to maintain:

a minimum GPA, satisfactory academic progress, full-time enrolment and acceptable conduct.

Some awards can be reduced or terminated when these conditions are not met.

Before accepting, ask what happens if you struggle academically during one semester.

Do not assume an award labelled “four years” is unconditional for four years.

Changing your programme can affect the scholarship

Some scholarships are attached to a specific faculty, campus or degree.

Changing from one programme to another may require approval.

Pearson, for example, is restricted to the recipient's top-choice University of Toronto programme at the relevant stage of scholarship selection.

Applicants should therefore choose their course carefully rather than selecting something only because they think it improves scholarship chances.

Scholarship and admission are separate decisions

A student can be:

admitted without a scholarship, rejected from admission, admitted and funded, or waitlisted for one process while another continues.

Do not assume receiving an admission offer means scholarship funding will follow automatically.

Read the timeline for both decisions.

Visa approval is also separate

Even a fully funded undergraduate scholarship does not automatically produce a student visa.

Immigration authorities may still evaluate:

admission documents, scholarship evidence, financial resources, identity, health requirements and other immigration conditions.

Use the official immigration authority for your destination as the final source.

Do not pay anyone claiming they can guarantee the visa because you have a scholarship.

Applicants under 18 may face extra requirements

Some international freshmen are still minors when they begin the application or travel process.

Depending on the country, this can create additional requirements relating to:

parental consent, guardianship, accommodation or immigration documents.

Applicants should mention their age when asking the university about travel and housing procedures.

Do not assume an 17-year-old student follows exactly the same process as a 20-year-old student.

Medical programmes are often different

Medicine, dentistry and other regulated professional degrees frequently have:

higher tuition, separate entrance requirements, limited scholarships and longer programme durations.

Some major undergraduate scholarships exclude these fields.

Always check programme eligibility before assuming that a general university scholarship covers medicine.

Foundation programmes can affect eligibility

Some students need a foundation or pathway year before starting a bachelor's degree.

A scholarship may cover the main degree but not the foundation year.

Others may exclude pathway students entirely.

Check whether funding begins during:

foundation study or first year of the actual bachelor's degree.

This can make a significant financial difference.

Transfer students should search separately

Large freshman scholarships often exclude transfer applicants.

Students transferring from another university should search specifically for transfer awards.

Do not hide previous university enrolment in an attempt to appear eligible as a freshman.

Universities can request complete academic histories.

Providing false information can result in admission or scholarship cancellation.

Gap-year students may still qualify for some awards

Having graduated the previous year does not necessarily make you ineligible.

However, some scholarships set strict graduation windows.

For Pearson 2027, applicants who have already graduated must have completed secondary school no earlier than June 2026.

UBC’s 2027 International Scholars criteria similarly state that applicants entering the 2027 Winter Session must have graduated no earlier than June 2026.

Always check the exact graduation-date rule rather than assuming “gap year accepted.”

Scholarship scams target undergraduate applicants heavily

High-school students and parents are particularly vulnerable to advertisements promising guaranteed international scholarships.

Warning signs include claims such as:

“100% guaranteed scholarship.”

“Pay now to receive your nomination.”

“Guaranteed university admission and visa.”

“Special scholarship slot reserved for you.”

Major university scholarships use formal competitive procedures.

The University of Toronto specifically warns that the Pearson Scholarship does not use agents to recruit or offer scholarships and cautions against fraudulent third parties.

Verify the scholarship through the university

A scholarship may first appear on:

WhatsApp, TikTok, Facebook, Telegram, a scholarship website or a friend's message.

That is fine for discovery.

Before submitting documents, confirm the scholarship through the official university, government or scholarship provider.

Check the current intake year.

A genuine 2025 scholarship page does not automatically confirm a 2027 opportunity.

Be careful with recycled scholarship dates

Undergraduate scholarships frequently operate annually, but deadlines can change.

Do not simply replace “2026” with “2027” in an old article.

For 2027 applicants, some programmes have already published confirmed information. Pearson and MEXT are examples.

For programmes that have not announced their next cycle, say that clearly.

Accuracy is more useful than publishing a guessed deadline early.

Build a balanced application strategy

Students should avoid applying only to famous full scholarships with extremely small cohorts.

A stronger strategy combines highly competitive comprehensive awards with universities where your academic profile may earn renewable merit scholarships and institutions whose normal costs are already within reach.

The purpose is not to collect the most prestigious rejection letters.

It is to obtain at least one academically suitable and financially realistic offer.

Keep a scholarship tracker

For each undergraduate opportunity, record the university, country, degree, scholarship name, funding value, duration, renewal conditions, admission deadline, scholarship deadline, nomination requirement, documents and application status.

This simple system prevents applicants from mixing up deadlines.

It is especially useful when some scholarships close months before normal admission.

What to check before applying

Before submitting any bachelor’s scholarship application, confirm:

• international students are eligible
• you qualify as a freshman or first-entry student
• graduation-date restrictions
• eligible programmes
• academic requirements
• language requirements
• test requirements
• nomination requirements
• scholarship value
• whether funding is one-time or renewable
• maximum funding duration
• accommodation support
• remaining annual cost
• renewal GPA
• scholarship deadline
• admission deadline
• official application route

The individual scholarship page should answer these questions before you invest significant time in the application.

Final advice

Bachelor’s scholarships can provide life-changing opportunities, but undergraduate funding needs to be evaluated over the entire degree, not just the first year.

A USD 15,000 annual scholarship renewed for four years can be more valuable than a USD 25,000 one-time award.

A full tuition scholarship can still leave substantial living costs.

A comprehensive scholarship covering tuition and accommodation may therefore be worth far more than the headline tuition amount suggests.

For students preparing for 2027 entry, several major opportunities already have confirmed information. The University of Toronto’s Pearson Scholarship covers tuition, books, incidental fees and full residence support for four years, with the school nomination deadline currently set for 9 October 2026.

UBC’s International Scholars Program is also preparing for its September 2027 intake, with the current award application deadline set for 15 November 2026.

Japan has already published the official 2027 MEXT Undergraduate Scholarship guidelines, which currently provide ¥117,000 per month, tuition waivers and qualifying travel support.

Use the bachelor’s scholarship opportunities listed below to identify programmes that match your academic profile and financial needs. Then verify the current eligibility, deadline and funding package with the official university or scholarship provider before applying.

Last reviewed: September 10, 2026