Fully Funded vs Partial Scholarships: What They Actually Cover

'Fully funded' is a marketing phrase before it is a technical one. Two awards described the same way can differ by thousands of dollars a year in what they actually pay for. Reading the benefits list carefully is worth more than reading a hundred forum posts.

The five components

• Tuition: the headline cost, and the one most awards cover in full.
• Living stipend: monthly money for rent and food. The single biggest variable between awards.
• Travel: return flights, sometimes only one way, sometimes not at all.
• Insurance: health cover, mandatory in most destination countries.
• Extras: visa fees, settling-in allowance, thesis or research costs, family support.

A genuinely full award covers the first four. Anything missing one of them is partial funding, whatever the marketing says.

Costs that catch people out

1. 1Visa and immigration health surcharge: the UK health surcharge alone runs to over £1,000 for a multi-year course, and many awards do not cover it.
2. 2Deposit before arrival: some universities require a tuition deposit before the scholarship pays out.
3. 3First month before the stipend starts: stipends often begin after enrolment, leaving rent and a deposit to cover yourself.
4. 4Family: partner and children are rarely covered, and dependant visas cost separately.
5. 5Return flight home: some awards fund the outbound journey only.

When a partial award is still worth taking

A tuition waiver at a low-cost destination can leave you better off than a full award somewhere expensive. A 50% waiver in Germany, where public university fees are already minimal and living costs are moderate, can be more affordable than a full scholarship in London. Compare total out-of-pocket cost, not the percentage covered.

Questions worth asking before accepting

• When does the first stipend payment arrive, relative to arrival and enrolment?
• Is the tuition paid directly to the university, or do I pay and claim it back?
• Are visa fees and any health surcharge included?
• Is the travel allowance one way or return?
• Is the award renewed automatically, or reassessed on results each year?
• Am I permitted to work part-time alongside it?

Ask these in writing before you accept. Providers answer them readily, and the answers occasionally change which offer you should take.