The ARICE Romania government scholarship is real. ARICE is the Romanian Agency for Investments and Foreign Trade, and together with Romania’s Ministry of Education and Research it offers 40 scholarships a year to citizens of countries outside the EU and EFTA. The award covers tuition, a Romanian language preparatory year, a monthly allowance and a subsidised student dorm. The 2026/2027 call ran from 11 May to 12 June 2026 and has closed; the deadline is 12 June 2027.
Many applicants mix it up with Romania’s older and better-known award, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) scholarship for non-EU citizens, which uses the Study in Romania online platform and closed on 31 March 2026. Both are Romanian state scholarships with similar benefits, but they have different calls, fields and application methods. You can prepare for both. This guide sets them side by side and lists the documents and dates for 2027.
ARICE vs the MFA Romanian government scholarship
| Point | ARICE scholarship | MFA scholarship |
|---|---|---|
| Run by | ARICE, with final decision by the Ministry of Education and Research | Ministry of Foreign Affairs, assessed with the Ministry of Education and Research |
| Places | 40 | Not stated in the 2026 call |
| Who can apply | Citizens of non-EU and non-EFTA countries; priority to countries with no education cooperation agreement with Romania | Citizens of non-EU countries |
| Levels | Bachelor’s, master’s, PhD, and medical residency in emergency medicine or cardiology | Bachelor’s, master’s, PhD |
| Fields | Priority to economics and business, agricultural sciences, technical sciences, oil and gas; others if places remain | All fields except medicine, dental medicine and pharmacy |
| Language | Romanian, after a free preparatory year | Romanian for bachelor’s and master’s; PhD in Romanian or a foreign language chosen by the doctoral school |
| How to apply | PDF files by email to the address in the call (burse2026@arice.gov.ro in 2026) | Online only at scholarships.studyinromania.gov.ro |
| Grade minimum | Not stated in the call | Average of 7 on the Romanian scale, or “Good” |
ARICE Romania government scholarship dates for 2027
| Step | ARICE | MFA |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 window (closed) | 11 May to 12 June 2026, 14:00 Romania time | 16 February to 31 March 2026 |
| 2027 window opens | 11 May 2027 | 16 February 2027 |
| 2027 deadline | 12 June 2027, 14:00 Romania time (11:00 GMT) | 31 March 2027 |
| Results | By 15 September 2027 on the ARICE website, then final decision by the Ministry of Education and Research | By email around 15 July 2027 |
(based on this year’s date; confirm on the official page when the call opens)
ARICE has moved its dates each year: the 2024 call closed on 31 May and the 2025 call on 15 May. Have your file ready by April so a shorter window does not catch you out.
What the Romanian government scholarship covers
The ARICE call grants these benefits under Government Decision 1653/2024, and the MFA call lists nearly the same set:
- No fees for application processing, the Romanian language test, the PhD admission exam or aptitude tests.
- Tuition for the Romanian preparatory year and for one full study cycle.
- A monthly allowance during the preparatory year and your bachelor’s, master’s or PhD.
- A place in a student dormitory, within the budget allocated by the ministry.
- Medical care for emergencies and for diseases with epidemic potential.
- Local and domestic public transport on the same terms as Romanian students.
- Benefits for 30 more days after you finish a programme of at least one year.
Bachelor’s and master’s students are paid during the academic year but not over the summer break; PhD and residency students are paid all year. International flights and the trip from your arrival point to your university are not covered. Neither call states the monthly allowance amount, and I would not trust a website that quotes one without a source.
Who is eligible for the ARICE scholarship
You must be a citizen of a country outside the EU and EFTA. The 2025/2026 ARICE call excluded these applicants:
- Romanian citizens and members of historical Romanian communities in neighbouring countries (they have separate programmes).
- Anyone who has applied for or holds protection in Romania, and recognised stateless persons in Romania.
- Diplomatic, consular and international organisation staff in Romania and their families.
- Anyone who already had a Romanian state scholarship for the same study cycle.
- Holders of a long-term Romanian residence permit.
PhD applicants need written agreement from a doctoral supervisor and must pass the doctoral entrance exam. If you already speak Romanian, you can skip the preparatory year by passing the Romanian test or showing a B1 certificate or four years of study in a Romanian school.
Documents for the ARICE Romania government scholarship
Documents must be in Romanian, English or French, or come with a legalised translation, and you send them as clear PDF scans. The 2026 call asked for:
- Annex 1: the ARICE application form, signed.
- Annex 2: the Ministry of Education form, signed.
- Annex 3: a signed declaration that you have not had a Romanian state scholarship for the same level.
- Diplomas: baccalaureate and any degree certificates, with legalised translations. Final-year students add a certificate showing when they will finish.
- Transcripts: authenticated and translated, for every year of study.
- Birth certificate: copy with legalised translation.
- Passport: first two pages, valid at least six months after the programme starts, plus your national ID card with translation.
- Medical certificate: original, issued within 90 days before you apply.
- CV and photos: a CV in Romanian, English or French and two recent passport photos.
- Recommendation letter: from a teacher or employer.
The MFA platform asks for a similar set (diplomas, transcripts, birth certificate, first three passport pages, CV, and a letter of intent plus supervisor agreement for PhD), with study documents apostilled or authenticated in your country. A Europass CV keeps your CV short and in a layout European reviewers know.
Where other ARICE scholarship guides go wrong
- The preselection result is not due by 31 July. Official copies of the 2026 call give 15 September 2026 for the ARICE committee’s results.
- The official call copies I read do not name the University of Bucharest as the preparatory year host. The ministry’s acceptance letter names your university and any preparatory year obligation.
- General medicine is not open. ARICE funds medical residency only in emergency medicine and cardiology, and the MFA call excludes medicine, dental medicine and pharmacy.
- ARICE courses are taught in Romanian. Only MFA doctoral students can choose a foreign-language programme.
- The 2026 deadline was announced (12 June 2026, 14:00), so a “deadline not announced” label was wrong.
How to apply for the ARICE scholarship in 2027
- Check eligibility: confirm your nationality qualifies and you have not had a Romanian state scholarship for the same level.
- Choose your field: economics, agriculture, engineering or oil and gas have priority with ARICE. For other fields, the MFA call may suit you better.
- Get documents certified early: apostille or authentication and legalised translations can take weeks.
- Download the annexes: when the 2027 call appears on arice.gov.ro, take Annexes 1 to 3 and the selection procedure from the scholarships section.
- Email one complete file: send all PDFs to the burse address in the 2027 call before 14:00 Romania time on the deadline. Incomplete or late files are not assessed.
- Watch your inbox and the results list: selected candidates receive an acceptance letter from the ministry before the academic year starts, which you need for the long-stay study visa.
Applying to other European state awards too? See the Poland government scholarship, the Slovakia National Scholarship Programme and scholarships to study in Bulgaria.
ARICE Romania government scholarship FAQs
Is the ARICE scholarship in Romania real?
Yes. ARICE has published scholarship calls for foreign citizens since at least 2024, and government bodies in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Jordan and Mexico have circulated its calls. It is separate from the MFA scholarship.
When is the ARICE scholarship 2027 deadline?
12 June 2027 at 14:00 Romania time, with applications from 11 May 2027. The MFA scholarship deadline is 31 March 2027.
Is the Romanian government scholarship fully funded?
It covers tuition, the language year, a monthly allowance, a subsidised dorm and emergency medical care. You pay your own international flights and travel to your university.
Can I study in English on a Romanian government scholarship?
Not at bachelor’s or master’s level; those are taught in Romanian after a free preparatory year. MFA scholarship holders at PhD level may choose a foreign-language doctoral programme.
Sources and updates
The 2026 ARICE window, 14:00 cutoff, 40 places, email submission and 15 September results come from the call as forwarded by Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Federal Ministry of Culture and Sports (May 2026). Eligibility, priority fields, residency specialties, benefits under H.G. 1653/2024 and payment periods come from ARICE’s English presentation of its 2025/2026 call, published by Jordan’s Ministry of Higher Education. The 2024 and 2025 ARICE dates come from Mexico’s foreign ministry notice and Suranaree University of Technology. The 2026 document list comes from a reproduction of the 2026 call text; check the 2027 annexes on arice.gov.ro. MFA dates, eligibility, exclusions, documents and benefits come from Turkey’s Council of Higher Education notice (13 March 2026) and the MFA programme document circulated by the University of Algiers 3 in March 2026; applications go through studyinromania.gov.ro. Checked on 24 October 2026. I will update this page when the 2027 calls are published.
I am Jude Chinecherem, a final-year MBBS student at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. I know what it feels like to want an education your family cannot afford. When my parents could not pay for my schooling, I had to learn how to find scholarships and work the system out on my own, with nobody to guide me. I came out the other side, and now I share everything I learned so the next student does not have to figure it out alone. This is the advice I wish someone had given me back then.
