The Maastricht University NL-High Potential Scholarship (UM NL-HPS) is a full master’s scholarship for talented students from outside the EU/EEA who want to start a participating master’s programme at Maastricht University (UM) in September 2027. It waives your tuition fee, pays a living allowance of €20,150 for a one-year master’s or €38,750 for a two-year master’s, and adds €700 for health and liability insurance, your visa costs and UM’s pre-academic training. Few Dutch university awards pay living costs as well as tuition, and this one is very competitive: about 2% of applicants win.
For 2027-2028 the Maastricht NL-High Potential Scholarship deadline is 1 February 2027 at 23:59 CET. Before that, your master’s application file must be complete by 10 December 2026. You need a GPA of at least 7.5 out of 10 (or the equivalent), you must be 35 or younger on 1 September 2027, and you must not have studied for a degree in the Netherlands before. Recent listings put the number of awards at 18.
This is a master’s award. If you are applying for a bachelor’s, UM’s separate award for one Global Studies student is covered in our post on the Maastricht University Global Studies Scholarship.
What the Maastricht NL-High Potential Scholarship covers
| Benefit | One-year master’s | Two-year master’s |
|---|---|---|
| Tuition fee | Waived | Waived |
| Living allowance | €20,150 over 13 months | €38,750 over 25 months |
| Health and liability insurance | €700 | €700 |
| Visa application costs | Covered | Covered |
| Pre-academic training (August 2027) | Covered | Covered |
The living allowance works out at about €1,550 a month. That is comfortably above the IND’s required amount for students in higher education, which was €1,130.77 a month in 2026, so the scholarship on its own should satisfy the residence permit’s proof-of-funds rule.
Some listings, Scholars4Dev among them, headline the award as worth €36,000. The breakdown above is more useful: the value depends on the length of your master’s and on your programme’s tuition. On a two-year master’s the living allowance alone is €38,750.
What the scholarship does not pay
- Flights: international airfare is not included.
- Application and handling fees: these must be paid by you by 10 December 2026.
- Small housing charges: one listing mentions a cleaning fee of about €75 from Maastricht Housing.
- Family costs: housing for a spouse, partner or children is not provided.
Listings also report that UM allocates winners a room for the first year, which must be accepted (turning it down cancels the scholarship), and that two-year scholars find their own housing for year two. Confirm the housing terms in your award letter.
Maastricht NL-High Potential Scholarship eligibility
- Nationality: you are a national of a country outside the EU/EEA, and you are not Swiss or Surinamese. You must also meet the Dutch entry visa and residence permit requirements.
- No EU dual nationality: holding an EU/EEA (or Swiss) passport as well makes you ineligible.
- Programme: you have applied for full-time admission to a participating UM master’s for 2027-2028 and meet its academic and English requirements.
- No earlier Dutch degree study: you have never been enrolled in a degree-seeking programme in the Netherlands. Former exchange students are welcome.
- Age: you are not older than 35 on 1 September 2027.
- Grades: your latest transcript shows a GPA of 7.5 out of 10 or higher. One listing puts the equivalents at about 75 out of 100 or 3.0 out of 4.0.
- Ambassador role: you agree to act as an active UM ambassador, including sharing your experience at information sessions.
Edge cases
- Already have a master’s? You can apply, but UM prefers candidates who have not yet earned one.
- Turning 36 in August 2027? You are over the limit on 1 September 2027 and cannot apply.
- No IELTS? There is no separate scholarship English score. Your programme’s admission rules decide, and some programmes accept exemptions. Our guide to scholarships in the Netherlands without IELTS explains how Dutch exemptions work.
- Grading systems: if your transcript uses classes or a 5-point CGPA, include your university’s official grading-scale explanation so the committee can place your result against 7.5.
Which master’s programmes qualify
Only programmes on UM’s 2027-2028 participating list qualify. UM publishes it as a PDF on its scholarship page, and the copies quoted by listing sites differ in detail, so check your exact programme there. Programmes that appear consistently across current listings include:
| Faculty | Example participating programmes |
|---|---|
| Faculty of Law | European Law School, Globalisation and Law, International and European Tax Law, Forensics, Criminology and Law, Intellectual Property Law and Knowledge Management |
| Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences | Global Health, Epidemiology, Human Movement Sciences |
| School of Business and Economics | International Business (selected specialisations) |
| Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience | Selected psychology master’s |
| Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences | Selected MA and research master’s programmes |
Maastricht NL-High Potential Scholarship deadline and dates
| Stage | Date |
|---|---|
| Scholarship application opens | 1 October 2026 |
| Master’s application file complete (and fees paid) | 10 December 2026 |
| Deadline (scholarship) | 1 February 2027, 23:59 CET (22:59 GMT) |
| Completeness check and faculty review | February to March 2027 |
| Online interviews for shortlisted candidates | End of March 2027 |
| Results (selected, waitlisted or rejected) | By early May 2027 |
| Pre-academic training | First week of August 2027, about two weeks |
| Programme starts | September 2027 |
Admission file due 10 December
The scholarship closes on 1 February 2027, but your master’s application must be complete by 10 December 2026. Miss that and you cannot be considered, however strong your scholarship file is.
How to apply for the Maastricht NL-High Potential Scholarship
- Choose a participating programme: check it against UM’s 2027-2028 PDF list.
- Apply through Studielink: register for the master’s. Studielink gives you a UM student ID.
- Complete your admission file by 10 December 2026: upload every document UM asks for and pay any application fee.
- Log in to the scholarship form: use your UM account.
- Upload your documents: in .doc, .docx or PDF format (see the list below).
- Check referee details: make sure your referee’s work email and phone number are correct.
- Submit once: before 1 February 2027, 23:59 CET. You cannot add or replace documents afterwards.
Documents for the scholarship form
| Document | What to know |
|---|---|
| CV | Maximum two A4 pages: education, work, achievements, awards |
| Motivation letter | On UM’s template; why you deserve the award |
| Proof of academic excellence | Official transcript or GPA document plus your grading-scale explanation |
| Statement of financial need | Why you need the scholarship to study at UM |
| Reference letter | One letter from a professor, lecturer or employer (not a relative), recent |
| Referee contact details | Relationship, work phone, and an institutional or work email; a personal email address can get your file rejected |
Writing the motivation letter and financial need statement
About 2% of applicants win, so a high GPA alone will not carry you. Use UM’s template and fill each part with specifics. I would build the motivation letter like this:
- Your starting point: one experience that explains why you chose this field.
- Why this UM programme: UM teaches through Problem-Based Learning in small tutorial groups. Say why that method suits you, and name a course or specialisation.
- Proof of excellence: grades, rank, awards, research or work results, with numbers.
- Your plan: where you want to work after graduating and what you will change there.
- Ambassador fit: a line on how you will represent UM, since the role is a condition of the award.
An opening that works might read: “As a graduate trainee in my state’s tax office, I processed cross-border invoices that no local rule clearly covered. Maastricht’s LLM in International and European Tax Law would give me the comparative training to help draft those rules.” Write your own version; the idea is to begin with something you actually did.
Keep the financial need statement factual and short. Say what you and your family can contribute, what the full cost of the programme is, and the gap you cannot close without the scholarship. Do not exaggerate. Selectors read these alongside the rest of your file.
For the reference letter, choose someone who taught or supervised you closely and use their institutional email. Our recommendation letter guide has samples you can send to your referee.
How UM selects scholars
- February 2027: UM’s International Services Desk checks every file for completeness and forwards eligible ones to the faculties.
- March 2027: each faculty ranks its top five applicants.
- End of March 2027: shortlisted candidates have online interviews.
- By early May 2027: you are told whether you are selected, waitlisted or rejected. Waitlist cases are settled during May.
If you win, the two-week pre-academic training in August 2027 is compulsory, so plan your visa and travel to arrive before it starts.
Common mistakes
- Completing the master’s application after 10 December 2026.
- Writing the motivation letter freehand instead of on UM’s template.
- Giving a referee’s Gmail or Yahoo address.
- Submitting before every document is final; there is only one submission.
- Choosing a programme that is not on the participating list.
- Uploading a CV longer than two pages.
How it compares with other Dutch master’s scholarships
| Scholarship | What you get | Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Maastricht NL-High Potential | Tuition, living allowance, insurance and visa | 1 February 2027 |
| VU Amsterdam Fellowship Programme | Tuition fee waiver | 1 February 2027 |
| Radboud Scholarship Programme | Tuition cut to €2,771, visa and insurance | 31 January 2027 |
| University of Twente Scholarship | €3,000 to €22,000 a year | 1 April 2027 |
For the government-funded €5,000 NL Scholarship and the state of Dutch government funding after the Orange Knowledge Programme, see our guide to Netherlands government scholarships.
Who should apply, and who should not
Apply if you have a GPA at or above 7.5 out of 10, you are 35 or younger, your programme is on the list, and you can write a clear, specific case for yourself. Because the award pays living costs, it suits strong students who could not otherwise afford the Netherlands at all.
Do not apply if you hold an EU or Swiss passport, have already studied for a degree in the Netherlands, or will be over 35 on 1 September 2027. And with a 2% success rate, I would always send at least one other application alongside it.
FAQ about the Maastricht NL-High Potential Scholarship
Is the Maastricht NL-High Potential Scholarship fully funded?
Mostly. It covers tuition, a living allowance, insurance and visa costs, but not international flights or your application fee.
What is the deadline for the Maastricht NL-High Potential Scholarship 2027?
The deadline is 1 February 2027 at 23:59 CET. Your master’s application must be complete by 10 December 2026.
What GPA do I need for the Maastricht scholarship?
At least 7.5 out of 10, or the equivalent in your grading system. Include your university’s grading-scale explanation with your transcript.
Is there an age limit for the NL-High Potential Scholarship?
Yes. You must not be older than 35 on 1 September 2027.
Sources and updates
Maastricht University’s NL-High Potential scholarship page is the official source, but its main text would not load when I checked, so the figures here come from the Scholars4Dev summary and two independent 2027-2028 listings (Scholarships Central and Opportunities Circle), which agree on the award values, age limit, GPA, deadlines and documents. The award count is the main point where they differ: two give 18 and Scholars4Dev gives 21. The living cost comparison uses the IND required amounts page. Information checked on 25 October 2026. Check UM’s page before you apply, and I will correct this post as soon as UM’s text can be confirmed.
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.
