DAAD Graduate Awards

About the DAAD Graduate Awards

The German Academic Exchange Service, Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst (DAAD) is a private, federally and state-funded, self-governing national agency of the institutions of higher education in Germany. The DAAD awards competitive, merit-based grants for use toward graduate study and research in Germany in any academic field and at any academic level at any of the accredited German institutions of higher education. There are two types of DAAD Graduate Awards for our campus process:

• Study Scholarships: final year undergraduate students or those who have received an undergraduate degree of all disciplines for a full master's degree program at a German university, or for study at a German university as part of a postgraduate or Master's degree program completed in the home country.
• Research Grants in Germany: doctoral students in a US/Canadian program (or those who will be enrolled by the beginning of funding) interested in a research project in Germany for funding between 2-12 months, or those who have already completed a PhD (postdocs) for funding between 2-6 months.
• Research Grants-Bi-nationally Supervised Doctoral degrees/Cotutelle (USA): doctoral students who have admission to a doctoral program at the time they begin their grant-supported research. The aim of this program is the funding of bi-national doctoral projects at the home university and at a university in Germany.

Please note that as a partner university, Stanford is allowed to select two "preferred applicants" whose applications will be entered into a separate pool. While preferred applicants are not guaranteed an award, their chances are reasonably good. However, all applicants are forwarded on to DAAD for consideration.

Note: Our institutional nomination/priority candidates are only for applicants for a study scholarship or a long-term research grant (7-12 months) by the fall deadline. There is no partner university pre-selection in the spring.

Amount Awarded

Monthly payment of approximately € 935 for postgrads and around € 1,300 for doctoral candidates and postdocs.

Application Process

The DAAD Graduate Awards have a campus process and require a Stanford nomination. Therefore, you need to be aware of two deadlines: a campus deadline and a national deadline. The campus deadline for the DAAD Graduate Study/Research Grants is typically in mid-October and the national deadline in late October.

However, the DAAD Graduate Grant has a two deadlines: a campus deadline in the fall and a national deadline in the spring. Check the DAAD.org website for details. The application process is lengthy and requires many months of preparation.

Campus Process

Fill out the DAAD Intent to Apply Form.

Campus Deadline Submission Checklist

The DAAD Study Scholarship application includes the following:

• Stanford Campus Application Coversheet 
• DAAD Online Application Form
• Full CV/Resume - (max. 3 pages)
• Study proposal - (max. 3 pages) this should include a narrative about academic and personal reasons for the planned study explaining why the program was chosen and how it will further your educational and career goals. No format restrictions regarding font, spacing and paragraphs.
• Letter of admission to a study program in Germany. If this is not available at the time of the application deadline, this can be subsequently submitted before the scholarship-supported study program begins.
• "Information about your Preferred Master Programs" (see the DAAD website)

For Master’s degree applicants

1. Applicants who will be starting their master’s program in Germany: when completing the DAAD form, DAAD recommends listing up to 5 potential degree programs to avoid a situation in which you are granted a scholarship but end up not getting accepted into a Master’s program. However, when writing your proposal, you should focus on your first choice, and mention briefly additional programs at the end of your proposal.
2. OR For a study period in Germany as part of an American or Canadian postgraduate or Master’s degree: submit proof that the academic credits earned in Germany will be recognized by your home institution (e.g. letter from your department).

• University Degree Certificate(s) if applicable
• Official Transcripts of all university studies – including explanations of grading system
• DAAD Language Evaluation Form (Sprachnachweis) - See the DAAD official website for details - go to Application Guidelines and Checklist.
• One recent, supporting letter of recommendation from university professor in your major subject or discipline. Please regard the instructions given on the tab ‘Submitting an application’ for uploading the recommendation. Recommenders can also send their letter to our Office of Global Scholarships globalscholarships@stanford.edu. And we will forward to DAAD New York office.
• Stanford Nomination Form and Waiver (available at the OGS)
   

DAAD Research Grants  7-12 months grant. Application includes the following:

• Stanford Campus Application Coversheet (available on our webpage, see above)
• DAAD Online Application Form
• Full CV/Resume (max. 3 pages)
• List of Publications (max. 5 pages), if applicable
• Letter of Motivation (1-2 pages) - Description of academic and personal reasons for your planned project in Germany - answering the following question: What do you hope to gain from your project in Germany (personally, professionally, for your career)?
• Research Proposal - Extensive and detailed description of the research proposal which has been discussed with the academic adviser and a description of previous research work (max. 5 pages)
• Schedule of planned research work
• Letter confirming supervision by an academic adviser in Germany, which refers to the applicant's proposal and confirms that the host institute will provide a workplace
• University degree Certificate(s) if applicable (e.g. Bachelor or Master)
• Official Transcripts of ALL university studies - (Doctoral, Master’s (or JD), Undergraduate)
• DAAD Language Evaluation Form (Sprachnachweis) – See official checklist for link
• One recent, supporting letter of recommendation from university professor in your major subject or discipline. Please regard the instructions given on the tab ‘Submitting an application’ for uploading the recommendation. Recommenders can also send their letter to our Office of Global Scholarships globalscholarships@stanford.edu. And we will forward to DAAD New York office.
• Stanford Nomination Form and Waiver (available at the OGS)
   

For Both DAAD Graduate Study and Graduate Research Award Applicants:

Submit the electronic version of the following to the Office of Global Scholarships by 4pm PT on the campus deadline:

Email the following materials to Diane Murk:

1. PDF of Application (to be downloaded from DAAD application system once you submit your application)
2. Stanford DAAD Cover Sheet (see above on this webpage)
3. Stanford Nomination Form Waiver (available at the OGS)

Selection Process: 

We will forward all of candidate's application material to our DAAD Campus Screening Committee the day after our campus deadline. Our faculty member campus panel will decide which two applicants will be Stanford's Preferred Candidates / Nominees for special consideration. Please keep in mind that we forward all approved applications to the DAAD office for review and selection before the national deadline.

Campus Application Deadline

Typically in mid-October.

National Application Deadline

Typically in late October.

Additional Info

Organization:  DAAD German Academic Exchange

Additional information on the DAAD Awards, including application criteria, can be found at: 

• Graduate Study Scholarship
• Graduate Research Grant

DAAD offers other grant opportunities for which Stanford students may apply. Find more information about DAAD grant opportunities here.