Cycle status: what is confirmed
The ministry page and its 2026/27 call state 26 March 2026 at 14:00 Italian time as the application deadline. That date has passed. This page remains useful for preparation, but it is not an announcement that a fresh round is open.
On a small screen, scroll the table sideways to compare all columns.
| Route | Status | What to do now |
|---|---|---|
| 2026/27 central call | Closed | Use it only as the named previous-cycle reference |
| 2027/28 call | Not confirmed here | Watch the ministry and Study in Italy notices |
| University admission | Programme-specific | Check the course separately; scholarship timing does not replace admission timing |
Source: Official guidance
Choose the study route before assessing your chances
Start with the award category, not the headline amount. A master’s applicant, doctoral applicant and research visitor may need different academic evidence. Read the exact category in the current call before treating an age rule, language condition or document as applicable to you.
Build a one-page eligibility note: citizenship, residence, intended degree, previous qualification, teaching language and any earlier study in Italy. Then match each point against the call. If a condition is ambiguous, ask the programme authority a narrow question with the relevant article number rather than relying on a generic “all nationalities” claim.
- Check the official eligible-country list for the named cycle.
- Confirm whether your precise degree or research route is funded.
- Separate academic admission eligibility from scholarship eligibility.
- Check restrictions on existing qualifications, prior study and combining awards.
Official reference: Read the official call
What the grant covers—and the costs to keep separate
For the study categories identified in Article 11, the 2026/27 call specifies a total grant of €10,800. That is a named-cycle amount, not a promise for every programme or a future intake. The call also provides scholarship-period insurance with exclusions.
Tuition exemption is university-dependent. Article 9 states that regional fees remain payable and are not reimbursed by MAECI. A student should therefore ask the chosen university for a personal fee assessment before treating the award as a zero-cost study plan.
On a small screen, scroll the table sideways to compare all columns.
| Budget line | How to interpret it |
|---|---|
| Grant | Check the category, duration and payment conditions in the call |
| University tuition | Ask the institution whether its exemption applies |
| Regional fee | Keep this separate from an advertised tuition waiver |
| Insurance | Read the covered period and exclusions |
| Before-arrival costs | Budget for tests, documents, travel, deposits and visa-related expenses |
Source: 2026/27 call, Articles 9–11
Admission and funding: organise two connected timelines
Do not wait for one process to finish before learning the other process’s deadline. Shortlist a course, identify its admissions portal and record the university’s required documents. In a second column, record the scholarship portal, supporting evidence and any admission-related requirement for your category.
An award application does not reserve a university seat. Equally, an academic offer is not a scholarship award. The useful planning question is: what must be submitted, accepted or completed by each authority’s deadline? A course closing before a funding decision needs a different plan from one accepting a conditional application.
- 1Select a suitable institution and programme.
- 2Read its admission call and save its deadline.
- 3Check the MAECI category and nationality conditions.
- 4Prepare the separate scholarship submission through the official portal.
- 5After any selection, complete admission, enrolment and immigration steps applicable to your case.
Official reference: Study in Italy application FAQ
Prepare evidence by purpose, not a copied universal checklist
Create separate folders for identity, academic qualifications, language evidence and route-specific material. The current call and portal decide which files are mandatory and when they must be available. A list copied from another degree category can omit an essential item or make you spend money on an unnecessary document.
For research-based applications, align the proposed work with the host and the scholarship category. For a taught degree, explain why the course fits your background and future plan. Use an original, evidence-based motivation statement; a prestigious institution name alone does not explain academic fit.
On a small screen, scroll the table sideways to compare all columns.
| Folder | Question to resolve |
|---|---|
| Identity | Does the document meet the current portal’s validity and readability rules? |
| Qualifications | Is the award completed, or is an accepted provisional document available? |
| Language | Which proof does the scholarship require, and which does the course require? |
| Host or admission evidence | Is an invitation or admission letter needed for this category? |
| Additional evidence | Which attachments does this year’s official form actually request? |
Submit a file you can trace after the deadline
Use an email address you check regularly and keep control of the account yourself. Before submission, compare the spelling of your name, the course and institution across forms. Check that the correct final attachment opens and that a translation has not accidentally replaced the original where both are required.
Save the confirmation, a copy of the submitted application and the official call. Record the submission date and the source of any later instruction. This makes an interview request, clarification or correction easier to handle without reconstructing which version you sent.
Check your progress
0 of 5 complete · kept only while this page is open
MAECI versus regional DSU: compare before choosing
These are different funding systems with different authorities and assessment rules. Research each independently and check incompatibility provisions before assuming you can hold both. A sensible comparison includes eligibility, documents, award conditions, housing, payment timing and the cost you must cover before assistance arrives.
Use the Italy scholarship hub for a broad comparison, then the relevant regional guide for operational instructions. This avoids treating a national award and a regional right-to-study application as the same form.