What is the Students at Risk Fund?
The Students at Risk Fund is intended to support students who can prove that they are at risk of being formally or de facto denied the right to education at their university due to their ethnic, sexual, gender, or religious identity or their political or civic engagement, in continuing and completing their studies in Austria.
This means that students who meet the selection criteria (demonstrable risk due to their ethnic, sexual, gender, or religious identity or their political or civic engagement and the resulting denial of their right to education) can submit an application for the scholarship through the Austrian university at which they have been admitted.
How can I apply?
As an applicant, your higher education institution, for which you have been issued a letter of admission, must nominate you to the OeAD. In doing so, your higher education institution confirms that, in addition to being at individual risk, you also have good prospects for studying in Austria. At the same time, unbefristete Zulassung für den jeweiligen Studiengang sicher und versichern, dass du die für eine Zulassung zum Studium benötigten Sprachnachweise vorlegen kannst.
After your university has submitted your application to the OeAD, you will be invited to submit your application via the OeAD’s online application portal. After checking the formal requirements and the plausibility of the applications, a selection committee consisting of representatives from the BMFWF, ÖH, and OeAD will decide on the awarding of grants. The scholarship will then be awarded and paid out by the ÖH.
The application process consists of the following steps:
- Nomination by an Austrian university:
The first step is to obtain a nomination from an Austrian university. To be nominated, an authorized representative of the university must complete the relevant form (nomination sheet) and submit it to the OeAD. - Written application by the candidate:
After the nominations have been checked for completeness and plausibility, the candidate is invited to apply in writing using an online application form - Review of the submitted application documents by the OeAD: Checking for completeness, fulfillment of the formal criteria, and plausibility of the alleged threat in detail.
- Decision by a selection committee:
A selection committee consisting of one member each from the ÖH, the OeAD, and the BMFWF decides on the granting of support. In addition, experts may be consulted in an advisory capacity. - Written decision:
The candidate will be notified of the decision in writing.
What do applicants need to apply?
- Proof of previous studies at a university in a third country (excluding EU/EEA/EFTA countries as well as Andorra, Monaco, San Marino, and the United Kingdom)
- Proof of denial of the right to education in the country of study to date or proof of activism, risk status, and endangerment
- Unlimited admission to a degree program or admission to a preparatory course at a recognized Austrian higher education institution (please note: admission does not automatically grant a residence permit; this must be applied for separately
- Scholarship nomination issued by an Austrian higher education institution
- Complete curriculum vitae
- Proof of language skills (Language skills in German or English must generally correspond to level B2 (or higher) of the CEFR in order to be able to study in one of these two languages at an Austrian higher education institution! However, the requirements vary depending on the degree program. If your German language skills are insufficient, you can acquire them in a preparatory course. German language skills at level A2 are usually sufficient here.)
- Proof of previous school or university degrees
- Scanned Document (Name and Picture)
Facts & figures:
Target group:
- Students at BA, MA, or PhD level who are formally or de facto denied the right to education in their countries of origin should be given the opportunity to obtain a university degree in a safe environment.
- The student must have studied diligently in their country of origin for at least one semester before having to discontinue their studies.
- The studies must have been discontinued within the last two years prior to the date of nomination.
Quota: We can award a maximum of 50 financial grants per academic year.
Countries of origin:
All (except EU/EEA/EFTA countries as well as Andorra, Monaco, San Marino, and the United Kingdom).
Type of funding:
Funding for the completion of a BA, MA, or PhD degree in Austria.
Duration: For the duration of the statutory period of study plus two semesters; up to three semesters in the preliminary study course.
Max: 35 years
Scholarship amount:
1,200 euros per month; tuition fees are not covered by the scholarship.
Application deadline:
Currently unknown.
Procedure:
Potential scholarship recipients are selected exclusively by the respective higher education institution. It is not possible to apply directly to the OeAD.
Funding body: ÖH with funds from the Federal Ministry for Women, Science and Research (BMFWF) in cooperation with the OeAD.
Ausschreibung auf grants.at
Informationen beim OeAD
Laura Reppmann BA
Officer for International Affairs
students-at-risk-austria@oeh.ac.at
0676/88852212