Scholarships and Student Financial Aid in Slovakia

National Scholarship Programme: the main route for international students

The National Scholarship Programme (NSP), funded by the Ministry of Education, supports international students, PhD students, university teachers, researchers, and artists on a study, research, or teaching stay in Slovakia, according to scholarships.sk , the programme's official site. Citizens of any country other than Slovakia can apply. For the 2026/2027 academic year, master's students receive around 620 euros a month and PhD students around 1,025 euros a month, paid for the length of their approved stay.

Applications open twice a year, with rounds typically closing on April 30 and October 31, through the online form at scholarships.sk. You apply with a host university or institution already lined up in Slovakia, so contact your chosen faculty before you submit your NSP application.

Government Scholarship of the Slovak Republic: full degree, limited eligibility

A separate scheme, the Government Scholarship of the Slovak Republic, covers a complete bachelor's, master's, or PhD degree, including tuition, accommodation, and a monthly living allowance, according to the official programme site . It funds around 70 places a year, reserved for citizens of roughly 32 countries on Slovakia's official development assistance priority list, mostly outside Europe. Degrees under this scheme are taught in Slovak, so if you do not already speak the language, you spend the first months in a funded preparatory course before your degree begins. Most European students will not qualify for this scheme, since it targets specific non-European partner countries, so check the current eligible country list before you plan around it.

University scholarships: merit and social support

Every Slovak public university runs its own merit scholarship (prospechové štipendium) for students with the strongest results in their year. Payment is usually automatic once your grades qualify, with no separate application, though the amount is set by each university individually.

Slovak and EU/EEA students who study full-time in Slovak, within the standard length of their programme, apply for a state social scholarship (sociálne štipendium) through their faculty's study department. This is income-tested and aimed at students whose family finances would otherwise make study difficult. Ask your faculty's study department directly for the current application form and income thresholds, since these are set at national level and reviewed regularly.

Erasmus+ and other European funding

If you already study at a university in another EU country, Erasmus+ funds a semester or year of exchange study in Slovakia through your home university's international office. The grant covers part of your living costs and travel, on top of whatever support you already receive at home. Some Slovak faculties also list smaller subject-specific scholarships and research grants on their own websites, worth checking once you have a shortlist of programmes.

Combining funding sources

None of these schemes automatically cover every cost on their own. NSP funding pays a living stipend but not tuition, so pair it with a Slovak-taught place, where standard-length study is free, or with your home country's own study-abroad grant if you take an English-taught programme. Apply to more than one scheme where you qualify: an EU student, for example, combines free tuition with a merit scholarship if grades qualify and an NSP stay for part of the degree spent on an approved research project.

Where each scheme fits