Apply now for the fully-funded 2025 DAAD Leadership for Africa Scholarship Programme for students from West Africa

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Closing Date: 10 June 2025

Apply now for the fully-funded 2025 DAAD Leadership for Africa Scholarship Programme for students from West Africa

DAAD Leadership for Africa Scholarship Objective

The scholarship programme “Leadership for Africa” (LfA) aims to support the academic qualification and advancement of young refugees and national scholars from Cameroon, Senegal, and Togo at higher education institutions in Germany. In times of conflicts and displacement, this programme intends to contribute to the education of future leaders, who will be essential for the further development of societies in Africa and beyond. “Leadership for Africa” offers scholarships for Master’s studies in Germany to qualified applicants in all fields of study except for Medicine, Veterinary Medicine, Dentistry, Law, Fine Arts and Architecture as well as Nursing, Midwifery or similar health care-related academic fields.

Who can apply?

The DAAD Leadership for Africa Scholarship programme targets two groups:
1) Highly qualified refugees who hold refugee status and fulfil the necessary qualifications for Master’s studies in Germany.
Applicants must fulfil the following conditions:

Holding refugee status in their host countries, being granted before 2nd of April 2024. Refugee status must be valid at least until April 2026. In case of renewal of status, please provide sufficient proof.
Country of asylum must be either Cameroon, Senegal, or Togo
Completed Bachelor’s degree at the time of application

2) Highly qualified graduates from Cameroon, Senegal, or Togo who fulfil the necessary qualifications for Master’s studies in Germany.
Applicants must fulfil the following conditions:

Citizenship of either Cameroon, Senegal, or Togo
Country of residence is Cameroon, Senegal, or Togo
Completed Bachelor’s degree at the time of application

Please note:

With a Degree in Medicine, you can apply for Public Health or Biomedical Master related programmes only. A Master’s programme in Medicine is not eligible for funding.
For applicants from artistic disciplines and the field of architecture, the DAAD offers subject-specific scholarship programmes .

What can be funded?

The scholarship includes:

German language course (up to 6 months) in Germany before the start of the university studies
Tuition-free M.A. or M.Sc. degree programme at a public or state-recognized university in Germany starting in winter term 2026 (September/October 2026)

Duration of the funding

Generally, selected candidates will start their German language course in April 2026 at the earliest and begin their studies at a German institution of higher education by around 1 October 2026. The duration of funding is determined by the standard period of study of the chosen programme. In general, eligible Master’s programmes require two years of full-time study.

Value

German language course (up to 6 months) in Germany before the start of the study programme, including the coverage of the test fees for a German language certificate (TestDaF or DSH test), pocket money and accommodation (only during the language course). The DAAD will decide whether to fund participation and for how long based on the applicant’s German language skills and study requirements. Participation in a language course is compulsory.
Monthly scholarship rate payments of 992 euros
Adequate health, accident, and private/personal liability insurance in Germany
Travel allowance
Yearly study allowance
If applicable, monthly rent subsidy and monthly allowance for accompanying family members (spouse and/or children)
Please note that family reunions may be delayed or even not be possible during the duration of the scholarship, due to the length of the visa process for some home or host countries.

Selection

A pre-selection will be conducted based on the submitted application documents. Only complete applications with all mandatory documents will be considered. Preselected candidates will be invited to an (digital) interview.