Scholarships in Austria: grants.at, Ernst Mach & University Stipends

Austria's scholarship landscape works differently from the US or UK: because public-university tuition is already near-free for EU students and heavily subsidized for everyone (€726.72/semester for non-EU), funding is geared toward living costs, research stays, and merit awards — not tuition waivers. Set your expectations accordingly and the system is generous.

Start at grants.at — always

grants.at is Austria's official database of scholarships and research funding, run by the OeAD. It consolidates programs from the science ministry, the City of Vienna, the Austrian Science Fund (FWF), and individual universities — searchable by country of origin, level, and field. Ten minutes of filtering beats weeks of random googling.

The Ernst Mach family (OeAD)

The flagship state grants — with strict scopes worth understanding before you plan around them:

• Ernst Mach Grant – worldwide. For young researchers (age limit 35) from any country: research stays of 1–9 months — not full degrees. Recent published stipends run €940–€1,150/month depending on status; confirm the current rate on grants.at. Deadline: December 1 for stays in the following academic year.
• Ernst Mach – Fachhochschule. Funds 4–10-month exchange visits at Austrian universities of applied sciences for bachelor's/master's students from non-European universities.
• Ernst Mach – ASEA-UNINET. The big one for Southeast Asia: funds full PhDs up to 36 months for candidates from Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam.

University and institute stipends

• Helmut Veith Stipend (TU Wien). For female students entering English-taught computer-science master's programs (Logic & Computation, Data Science, Computational Science): €7,000/year plus a tuition waiver. Applications typically close 30 November.
• ISTA (Institute of Science and Technology Austria). All admitted PhD students receive a full salary (approximately €34,000/year) — you apply to the graduate school, not for a "scholarship".
• CEU (Central European University, Vienna). US- and Austrian-accredited; offers substantial merit-based tuition waivers and stipends across its social-science master's and PhD programs.

The statutory awards most students miss

Two awards under the Austrian study-support law (StudFG) are available at your own university once you have Austrian grades:

• Leistungsstipendium (performance scholarship): €750–€1,500 for a strong GPA (typically 2.0 or better). No means test — income and nationality don't matter. Apply through your university every year; most international students never do.
• Förderungsstipendium (project grant): €750–€3,600 toward the travel, materials, or research costs of your thesis.

A funding sequence that works

1. Bank the cheap tuition. Public universities cost non-EU students €726.72/semester — often less than a single month of tuition elsewhere. That subsidy is the scholarship.
2. Clear the proof-of-funds gate for your residence permit — €722.58 or €1,308.39 monthly, shown 12 months ahead.
3. Filter grants.at for your country + level before you arrive.
4. After your first semester, apply for the Leistungsstipendium with your Austrian grades — repeatable every year.
5. Writing your thesis? Claim the Förderungsstipendium for costs.