DAAD Postgraduate Study Scholarship in the Fields of Fine Art, Design, Visual Communication and Film 2027

This scholarship programme offers you the opportunity to continue your education in Germany with a postgraduate or complementary course of study in the fields of Fine Art, Design, Visual Communication and Film. The scholarships also promote the exchange of experience and networking amongst colleagues.

Table of Content

• Summary
• Benefits
• Requirements
• Interview Process
• Application Documents
• Application Deadline
• How To Apply

Summary

• Application DeadlineOctober 15, 2026
• Study LevelMasters , PhD
• SponsorDAAD
• Eligible CountryAll Countries

Benefits

• A monthly payment of 992 euros
• Travel allowance (upon application only)
• One-off study allowance
• Payments towards health, accident and personal liability insurance cover

Under certain circumstances, scholarship holders may receive the following additional benefits:

• Monthly rent subsidy 
• Monthly allowance for accompanying members of family. 
• In case of a disability or chronic illness: on application, a subsidy may be provided for justified additional costs incurred abroad that are necessary to realise the project in Germany and that are not covered by a third party; whether and to what extent a subsidy will be paid will be reviewed and determined on an individual basis 
• Green Mobility Top Up (Support for climate-friendly travel) or reimbursement of carbon offset payments for air travel

To enable scholarship holders to learn German in preparation for their stay in the country, DAAD offers the following services:

• Payment of course fees for an online language course after receipt of the Scholarship Award Letter
• if necessary: German language course (2, 4 or 6 months) before the start of the study visit in Germany; the DAAD decides whether to fund participation and for how long depending on German language skills and project. Participation in a language course is compulsory if the language of instruction or working language is German at the German host institution.
• Allowance for a personally chosen German language course during the scholarship period
• Reimbursement of the fee for a TestDaF or DSH test, which you can take either in your home country after you have received your Scholarship Award Letter or in Germany during your funding period.

Requirements

• You can apply if you have gained a first university degree in the field of arts.

Requirements also vary by country, kindly visit the DAAD webpage for more information.

Selection Process

After you have uploaded your application documents to the DAAD portal, the DAAD will first carry out a formal check. It will be checked whether the application requirements have been met and whether the application is complete. If this is the case, you will be asked to submit your artistic portfolio.
A special DAAD committee made up of professors from German art, design and film schools is responsible for the final decision about scholarships in the fields of Fine Art, Film, Design, Visual Communication and Film. The decision is based upon the written application and artistic portfolio which have to be submitted. Details about the criteria for the portfolio can be found on this website: 'Additional Information on DAAD Study Scholarships in the Fields of Fine Art, Design/Visual Communication and Film'.

There is a period of up to seven months between the submission of application materials and the notification of applicants regarding the selection committee’s decision.

Selection criteria

• the artistic qualification and artistic maturity, measured by study achievements and portfolio
• the quality of the project as measured by the study plan and the letter of motivation

In addition, the selection committee will give due consideration to aspects of equal opportunities, on which you can provide information in the application form.

Application Documents

The application documents and the artistic portfolio are submitted in two steps:

1. Submission of the application documents via the DAAD portal
2. Submission of the artistic portfolio and the supplementary list over the DAAD media database (you will receive a Link after the formal check of your application documents, if your application was complete)

1. Submission of the application documents via the DAAD portal:
The application documents are submitted online via the DAAD portal.
Please note that the access to the application portal only appears while the current application period is running. After the application deadline has expired, the portal for this programme is not available until the next application period.

Application documents
After registering on the DAAD portal, please complete the online application in full. Then upload the application documents listed below to the DAAD portal in the section ‘Attachments’.
Application documents may be scanned in non-certified form and uploaded to the DAAD portal. The DAAD reserves the right to request certified copies of the documents.

If you submit documents in your national language, please include German or English translations.

Documents to be uploaded to the DAAD portal:

• Full curriculum vitae in tabular form
• Statement about academic and personal reasons for the planned study project in Germany (letter of motivation; 1 - 3 pages). Please also read our important information for scholarship applicants / Section A, point 2.

a) Master's degree/postgraduate study programme leading to a final qualification:

• Form 'Information about your preferred master programmes'. Please upload the provided form even if you only have one university of choice or you received the admission letter from your host university already.
  This helps to get a good overview of your chosen study programmes. Please do not upload the curriculum of the study programme or screenshots from the university website as a replacement.
• If available: Letter of acceptance from the host university. If you have not yet received notification of admission at the time of application, you must submit this before the funding period begins.

b) Complementary studies not leading to a final qualification:

• Confirmation of supervision from a German university teacher if you undertake an independent project or complementary study course with a professor/an instructor in Germany
  or
• If you are planning to spend time studying in Germany as part of a second or Master's degree programme in your home country, you must submit proof that credits acquired in Germany will be recognised by your home university.

For all applicants:

• A current Transcript of Records with individual grade(s)
• All university degree certificates indicating final grade(s): the certificate must be subsequently submitted before the scholarship-supported study programme begins if studies have not been completed at the time of application.
• When you submit your application, you must provide proof of your current proficiency in the language of instruction (German, English, or German and English) in your chosen study programmes. Language certificates may not be older than three years. You should have the knowledge of the language of instruction which corresponds to the requirements of the chosen university at the latest by the time you start your scholarship. If you do not yet have the language skills required by the university at the time of your application, your application should indicate the extent to which you are in a position to reach the required level. Please also read our important information for scholarship applicants / Section A, point 9 and Section D, point 5 to 8 for further information on possible language certificates.
• Other additional documents, that might be important for your application (for example Internships, Awards etc.)

2. Submission of the artistic portfolio and the supplementary list over the DAAD media database:
If the formal review of your scholarship application has determined that it meets the criteria of the scholarship announcement and is complete, you will receive a link to the email address you provided to upload your artistic portfolio to the DAAD media database. Please upload the following documents there:

• Portfolio with samples of your work: Information on the formal requirements can be found on our information page: 'Additional Information on DAAD Study Scholarships in the Fields of Fine Art, Design/Visual Communication and Film'.
• Supplementary list for the portfolio: You must submit the supplementary list for the portfolio together with the portfolio in the media database. You can find the template here -> Supplementary List. This enables the committee to better categorize and evaluate your work samples.

Upon receiving the link and the cover letter, you will receive more detailed information regarding access and the deadline for uploading. ]

All application documents listed under 1. and 2. must be submitted in German or English. Documents in other languages must be translated. Please provide them with your application.

Please do not upload the artistic portfolio, work samples or other pictures to the DAAD portal. These documents should only be uploaded to the media database, for which you will receive a link.

Application Deadline

October 15, 2026

How To Apply

Are you qualified and interested in this opportunity? Kindly go to DAAD on www2.daad.de to apply