Eric Bleumink Fellowship 2027

About the fellowship

The Eric Bleumink Fellowship (EBF) was set up on 23 May 2000 and is named after Professor Eric Bleumink, former President of the University of Groningen in the Netherlands. According to the official rules, its aim is to support Master's students from the poorest developing countries, to strengthen ties between Groningen and universities in those countries, and to raise academic expertise in the students' home countries.

The rules say the fellowship receives hundreds of applications each year and only four are awarded a scholarship. The university's page also warns that it can issue only a limited number of grants.

Who can be considered

The fellowship is for any Master's programme (MSc, MA or LLM) at Groningen. The country list on the official page includes Sierra Leone, along with many other countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Pacific, among them Liberia, Ghana, Nigeria, Guinea, Gambia, Senegal, Kenya, Uganda and Ethiopia.

Candidates should:

• Have received a provisional or unconditional admission offer for a Groningen Master's programme before February.
• Have excellent academic performance, ideally confirmed by letters of recommendation, and excellent bachelor's grades.
• Have excellent English, in line with the admission requirements of their chosen programme.
• Be available for, and take part in, the whole programme, starting on 1 September.
• Be in good health, so that Dutch health insurance can be arranged.
• Hold the nationality of a listed country.
• Have no other means of paying for the studies.

What the grant covers

The grant is for one-year or two-year Master's programmes starting in September only. The university says it covers tuition fees, international travel, living costs, books and health insurance. The rules give these amounts for study in the Netherlands:

Approved travel and some field trips for the programme can be refunded. The fellowship does not cover bringing or supporting family members.

• A living allowance of €1,250 a month for food and accommodation.
• A settling-in allowance of €275 on arrival.
• Return travel between home and Amsterdam (economy class, arranged by the university's Mobility and Scholarship Desk, with travel insurance), plus the second-class train fare between Schiphol airport and Groningen.
• A study allowance of €310 a year for books and study materials.
• Tuition fees for the Master's programme.
• Insurance paid by the fellowship, covering certain medical treatment, personal accidents, an emergency flight home and private legal liability while you are in the Netherlands.

How it works: you cannot apply directly

This is a nomination-based award. The official page says it is not possible to apply for the fellowship yourself. The University of Groningen Admission Office, with the faculties' admission boards, decides which Master's applicants to nominate.

The steps set out in the rules are:

If the Admission Office has not contacted you about a nomination by 1 February, you have not been selected, and the university says no further correspondence about the process is possible. It also asks people not to send it applications for the grant.

1. You apply for a Master's programme at Groningen and complete that application before 1 December.
2. In the first week of January, the Admission Office selects nominees with the faculty admission board.
3. Nominees are told and asked to send an EBF motivation letter to the Admission Office within one week.
4. The Admission Office sends nomination files to the EBF committee before 1 February.
5. The EBF selection committee chooses the fellows and tells all nominees the outcome before 1 March.

Documents to prepare

• Everything your chosen Master's programme requires, including transcripts, English test results and recommendation letters (the rules say strong letters are preferred).
• If nominated, an EBF motivation letter within one week.
• The selection criteria also say you should state what other funding you have applied for, and submit copies of those application forms.

Selection criteria

The EBF committee looks at:

You cannot hold another Groningen scholarship at the same time. Decisions are made by the EBF Board and cannot be appealed.

• How your education will strengthen scientific capacity in your home country.
• Prospects for long-term links between a university in your country and Groningen (preferred).
• A balance between male and female candidates.
• A spread across disciplines and faculties.
• Regional variety across continents.
• Your motivation, including the other funding you have applied for.

Deadlines and timeline

• 1 December 2026: complete your Master's application to Groningen (for a programme starting in September 2027).
• First week of January 2027: nominees are chosen.
• Before 1 February 2027: nomination files go to the committee.
• Before 1 March 2027: all nominees are told the outcome.

Obligations if selected

The rules say fellows must follow and complete the programme, cooperate with evaluations, and return home at the end of the fellowship. The university applies for the Dutch entry visa (MVV) and/or residence permit on the fellow's behalf. Fellows may not take paid work or engage in commercial or political activity in the Netherlands. The award can be cancelled, and payments reclaimed, for false statements, failing to make progress, withdrawing, or arriving too late.

Tips from the source

• Apply for your Master's well before 1 December; that is the real deadline for this fellowship.
• Keep your other funding applications, since the committee asks to see them.
• If you are nominated, be ready to write the motivation letter within a week.

Official link

The official page is on rug.nl under Education, Scholarships, Eric Bleumink Fellowship, and the full rules are on the Eric Bleumink Fund pages. If anything here differs from the university's pages, the university's version is right.