Scholarships to Study in Spain as a Foreigner: Fundación Carolina, MAEC-AECID and More

Scholarships to Study in Spain as a Foreigner: Fundación Carolina, MAEC-AECID and More

Spain has a wide and real scholarship ecosystem for international students, especially at postgraduate level, the best-covered one. Getting one has three keys:

1. Understanding the map: who gives scholarships, for which profile and with what real chances.

2. Respecting the sequence: first the pre-admission to your programme, then the scholarship.

3. Reading the fine print before signing, especially the return commitment.

In this guide we walk through all three, with the full calendar and the 2026 calls.

Verified in July 2026.

Before we start, the necessary vocabulary

Call (convocatoria): the official announcement of a scholarship, with its rules, requirements and deadlines. A new one is published every year.

Pre-admission: your university's confirmation that you are admitted (or pre-admitted) to the programme. The big scholarships require it already processed at the time of applying.

Award coverage (dotación): what the scholarship actually covers. Not all of them pay the same: it can be a full or partial tuition waiver, a monthly allowance, a one-off grant, housing, insurance, travel or comprehensive funding. Knowing the type of coverage keeps you from discarding a useful grant just because it doesn't cover everything.

Return commitment: the obligation to go back to your country when you finish your studies, common in development cooperation scholarships. It has concrete immigration effects you will see below.

The map in 60 seconds

Funding comes from four sources, each with its own rules and calendar. The Spanish government, with the MAEC-AECID scholarships of the Spanish Cooperation. Public-private foundations, with the Fundación Carolina as the absolute reference for Ibero-Americans. Private foundations, such as La Caixa or Santander. And the closest layer: the European Union with Erasmus+ and the universities themselves with their waivers and grants.

To manage expectations, an honest orientation on competitiveness (no percentages are published, but the scale looks like this):

• Highly competitive: Fundación Carolina, MAEC-AECID and Erasmus Mundus.

• Medium competitiveness: universities' own scholarships and Santander Scholarships.

• More accessible: academic excellence discounts, partial tuition waivers and internal faculty grants.

The most effective strategy is applying to several compatible calls in parallel, without depending on a single opportunity.

The golden rule and your calendar, month by month

It is the mistake that kills the most applications: the strong calls require you to apply with the pre-admission to your programme already processed. For MAEC-AECID, holding the admission to the master's is a mandatory requirement at the time of applying, as stated on the official AECID scholarships page.

That is why the scholarship is planned before, not in parallel. The recommended calendar:

• October and November: choose programmes and prepare the documentation.

• December: request the pre-admission.

• January to March: submit the scholarship applications.

• April to June: receive the resolutions.

• Summer: process the visa.

The documentation details are in the Master's and PhD Guide.

And one warning that applies to every date in this guide: calls change every year. Although the programmes usually repeat, the dates, amounts and requirements may vary, so always check the rules of the corresponding edition before submitting your application.

→ With Uniwords: we build that integrated calendar with you (programme, documentation file, pre-enrolment and scholarship) so that when the call opens you only have to press send. Book here

The full scholarships, by profile

If you are Ibero-American: Fundación Carolina. The reference institution, with postgraduate, PhD, short-stay and mobility scholarships. For the 2026-27 academic year it offered more than 700 scholarships across all fields, with applications open from 12 January to 2 March, published on the Fundación Carolina website.

They work on a co-funding basis. As a real reference from a master's programme: a large part of the tuition covered, around €900 a month for housing and living costs, a return flight and health insurance. And on top of the coverage comes an asset that does not appear in the rules: the Red Carolina, a network of former scholars in leadership positions across Latin America.

If you come from Latin America, Africa, Asia or the Philippines: MAEC-AECID. The official programme of the Spanish Cooperation, with lines by region and group, including a master's programme for public employees of partner countries, and coverage that combines a monthly allowance and health insurance. All the information is on the AECID scholarships page.

Its general requirements matter as much as the coverage: not holding Spanish nationality or an NIE, not residing in Spain or another EU country, not having been a previous AECID or Carolina beneficiary, certifying Spanish and holding the pre-admission.

If your destination is the PhD: La Caixa INPhINIT and pre-doctoral contracts. INPhINIT offers the highest individual doctoral funding in the system, around €26,000 to €29,000 a year for three years, according to the La Caixa Foundation. It coexists with the public FPU and FPI contracts and with research project contracts. In a PhD, funding is the normal way in, not the exception.

If you are American: Fulbright Spain, with around thirty places a year for research and language assistants, according to Fulbright Spain. Relevant because the MAEC-AECID programme does not include the US among eligible countries.

If you study at a European university, or aim for an elite master's: Erasmus+. The classic mobility provides grants of €300 to €450 a month and is applied for through your home university's international office, which must have an agreement with the Spanish one. And the programme's crown jewel is not only for Europeans: the Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters are jointly run master's degrees with full funding open to candidates worldwide, listed on the official Erasmus+ portal.

The proximity scholarships: less famous, more likely

The full scholarship is competitive. The partial grant is far more accessible, and it stacks:

• Universities, public and private, offer tuition waivers and grants based on academic or financial criteria, plus excellence scholarships to attract international talent. Always check the scholarships page of your specific university: it is the call with the best effort-to-probability ratio in this whole article!

• Santander Scholarships: hundreds of mobility, collaboration and excellence programmes on the Santander Scholarships portal. Many require your home university to have an agreement with the bank, so start by checking that.

• Ibero-American bodies such as the OEI or SEGIB run multilateral educational cooperation programmes worth tracking depending on your country.

• A warning about the Spanish Ministry of Education's general grant: it is the system's big income-based grant, but its call requires Spanish or EU nationality, or a legal residence status that the student stay does not grant. Check the year's requirements on the Ministry's scholarships portal before counting on it.

Which scholarship should I look at first?

For those who want a quick answer based on their profile:

• I am from Latin America: Fundación Carolina.

• I want to do a PhD: INPhINIT, FPU, FPI and research contracts.

• I am going to study a joint European master's: Erasmus Mundus.

• I am looking for a master's with partial funding: university scholarships and Santander.

• I work in the public administration of a partner country: specific MAEC-AECID programmes.

How your scholarship is decided (and why it takes months)

Many scholarships go through phases: administrative review, academic evaluation, an interview when there is one, and resolution. That is why months pass between the closing date and the result, and why resolutions arrive between April and June.

And many believe committees only look at grades. What is normally evaluated includes your academic record, your professional track record, the coherence of your project, the motivation letter, the recommendation letters and, especially in cooperation scholarships, the expected impact upon returning to your home country. Prepare the full application, not just the transcript.

What a scholarship changes in your visa

A double positive effect. The scholarship serves as proof of financial means in the visa application: the documented award replaces or complements bank statements. And several of the big ones (AECID, Carolina) include health insurance during the stay.

Careful with the second point: verify that the insurance meets the exact visa requirements (full coverage, no copayments, no waiting periods) and, if not, buy the complement. The full requirements are in the Spanish Student Visa Guide.

The fine print almost nobody reads: the return

Development cooperation scholarships usually carry a return commitment to your home country. And it has a concrete immigration effect: the switch from student stay to residence and work requires not having been funded within Spanish or home-country development cooperation or humanitarian action programmes, as stated on the official modifications page.

It is not a flaw of the scholarship, it is its cooperation purpose. But you must decide with your eyes open: if your plan is to stay and work in Spain when you finish, read the rules before signing. The full post-study itinerary is in the Staying in Spain Guide.

→ With Uniwords: in our guidance we review with you the obligations of each scholarship against your real plan (going back, staying, moving on to a PhD) so that today's funding does not block tomorrow's decision. Book here

Five mistakes that lose a scholarship

1. Waiting for the final admission when the call accepts the pre-admission. It is giving away an entire edition over a nuance in the rules.

2. Submitting documents without translation or legalisation. The administrative review discards the file before anyone reads your application.

3. Handing in the application on the last day. Platforms get saturated and any incident leaves you out with no remedy.

4. Copying a generic motivation letter. Committees read hundreds: the coherence between your project and the programme is exactly what they evaluate.

5. Not reading the incompatibilities with other grants. Accepting two incompatible sources of funding can force you to return one.

Frequently asked questions

Are there scholarships for undergraduate studies, or only postgraduate?
The bulk of international funding concentrates on master's and PhD. For undergraduate, the realistic routes are the grants and discounts of the universities themselves (especially private ones, with scholarships of up to 50% based on your record) and specific programmes by country. Budget your degree without counting on a full scholarship: https://uniwordstudents.com/blog/cuanto-cuesta-estudiar-en-espana

Can I use the scholarship as proof of funds for the visa?
Yes: the documentation proving financial means expressly admits scholarships and financing (official page: https://www.inclusion.gob.es/web/migraciones/w/estancia-por-estudios). Submit the award resolution with amounts and duration.

Do I need to be admitted before applying for the scholarship?
In the big calls, yes: AECID requires the pre-admission processed when applying (https://www.aecid.es/becas-para-ciudadanos-de-paises-de-america-latina-africa-y-asia), and at Carolina the application is linked to specific programmes in its catalogue. Hence the golden rule of the calendar.

Do I need to certify languages?
It depends on the programme. Master's degrees in Spanish may require a sufficient level of Spanish, while those taught in English usually request certificates such as IELTS, TOEFL or equivalents. Always check the requirements of both the programme and the scholarship, as they do not always match.

Can I receive two scholarships at the same time?
It depends on the rules. Some are compatible with partial tuition grants, while others prohibit receiving public or private funding for the same concept. Read it before accepting, not after.

Can I work while holding the scholarship?
Legally, the higher education authorisation lets you work within the limits and conditions of the rules (https://www.inclusion.gob.es/web/migraciones/w/estancia-por-estudios). Contractually, many scholarships require exclusive dedication, as happens in Fundación Carolina programmes. What you sign in the rules prevails.

Which scholarships exist specifically for my country?
Besides the regional lines of AECID and Carolina, many countries run their own programmes to fund studies abroad, such as loan-scholarships and national trusts. Check your country's scholarship body alongside this guide: both routes are compatible.

Does being a scholarship holder prevent me from staying in Spain afterwards?
Only if your scholarship is a cooperation one with a return commitment: that case blocks the direct switch to residence and work (https://www.inclusion.gob.es/web/migraciones/w/58.-modificaciones-desde-autorizaciones-de-estancia-por-estudios-superiores-ensenanza-secundaria-actividades-formativas-o-formacion-sanitaria-especializada). Scholarships without that component, such as university, private or excellence ones, do not affect your later itinerary.

Funding is planned, not hoped for

A scholarship does not fall from the sky: it is a calendar, a file and a well-told application, and all three can be prepared. At UW we integrate the funding search into your full process, from choosing the programme to having the documents ready in December and the applications sent in parallel, always reviewing which obligations each scholarship carries. And if you don't know where to start, in the community there are Carolina and AECID scholars who already went through this. Book here

The full map of the process, in the General Guide.