About this opportunity
Sciences Po and the Mastercard Foundation are funding African students through a two-year Master’s in Paris, covering full financial need and wrapping it in support for the whole period of study. You must be a citizen of an African country, under 35 on 1 September of the year you apply, and applying to the Scholars Program for the first time.
The mechanics trip people up, so read this twice. You have to file the Scholars Program request form and open your Sciences Po Master’s application at the same time, on two different platforms. If you do not create the Sciences Po application at that stage, you lose the fee waiver later even if you are found eligible for the scholarship. The International Graduate Admissions Procedure is the only admissions pathway that qualifies, and only two-year Master’s programmes count, not dual degrees or one-year programmes.
There are two deadlines for the 2027 intake and only one is still live. Applying by 23 November 2026 got you an admission decision by 11 February 2027, and that date has passed. Applying by 14 December 2026 gets your master’s admission decision by 1 April 2027. Either way, the Scholars Program result comes in April 2027.
Before you write a word, check the table of minimum academic results for your home university. Applicants below that mandatory threshold are automatically deemed ineligible, so it saves weeks to check first. Your bachelor’s degree must come from a university on the Sciences Po reference list, or you must have completed a recognised bridge or mentoring programme, or hold or have held UNHCR refugee status. Students already at Sciences Po, or enrolled in or graduated from a French institution, are excluded, and so is anyone with dual citizenship that includes a non-African country.
Prepare your documents early, because the email that tells you how to submit without paying the fee gives you a very short window. You will need proof of identity, your degree certificate or proof of current study, and the full Sciences Po set including transcripts, language results and recommendations sent from institutional email addresses. In the written assignment and interview they want alignment between your programme, your background and your career goals, real critical thinking about the political and economic challenges facing Africa, and evidence of entrepreneurial or public service initiative. Write it yourself. Sciences Po warns that using AI for these assignments may lower your evaluation.
What you receive
- Full coverage of financial need for a two-year Master’s at Sciences Po
- An application fee waiver for the Sciences Po Master’s application once you are found eligible
- Comprehensive support from the Scholars Program team from the moment you accept your offer
- Online information sessions for incoming Scholars to prepare you for arrival in France
- A cohort model built around changemakers contributing to Africa’s socio-economic transformation
Who can apply
- You hold the citizenship of an African country
- You are currently completing or already hold a Bachelor’s degree from a university on the Sciences Po list of reference institutions
- Alternatively, you hold a Bachelor’s degree and have taken part in a recognised bridge or mentoring programme offered by an approved organisation
- Alternatively, you hold a Bachelor’s degree and currently hold or previously held UNHCR refugee status
- You are under 35 years of age on 1 September of the year you submit the scholarship application
- You do not already hold or currently pursue a Master’s degree
- You are applying to the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program for the first time
- You meet the minimum academic results required for your home university, set out in the Sciences Po results table
Who should not apply
- Applicants holding dual citizenship that includes a country outside the African continent are not eligible
- Students currently enrolled at Sciences Po are not eligible
- Students currently enrolled in, or graduated from, a French higher education institution are not eligible
- Dual degree programmes and one-year Master’s programmes are not eligible, only two-year Master’s programmes
- Applicants who do not meet the mandatory academic threshold are automatically deemed ineligible
Documents to prepare
- A proof of identity, being a passport, national identity card, UNHCR card or travel document
- A bachelor’s degree certificate or proof of current undergraduate studies at a university on the reference institutions list
- If your university is not on that list, your transcript, diploma or certificate plus a certificate confirming completion of a recognised bridge programme
- Alternatively, proof of your bachelor’s degree together with documentation confirming refugee status
- All supporting documents required for the Sciences Po Master’s application, including transcripts, language test results and letters of recommendation sent from institutional email addresses
How to apply
- Check the table of minimum academic results for your home university before anything else, at https://www.sciencespo.fr/students/en/fees-funding/bursaries-financial-aid/mastercard-foundation-scholarships/graduate-study/. If you do not meet the threshold, do not submit.
- Submit your eligibility request for the Scholars Program on the dedicated Mastercard Foundation platform at https://apply.semantikmatch.com/sciences-po/dashboard/applications/create/e8885819-8dc5-4501-9920-5239ec637d44.
- At the same time, create an application for a two-year Master’s programme through the Sciences Po admissions platform at https://admission.sciencespo.fr/applicants/login?lng=en. The International Graduate Admissions Procedure is the only pathway that allows consideration for this scholarship.
- Submit by 14 December 2026 to receive your master’s admission decision by 1 April 2027. The earlier 23 November 2026 deadline has passed.
- If you are eligible, the Admissions Office emails you the steps to complete and submit your Master’s application without paying the fee. Comply strictly with the deadline in that email, and have all documents ready well before it arrives.
- Scholarship selection results are communicated in April 2027, regardless of which date you applied.
Selection process
- Applications are reviewed against the Scholars Program criteria and Sciences Po academic requirements
- Only applicants admitted to a Master’s programme and declared eligible are then considered for the Program
- The selection steps are application review, interviews, then a scholarship decision
- Several months may pass between an admission offer and the scholarship decision, with results in April 2027
Sources and verification
Related opportunities
- Electoral Integrity Project Fellowship 2027
The Electoral Integrity Project opens its 2027 Fellowship to academics and practitioners worldwide working on electoral integrity, with junior, practitioner, Carter Center democracy and electoral management resiliency categories. Applications are open until 30 October 2026.
Questions applicants ask
Can I use AI to write my application?
Sciences Po states that using artificial intelligence is contrary to the purpose of the written assignments, because they are meant to assess independent and personal reflection, and relying on AI may result in a lower evaluation.
Does eligibility guarantee the scholarship?
No. Being eligible for the Scholars Program does not guarantee admission to Sciences Po or selection for the Program.
What if I am not eligible for the scholarship?
You can still apply for a Sciences Po Master’s programme by paying the application fee, but you will not receive the fee waiver and your application will not be considered for the scholarship.
Which Master’s programmes qualify?
Only two-year Master’s programmes at Sciences Po. Dual degree and one-year Master’s programmes are not eligible.
Important disclaimer
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