Scholarships Verified

Fully funded vs partial scholarships: what each pays

On this site, a scholarship is full only when the official page says tuition fees and living costs are both paid. It is partial when one of them is missing, for example when you must pay tuition yourself.

Checked by Scholarships Verified editorial team, 18 October 2026

The rule we use

Full means two things are paid: your tuition fees, and your life there through a monthly stipend or housing. A flight or insurance alone does not make a scholarship full.

A full ride is the same idea. Partial scholarships still help, but you must find the rest of the money.

Examples of each type

Full examples: Commonwealth Master's Scholarships (tuition, monthly stipend and flight), HBKU PhD funding (tuition waiver and QAR 9,000 per month) and Khalifa University PhD funding. Chevening describes itself as fully funded.

Partial examples: Eiffel pays a monthly amount but not tuition. Swiss Government Excellence Scholarships pay CHF 2,450 per month for a PhD but not tuition. DAAD EPOS pays EUR 992 per month and the pages we read do not list tuition.

Check before you apply

Open the official page and look for the word tuition. Our label can change when the funder changes its rules, so the funder's page always wins.

TypeRuleExamples
FullTuition and living costs paidCommonwealth Master's, HBKU PhD
PartialOne of them not paidEiffel, Swiss Government, DAAD EPOS

Other questions

Is a partial scholarship worth applying for?

It can be, if you can pay the missing part. Count the tuition and rent first.

Does fully funded mean no costs at all?

No. You may still pay for things such as housing or visa steps. Read the covered items on the official page.

Official sources

Scholarships in this guide