Pioneering Women in STEM

About the Scholarship

The package matches the Swedish Institute's Global Professionals award: tuition paid directly to the university, 12,000 kronor a month, and a one-off travel grant of 15,000. What differs is who it is for, and one rule about who it is not for.

It is open to women from ten countries in Africa and Asia, taking a master's in science, technology, engineering or mathematics. Applicants from the wider group of 34 countries who fall outside this ten, or who are not studying STEM, should look at the Global Professionals award instead.

The exclusion worth checking first: anyone who has previously received a Swedish Institute scholarship, or who already holds a Swedish degree, cannot apply. The Global Professionals award carries no such bar, so a previous SI scholar is not shut out of SI funding altogether, only out of this one.

Like its sibling, it wants professionals rather than new graduates. Documented work experience and documented leadership experience are both required, from an employer or from civil society engagement.

The sequencing is identical and just as unforgiving. Swedish master's applications close through University Admissions in mid-January, and the scholarship portal opens for only two weeks the following February, closing at 14:59 CET. The university deadline comes first and cannot be recovered afterwards.

The scholarship page was checked on 16 September 2026, when applications were closed.

What It Covers

Tuition
Living stipend
Travel

Full tuition fee coverage, paid by the Swedish Institute directly to the university each semester, a monthly allowance of 12,000 Swedish kronor for the whole study period, and a one-off travel grant of 15,000 kronor, not paid to students already living in Sweden. Holders join the SI Network for Global Professionals and afterwards the Sweden Alumni Network. The award excludes insurance, grants for family members and the University Admissions application fee, and allows no change of programme and no extension of the scholarship period.

Eligibility

Be a female citizen of one of the ten eligible countries, apply to a STEM master's programme on the Swedish Institute's eligible list, and be liable to pay tuition fees at University Admissions. Applicants need documented work experience and documented leadership experience from a current or previous employer or from civil society engagement, and must be admitted to an eligible programme on the day admissions are announced. Anyone who has previously held a Swedish Institute scholarship, or who already holds a Swedish degree, is excluded.

Eligible Countries

Female citizens of the ten eligible countries in Africa and Asia. Residence in that country is not required at the time of application.

🇧🇩 Bangladesh🇮🇩 Indonesia🇰🇪 Kenya🇲🇾 Malaysia🇳🇬 Nigeria🇵🇭 Philippines🇷🇼 Rwanda🇹🇭 Thailand🇻🇳 Vietnam🇿🇦 South Africa

How to Apply

Two applications in sequence, and the first one gates the second. Apply to Swedish master's programmes through University Admissions between mid-October and mid-January, then apply to the Swedish Institute through its own portal, which opens for two weeks in February and closes at 14:59 CET on the final day. The list of eligible programmes and the scholarship documents are published in mid-November. University admissions results come in late March and the scholarship decision follows in late April.