Academic Scholarship programme

Eligible higher education institutions legally established in an ESA Member State, Associate Member or Canada can apply with a Bologna-compliant Master or Advanced Master programme through the Call for Proposals on esa-star.

For each proposed Master programme, institutions may request between 1 and 10 ESA Academy scholarships, with ESA funding of up to EUR 50,000 for the full academic programme cycle, regardless of its duration.

Following ESA selection of the programme and final validation of the proposed students, scholarships may cover part or all of the tuition fees.

I am an educational institution

If your higher education institution offers an eligible space-related Master programme and you wish to propose ESA Academy scholarships to your students, please see the eligibility and application information below.

Application

Full Proposals may be submitted at any time while the Call is open. Each proposal will be evaluated shortly after receipt.

To be eligible, the proposed Master must:  

• be a Bologna-compliant Master or Advanced Master (second cycle degree: 60–120 ECTS credits);
• be delivered in English;
• be accessible to international students;
• be accessible to students without professional experience;
• be held in an ESA Member State, Associate Member or Canada;
• offer space-related courses and enable a space-related Master thesis or internship, or demonstrate a strong and substantial space component in a discipline of particular relevance to the European space sector, such as sustainability, climate, environment, biotechnologies, mobility, (cyber)security, AI, quantum technologies, robotics, business management, economics, law, policy, or other relevant disciplines.

To apply, access the Call for Proposals on esa-star Publication, notify your institution's interest via the “Expression of Interest” function, and submit a Full Proposal electronically through esa-star Tendering using the mandatory Full Proposal Template.

Academic programme selection 

Full proposals are evaluated against the criteria set out in the Call for Proposals, including:

• the quality and space relevance of the Master programme;
• the quality and credibility of the proposed scholarship implementation; and
• the justification of the number of scholarships requested and the applicable tuition fees.

Scholarship acceptance

After evaluation, ESA notifies the educational institution of the outcome. If selected, the institution is informed of the next steps for implementation. A selected educational institution shall enter into a Cooperative Agreement with ESA and comply with the Educational Institution Responsibilities.

For general programme questions, educational institutions can contact academy.engagement@esa.int. For general esa-star guidance and technical support information, please consult the esa-star FAQ.

I am a student

Students do not apply directly to ESA through esa-star. If you wish to be considered for an ESA Academy scholarship, you should apply through a higher education institution whose Master programme has been selected under the Academic Scholarship Programme. The institution carries out its internal selection and submits a shortlist of eligible candidates and potential backups to ESA. ESA performs the final validation and selection before the outcome is communicated to candidates. To be eligible for an ESA Academy scholarship, you should:  

• be minimum 18 years old when the Master starts;
• be fully graduated from the first cycle (bachelor’s degree) before the beginning of the Master programme;
• be a citizen of an ESA Member State, Associate Member or Canada;
• not attend the Master as an incoming Erasmus student;
• not receive financial aid that overlaps with the same portion of tuition fees covered by the ESA Academy Scholarship; complementary financial support may cover the remaining tuition fees;
• agree with the conditions of the ESA Academy Privacy Policy.

The educational institutions are expected to select students based on:  

• compliance with the eligibility criteria;
• interest in the space sector (student demonstrates motivation in performing a space-related thesis or internship);
• motivation to attend the Master programme;
• educational benefit of attending the Master programme;
• justification for, and expected benefit from, the financial support;
• academic merit.

ESA values diversity and inclusiveness, which enrich its programmes and promotes balanced audience representativeness of our society. ESA encourages the educational institutions to foster diversity, equality, and inclusiveness in their selection; to welcome applications from all eligible candidates irrespective of gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, beliefs, age, disability, social origin, or other characteristics; and to take the necessary measures to accommodate special needs.