Government Of The Slovak Republic 2024 National Scholarship for International Students, PhD Students, University Teachers, Researchers and Artists

The Government of the Slovak Republic approved the establishment of the National Scholarship Programme of the Slovak Republic for the support of mobility of students, PhD students, university teachers, researchers and artists in 2005. The National Scholarship Programme of the Slovak Republic (NSP) is financed by the Ministry of Education, Science, Research and Sport of the Slovak Republic from the state budget of the Slovak Republic.

The National Scholarship Programme of the Slovak Republic supports mobility of international students, PhD students, university teachers, researchers and artists for scholarship stays at higher education institutions and research organisations in Slovakia.

• Table of Content
• About Government of Slovak Republic
• Government Of The Slovak Republic National Scholarship Program
• Aim and Benefits of Government Of The Slovak Republic National Scholarship Program
• Requirements for Government Of The Slovak Republic National Scholarship Program Qualification
• Interview date, Process and Venue for Government Of The Slovak Republic National Scholarship Program
• Documents Required for Application
• Application Deadline
• How to Apply

About Government of Slovak Republic

Government Of The Slovak Republic National Scholarship Program

Aim and Benefits of Government Of The Slovak Republic National Scholarship Program

Amount of the scholarship and organisation of the stay

Note:

• • To determine the monthly scholarship amount (in case of university teachers, researchers and artists) with regard to their work experience, only work experience until the day of the application deadline is taken into consideration.
  • PhD studies are considered as work experience, however, up to a maximum of 6 years.

The scholarship is intended to cover international scholarship holders’ living costs, i.e. the costs related to staying in Slovakia (food, accommodation, etc.), during their study, research/artistic or teaching stay at universities and in research organisations in Slovakia.

The scholarship holder can ask for assistance concerning accommodation and formalities related to entering and staying in the territory of the Slovak Republic either his/her host institution, or he/she can handle all the necessities him-/herself. 

Scholarship holders whose scholarship stay in Slovakia lasts longer than 90 days and who are citizens of countries outside the European Union, European Economic Area and Switzerland, who need for their stay in Slovakia a temporary residence permit, are obliged to submit to the foreign police office a confirmation that they do not suffer from any disease threatening public health within 30 days from being awarded the temporary residence. Scholarship holders will be reimbursed the costs related to medical examination and issuing of this confirmation, up to 250 € per scholarship holder, after delivering original of the bill issued by the respective medical institution to SAIA, n. o., in Bratislava. A list of competent medical institutions will be provided to scholarship holders by the respective foreign police offices in Slovakia. Scholarship holders are obliged to deliver the bill to SAIA, n. o., in Bratislava within the deadline for submitting the final report; otherwise, they will lose their right for the reimbursement of the costs.

Travel grant

In addition, students and PhD students [eligible applicants under the category A) and B)] can be awarded a travel allowance (travel grant, which is a separate component of the scholarship), if they apply for it along with their scholarship application. Travel allowance is awarded as a lump sum and it will be paid to the scholarship holder at the end of his/her stay together with the last scholarship payment. Travel allowance amount depends on the distance (in a direct line) between applicant's place of residence (the permanent address; resp. address of home institution) and the place of his/her stay in Slovakia (the address of the host institution)

• Distance up to 200 km – 0 €,
• Distance more than 200 km, max. 300 km – 50 €,
• Distance more than 300 km, max. 500 km – 100 €,
• Distance more than 500 km, max. 1 000 km – 250 €,
• Distance more than 1 000 km, max.2 000 km – 350 €,
• Distance more than 2 000 km, max.3 000 km – 500 €,
• Distance more than 3 000 km, max. 5 000 km – 750 €,
• Distance more than 5 000 km, max. 7 000 km – 1 100 €,
• Distance more than 7 000 km – 1 500 €.

Requirements for Government Of The Slovak Republic National Scholarship Program Qualification

Eligible applicants for a scholarship in the framework of the NSP:

A) students who:

• are university students at universities outside Slovakia;
• are students of the second level of higher education (master's students), or are students who at the time of the application deadline have already completed at least 2.5 years of their university studies in the same/similar study programme;
• will be on a study stay in Slovakia during their higher education outside Slovakia and who will be accepted by a public, private or state higher education institution in Slovakia for an academic mobility[1] to study in Slovakia.

All 3 conditions must be met. This category does not apply to doctoral (PhD) studies (or their equivalent).

• Duration of a scholarship stay (students): 1 – 2 full semesters (i.e. 4 – 5 or 9 – 10 months) or 1 – 3 full trimesters, in case the academic year is divided into trimesters (i.e. 3 – 4 or 6 – 7 or 9 – 10 months).

B) PhD students whose higher education or scientific training takes place outside Slovakia and who are accepted by a public, private or state higher education institution or a research institution in Slovakia eligible to carry out a doctoral study programme[2] (e.g. the Slovak Academy of Sciences) for an academic mobility[1] to study/conduct research/artistic stay in Slovakia.

• Duration of a scholarship stay (PhD students): 1 – 10 months.

C) international university teachers, researchers and artists who are invited to a teaching/research/artistic stay in Slovakia by an institution with a valid certificate of eligibility to carry out research and development, which is not a business company[3] and it has its seat in Slovakia.

• Duration of a scholarship stay (university teachers, researchers or artists): 1 – 10 months. 

[1] Section 58a of the Act No. 131/2002 on higher education institutions, as amended.

[2] External education institution according to the Act No. 131/2002 on higher education institutions, as amended.

[3] Legal entity according to the section 7 letters a) – d) of the Act No. 172/2005 on organisation of state research and development funding, as amended, which has a valid certificate of eligibility to carry out research and development according to the section 26a article 11 or article 12 of the same Act – i.e. public, private or state universities, research institutions eligible to carry out a doctoral (PhD) study programme (i.e. external education institutions), Slovak Academy of Sciences and its institutes, departmental research institutes or non-governmental organisations carrying out research and development.

Note: If the study/research/artistic stay must last at least 1 month, it is necessary to ensure the length of the stay is for 1 full calendar month (e.g. March 5 - April 4). The same applies for calculating the duration of the stay when assessing the fulfillment of the condition for the minimum length of stay in other cases, if this length is determined in months (e.g. February 5 - June 4 for a 4-month stay).

Citizens of any country in the world (except the citizens of Slovakia) can apply for a scholarship stay in Slovakia in the framework of the NSP.

Re-applying for the scholarship:

In case of re-applying for a scholarship, the application can only be approved if between the deadline by which the applicant re-submitted the application and the deadline by which the NSP scholarship was last awarded and received, at least 2 years (including) have passed.  

Exception to this condition can be only in cases worth of special consideration, especially if the previous stay supported by the scholarship was affected by an extraordinary circumstance caused by force majeure (e.g. pandemic, military conflict, etc.).

The National Scholarship Programme does not support:

• international students and PhD students accepted for full degree higher education (bachelor, master, doctoral studies) in Slovakia, or those already studying in Slovakia (full degree higher education) who would like to fund their studies in Slovakia by the NSP;
• university teachers, researchers and artists without PhD degree (or its equivalent) and at the same time with more than 4 years of work experience as a university teacher/researcher/artist (PhD studies are considered as work experience) on the indicated application deadline; however, the scholarship Programme Administrator may, after consulting the Selection Committee in individual cases worth special consideration (especially considering situations caused by force majeure[4]), accept as eligible applicants also candidates without PhD degree (or its equivalent) and at the same time with more than 4 years of work experience but not more than 7 years of work experience, however such applicants may be awarded a scholarship only in  the amount corresponding to applicants without PhD degree (or its equivalent) and with less than 4 years of experience;
• international applicants who within the period of 36 months prior to the application deadline have spent in the territory of the Slovak Republic 15 or more months (in total);
• international applicants who are receiving a scholarship in Slovakia in the framework of other scholarship programmes funded from public resources (e.g. International Visegrad Fund, Erasmus+, CEEPUS, bilateral agreements, etc.).

Interview date, Process and Venue for Government Of The Slovak Republic National Scholarship Program

Scholarships and/or travel allowances (travel grant) are not legally enforceable; meeting of all the formal requirements of the programme according to the respective call for applications, applicant’s quality, content of applicant’s proposed stay and its necessity, and the NSP budget availability related to the respective call for applications, have an impact on granting the scholarship from the NSP sources.

The applicant is responsible for the final completeness of the application and for the correctness of the information provided in the application and its annexes; due to sufficient time for the preparation of the application in the period between the opening of the electronic application system and the deadline for submitting the applications, as well as to the applicant's declaration when submitting the application, that all information provided in the application is complete, actual and true and that the application is complete and contains all the required annexes and documents, the scholarship Programme Administrator is not obliged to give the applicant an opportunity to amend the application (the application is therefore assessed as submitted by the applicant).

SAIA, n. o., as the scholarship Programme Administrator, is responsible for the administration of the selection process. The Programme Administrator acts within each selection in a way to ensure equal treatment of applicants during the respective selection process.

The administrator will assess whether the applications meet the formal requirements of the programme on the day of the application deadline. The administrator may reject applications for formal reasons:

• if they are in conflict with the terms of the programme (in particular regarding the eligibility of applicants or scholarship holders, or in absence of an appropriate category of support), or
• if the application or its annexes do not meet the formal requirements, or
• if the facts presented in the application and its annexes are in conflict with each other, or
• if the administrator in the reviewing process finds out that the applicant's statements confirming that the information is complete, true and correct are not true, or
• if they were submitted by former NSP scholarship holders who have proven a serious violation of the terms and conditions of the program, in particular a serious violation of the scholarship holder's obligations, provision of false information or concealment of important facts, or damage to the good reputation of the scholarship program for a period of 10 years from the end of the stay for which the scholarship support was granted and during which  there has been a serious violation of the conditions of the program; in case of proof of innocence by the given deadline, the scholarship holder will be assessed regardless of previous suspicions; the scholarship holder is immediately informed by SAIA, n. o., about the restriction to re-apply for a scholarship support based on proven findings of the Programme Administrator.

When making its decision the administrator may consider whether that fact may have an essential influence on the content assessment of the application. The administrator may consult his/her findings with the Selection Committee. The administrator shall also take into account the recommendations and requirements of the Selection Committee from previous selection rounds.

If necessary, when verifying the information provided by the applicant in the application and its attachments, the Programme Administrator may request additional documents confirming the stated facts while ansuring equal treatment of applicants. This does not affect the applicant's obligation to provide complete, up-to-date and true data and to submit a complete application by the application date.

Applications that have not been rejected by the administrator for formal reasons will be forwarded to the Selection Committee for further selection.

Selection of scholarship holders is carried out by the Selection Committee appointed by the Minister of Education, Science, Research and Sport of the Slovak Republic. The Committee focuses mostly on:

• reasons, why the applicant has decided to study, teach, conduct research or artistic activities in the respective host institution in Slovakia;
• programme of applicant’s study/research/artistic/teaching stay and how the applicant will use the results of his/her scholarship stay for further studies or research activities, or his/her career development;
• applicant’s professional and personal qualities; as well as assessment of the proposed programme of the scholarship stay in the recommendation letters;
• study or research achievements;
  • if relevant, in case of re-applying for a scholarship, the Selection Committee may also take into account the results/feedback from the applicant's previous stay;
• contribution for the host institution;
• overall quality of the submitted application and its consistency.

Within the framework of a specific selection, the Selection Committee determines the order of applications in the respective categories, while, if necessary, taking into account the field background of the applications and other relevant facts, it may separately assess subgroups of applications within the assessed categories and determine an indivuidual order for these subgroups. After evaluating the applications in a specific category or subgroup, the Selection Committee determines which applications within the given selection meet the expectation of high quality, and from these applications proposes which applications should be awarded a scholarship, taking into account the available funds of the program, the quality of the applications, and it may also take into account the expected success rate of applicants in a specific category/subgroup with respect to the total number of applications. The Selection Committee can indicate other conditions for awarding the scholarship, e.g. grant a scholarship under the condition of shortening the length of the scholarship support (i.e. shortening the number of scholarship months), documenting or explaining the facts that the Selection Committee considered necessary in the application assessment process, etc.; the fulfillment of the conditions (or their acceptance by the applicant) in the case of a scholarship award is verified by the Programme Administrator. For the purposes of an efficient, effective and useful using of financial funds for a scholarship support from the program, the Selection Committee may decide to create a reserve list of applicants for a scholarship (resp. a list of substitutes), who in case of sufficient financial resources may be awarded a scholarship additionaly, after the meeting of the Selection Committee; the reserve list of applicants expires on the day of the next scholarship application deadline.

The Selection Committee may, with special regard, consider applications submitted by applicants who were awarded a scholarship but who have not started their approved scholarship stay due to force majeure (e.g. the pandemic, war, etc.) or had to shorten their stay due to force majeure, or under the influence of a situation caused by force majeure, the planned purpose could not be fully implemented. In such cases, compared to other applicants, the Selection Committee may proceed in a specific way, if it is considered necessary in the respective call for applications. However, any such application will be assessed individually in accordance with the terms of the programme and must be relevant in terms of quality; it is not possible to approve such applications automatically solely because of the prior approval of the scholarship and the fact, that it has been negatively influenced by force majeure. 

Any applicant who has reasonable grounds to suspect that the administrator or the Selection Committee made a mistake in the process of administering and assessing applications submitted within the respective application deadline is entitled to file a motion to investigate the case no later than 1 month after publishing the results of the selection of applications submitted within that deadline. Claims have to be submitted by the applicant in writing and addressed to SAIA, n. o., as the organization administering the programme. The claim must contain the applicant's identification data, the respective application number, reasons for objections (including facts which according to the applicant led to the mistake). SAIA, n. o., after reviewing the claim will inform the applicant of the result of the review process, usually within 1 month from the submission of the claim.

Documents Required for Application

Required documents that must be attached to online application for a teaching and/or research/artistic stay in case of international university teachers/researchers/artists (eligible applicants under the category C):

• curriculum vitae;
• detailed teaching and/or research/artistic programme (it is necessary to indicate the name of the host institution where the applicant has been accepted, the date of the beginning of the stay, duration of the stay and an appropriately detailed time plan of the stay);
• applicant’s diploma of the highest academic degree achieved;
• list of publications/artistic activities in the required form
• invitation letter issued by applicant’s host higher education institution/research organisation in Slovakia indicating the period of stay. In this document, the higher education institution/research organisation commits itself to accept the applicant for a teaching and/or research/artistic stay. Invitation letter is an official document usually on the letterhead paper of the respective higher education institution/research organisation, signed by the person who issued the document, the document should contain position and contact details of that person; if it is not possible to issue the document on an institution's letterhead paper, it has to contain a clear identification of the institution, which the person who issued the document is affiliated with (i.e. generally the name of the institution, address, website link). Invitation letter should be issued for the same period as the period stated by the applicant in his/her online application and it cannot be older than 3 months on the day of the application deadline. In case of university teachers/researchers/artists, the invitation letter should not be just a formal admission for a scholarship stay, but it should reflect a certain level of host institution’s interest in applicant’s teaching and/or research/artistic stay in the framework of the NSP.

Application Deadline

How to Apply

Scholarship applications are submitted online at www.scholarships.sk. The online application system is opened at least 6 weeks prior to the application deadline. Applications can be filled in only in case the online application system has already been opened.

Applicants are allowed to submit (fill in) applications and the required attachments in Slovak or English language only (in case of documents written in other languages[7] the application must contain the original documents together with their official translation into Slovak or English language.

Required documents that must be attached to the online application for a study stay in case of international students.

Required documents that must be attached to the online application for a study/research/artistic stay in case of international Ph.D. students.

For more details visit: Government Of The Slovak Republic website.