Do you want to study abroad but keep delaying your plan because of the finances? Applying for grants or student loans may be the best way to realize your dream, without compromising your financial safety. Find out what the main programs offered are, from high school and language courses to undergraduate, Master’s and PhD degrees.
What are scholarships and student loans?
A scholarship is an award of financial aid for a student to further their education. It can be offered by the government or an educational institution and the awarded amount can be partial or total. On the other hand, a loan serves to help students pay for university tuition, books, and living expenses. It can be offered by the government, the institution itself, banks or private companies.
Government programs
The main Brazilian Government scholarship programs are: Science without Borders, CNPq and CAPES. The students from other Latin American countries can count on: COLFUTURO, ICETEX and Colciencias (Colombia), Senescyt (Ecuador), PRONABEC (Peru) and BECAS CHILE.
Governments programs in other countries
Several countries offer scholarships to Latin America students. Keep an eye on the following names: Education USA and Fulbright, Chevening (UK), Campus France, DAAD (Germany), OTS (Netherlands) and New Zealand Development Scholarships. You can also visit the website Scholarships for non-Canandias, for post-graduate scholarships and research development in Canada, and European Union’s Erasmus Mundus programme scholarships for Masters and PhD courses.
Scholarships offered by colleges and universities abroad
Here are two websites that can help you to search for scholarships: HotCourses (Portuguese) has a search filter that suits your demand; or Scholarships for Development (English), which works as a feed, listing all the scholarships currently open. On Independent Schools Yearbook you can also find information about grants and funding of primary and secondary schools in the UK.
Student finance
Many institutions offer some type of financial aid for international students, which can be need-based, merit-based or college-specific. To find this information, you can access the international section of the University you are interested. Some institutions even offer a list of lenders that can help you, try to find this information also on their websites.
To know more about grants options for Latin America students, you can access Fundação Estudar, Fundação Lemann, Fundación Beca, Fundación Botín, and search about the opportunities offered by Santander Universities program (you can search for your country on the bottom of the page).
