KAUST Fellowship 2027 — MS and PhD, Saudi Arabia

Every student admitted to a MS, MS/PhD or PhD programme at KAUST in Saudi Arabia receives the KAUST Fellowship automatically. There is no separate scholarship application — admission is the application.

What it covers

• Full tuition and bench fees, worth up to USD 35,000 a year
• Monthly stipend: about USD 20,000 a year for MS students, USD 25,000–30,000 for PhD students
• Base on-campus accommodation
• Health insurance for the student and eligible on-campus dependents
• Relocation support — visa, relocation and travel costs

The package is worth roughly USD 70,000–80,000 a year. Students with external sponsorship may not be eligible for the fellowship.

Who can apply

• All nationalities — no country restriction. Cameroonian students are eligible.
• At least 18 on entry; no upper age limit
• Bachelor's degree for MS, master's for PhD
• Minimum GPA 3.0 on a 4-point scale
• IELTS 7.0, TOEFL iBT 95, PTE 71 or Cambridge C1–C2 185 — waived for degrees completed in person in the US, Canada, UK, Ireland, Australia or New Zealand
• Science, engineering and technology fields, across 17 subjects
• No application fee

Deadlines (KAUST publishes dates only, no time of day, and calls them tentative):

• Fall 2027 — MS, MS/PhD and PhD: Round 2 opens 28 September 2026, closes 3 January 2027. Semester starts 29 August 2027.
• Spring 2027 — PhD applicants only: Round 1 closes 27 September 2026, semester starts 17 January 2027.

This card tracks the Fall 2027 round, which is the one open to master's applicants.

Verified against the organiser's own site: https://admissions.kaust.edu.sa/how-to-apply/admission-timelines