How to apply for a scholarship?

If applying for a scholarship is your first time, it is natural to have questions. Where exactly should you submit your application? When is the deadline? Is a letter of recommendation mandatory? That is why we have put together a simple and clear guide to applying for a scholarship, which will help you go through the entire process step by step. We have also compiled frequently asked questions to answer the concerns that we receive most often. Our goal is to make the application process as understandable, smooth and successful as possible for you — so do not hesitate to contact us if you need additional information or support.

To apply for a scholarship, follow these steps:

1. Find a suitable scholarship competition

Opened scholarship competitions can be found on the UT Foundation website in the scholarship competitions page. Once you have found a suitable scholarship, fill out the scholarship application.

2. Make sure you have all the materials you need to apply for the scholarship

Letter of recommendation

Most competitions also require a letter of recommendation from a lecturer. You can enter the recommender's email address in the appropriate field of the application, where an automatic email will be sent after the application is submitted with a request to upload the letter of recommendation for the applicant. It is a good idea to agree in advance with the recommender on providing the recommendation. If desired and if you have already received the letter of recommendation before applying, you can also attach it to the application as a file. In this case you don’t have to fill in the name and email of the lecturer.

Additional materials

If the scholarship requires the submission of additional documents (essay, research summary, resume, confirmation letter from the host university, etc.), then these can also be attached to the scholarship application as a file in the lower part of the application.

3. Fill out the application form

The application form contains personal data, an overview of the applicant's professional and social activities, a justification for receiving the scholarship in the form of a motivation letter, and an estimated budget for using the scholarship. Additional fields are added depending on the requirements of the scholarship statute.

To apply successfully, carefully read the scholarship competition announcement, which is used as a basis for awarding the scholarship, and answer the questions thoroughly.

4. Confirm the application

Once everything necessary has been entered and the application has been confirmed, the system will notify you that the application has been successfully submitted.

5. Submit an application to another scholarship competition

You can apply for several scholarships during one semester. After submitting the first application, the system will generate a user for the applicant based on their personal identification number and send a password to the applicant's email address, which will be used to log in to the application system in the future. The applicant can then submit a new application based on the same or updated data.

The foundation has a real-time overview of how many applications have been received for a specific competition. If the applicant suspects that their application has been lost for some reason (the browser page was closed during the loading process, the network connection was interrupted, etc.), they can ask for it by phone or email or check it by logging into the application submission system.

If you have any further questions, please contact us at tysiht@ut.ee or by phone at +372 73 75 852.

Frequently asked questions:

Can you apply for multiple scholarships?

Yes, but only one scholarship can be awarded per semester. When applying for multiple scholarships, you cannot add preferences. The selection will be made based on which scholarship’s committee reaches the decision first.

Is it allowed to apply for a specific scholarship again if the scholarship has already been awarded?

Yes. Unless otherwise stated in the statute, you can apply for a scholarship and have the scholarship awarded to the scholarship recipient repeatedly if the scholarship recipient has fulfilled their obligations to the foundation, i.e. the scholarship report has been submitted.

How do I send additional documents required for some scholarships?

Additional documents can be added at the end of the application.

How accurate should the budget be in the application?

The budget is a prognosis and it must generally reflect the student's plan for using the scholarship. A detailed overview is provided in the report submitted one year after receiving the scholarship.

What date should be followed if the statute has a different deadline than the one announced?

Be sure to follow the announced deadline.

Is a letter of recommendation required to apply for a scholarship?

If a letter of recommendation is required, it is also mentioned in the scholarship announcement. For the letter of recommendation, it is necessary to write the name and email address of the recommender in the appropriate field. When the application is submitted, the system will send an email to this address asking to write a recommendation for applying for a specific scholarship. It is a good idea to agree with the recommender in advance about providing a recommendation. The letter of recommendation can also be attached to the application as a separate file.

Is there a separate form or requirements for the letter of recommendation?

There are no direct instructions or requirements for the letter of recommendation, but the supervisor could provide a brief description of the applicant in the recommendation, as well as why the applicant is a suitable candidate for the scholarship and on what basis they are assessing it (study results, research results, social activities, financial situation, etc.).

How can I make sure that my application was successfully submitted?

Once everything necessary has been entered and the application has been approved, the system will notify you that the application has been successfully submitted. The foundation has a real-time overview of how many applications have been received for a specific competition. If the person writing the scholarship application suspects that their application has been lost for some reason (the browser page was closed during the loading process, the network connection was interrupted, etc.), they can ask for it by phone or e-mail.

How are scholarships awarded?

There are two scholarship application rounds per year: in the spring semester and in the autumn semester. Spring semester competitions usually end no later than June 1st and autumn semester competitions no later than December 1st.
Scholarship competitions are announced in the information channels of the University of Tartu, the foundation's website, the information channels of the Student Union of the University of Tartu and the information channels of the faculties. If necessary, we also distribute scholarship information in the information channels of other public universities.
Applications for scholarships can be submitted until midnight on the competition deadline. For example, if the deadline is October 1, applications can be submitted until 23:59 on October 1.
After the competition, the submitted applications are checked for correctness and the applicant is contacted in case of deficiencies. The scholarship evaluation committee then reviews the applications, which selects the scholarship recipients based on the criteria set out in the scholarship statute.
A scholarship agreement is concluded with the scholarship recipients, and no later than one year after signing the agreement, the scholarship recipient submits a report on the use of the scholarship.
Scholarships are awarded at a ceremonial reception at the end of the spring and autumn semesters.

Is there a tax to be paid on the scholarship?