Swiss Government Excellence Scholarships for young researchers and artists from abroad

Federal Council increases contributions for Swiss Government Excellence Scholarships without impacting costs

The Federal Commission for Scholarships for Foreign Students (FCS) has been awarding Swiss Government Excellence Scholarships to promising young researchers and artists from abroad, on a competitive basis, since 1961. These scholarships are intended to support academic, cultural and science diplomacy between Switzerland and other countries.

They also encompass many benefits for both the researchers and the hosting institutions, allowing to improve one’s academic career through mobility and to foster the transfer of knowledge between the Swiss hosts and the fellows.

The Federal Council amended the Ordinance on Swiss Government Excellence Scholarships for Foreign Scholars and Artists, thereby increasing monthly scholarship contributions to CHF 2,450 starting from 1 January 2026 . This ensures that this funding instrument remains attractive for promising foreign students and researchers and continues to strengthen international exchange at Swiss universities. To implement this change without impacting costs, the number of scholarships available will be reduced. In addition, postdoctoral scholarships will no longer be awarded from the 2027/28 academic year.

The monthly scholarship amount has remained unchanged at CHF 1,920 since 2006. From 2026, foreign doctoral students and artists will receive CHF 2,450 per month to cover their living expenses at their place of study.

To implement these changes in a way that does not impact costs, the number of funded scholarship places will be reduced from 350 to between 200 and 250 a year (new and ongoing). In addition, postdoctoral scholarships will no longer be awarded from the 2027/28 academic year.

Regarding this topic, on 01.02.2026, the programme Sei di sera aired an interview with Stefano Bernasconi, professor at ETH Zurich, ETHZ delegate and President of the Federal Commission for Scholarships for Foreign Students (FCS), and Fatima Ezzeddine, an FCS scholarship holder and PhD candidate at the Faculty of Informatics at USI and at the Department of Innovative Technologies (DTI) at SUPSI. The interview (in Italian) is available at the following link: Borse di studio per studenti e artisti stranieri