Italian Government (MAECI) Scholarships for African Students 2027

What is the Italian Government (MAECI) Scholarships?

Italian Government Scholarships for Foreign Students (MAECI) is run by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. It funds study in one destination, Italy, at any state or legally recognised institution: universities, AFAM institutions for fine arts, music and dance, accredited doctoral programmes and research bodies with a supervising academic.

The levels it covers are master, phd, research-stay, language-course, bachelor. The subject rule is wide: No general field restriction: grants may be used for any master's, AFAM, PhD or supervised research programme at an Italian state or legally recognised institution. Three reserved 'Luca Attanasio' grants are restricted to international relations, development cooperation, international humanitarian law and human rights.

You apply on the Study in Italy portal, not to a university, and the Italian embassy or consulate with jurisdiction over your country runs the selection. Neither the number of awards nor a success rate appears in the 2026/27 call, so no one can tell you your odds in figures.

What does it cover?

This is a stipend scheme with a partial fee benefit, not a full ride. The grant pays €1,200 per month, released in three instalments.

Tuition is where applicants are most often caught out: Partial — the call states that some universities exempt grant holders from enrolment and tuition fees. The exemption depends on the institution, does not cover regional taxes and does not apply to Italian language courses.

Flights are yours to fund: Not provided: the 2026/27 call includes no travel or arrival allowance. Housing is the same: Not provided: the 2026/27 call includes no housing allowance or accommodation placement. Nothing is paid for dependants either: the call provides no family or dependants’ allowance.

The length of the award depends on the grant type: Nine months, 1 November 2026 to 31 July 2027, for master's, AFAM, PhD and research grants. Three months for intensive Italian language and culture courses, taken within 1 January to 30 September 2027. Set the stipend against real rent before you accept; our cost of studying in Italy page has the monthly figures.

Who can apply from our countries?

All nine origins we work with — Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Egypt, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Morocco — are eligible in our dataset.

Eligibility is citizenship-based, not continental: Citizenship-based: applicants must hold the citizenship of a country on the eligible-countries list published with each call on the Study in Italy portal, and each Italian diplomatic mission applies its own jurisdiction list. Italian citizens resident abroad (IRE) may apply from a separate list of twenty countries. Dual nationals holding Italian citizenship must apply under the non-Italian nationality; applicants with several foreign citizenships choose one beneficiary country.

The practical test is your embassy’s list: the Italian Embassy in Pretoria ran the 2026/27 call for citizens of South Africa, Lesotho, Madagascar and its other jurisdiction countries together.

The age ceiling is 40. Your qualification must already be in hand for taught courses: Master's and AFAM applicants must already hold the qualification giving access to the course. PhD applicants must attach the admission letter to the doctoral programme — pre-admission letters are never accepted. Research applicants must attach the supervisor's invitation letter and the research project.

Language removes more applicants than anything else: B2 for master's and AFAM courses — Italian for Italian-taught courses, English for English-taught courses; applicants from English-speaking countries or with an entirely English-medium degree may self-declare B2 English. A2 Italian for intensive language courses. No language document is required for PhD or research grants. Certificates must state the CEFR level; Duolingo is accepted for English only.

A master’s or AFAM applicant needs no university offer before applying, but a PhD or research applicant without the letter has no application at all. If your degree was taught in English, read IELTS alternatives before you book a test you may not need.

Deadline and timeline for 2027/28

The most recent published cycle is 2026/27; the 2027/28 call had not appeared when this page was last checked. That call closed on 26 March 2026.

No opening date is published. The call appeared on the ministry’s site in March 2026 and ran for a few weeks, so the preparation happens before it opens, not after. Certificates, translations and the supervisor’s letter take longer than the window allows.

There is also no single results date. Each Italian mission evaluates the files in its own jurisdiction, interviews shortlisted applicants, and publishes its own merit ranking of winners and reserves on its own site. Treat the ranking, not the portal, as the moment your plan becomes real.

Money follows the grant year and arrives in three instalments, not one payment, so the first months in Italy still need your own funds. Book the visa appointment as soon as the ranking is published; Italy student visa requirements lists what the consulate asks for.

How to apply for the Italian Government (MAECI) Scholarships

1. Check that your citizenship appears on the eligible-countries list published with the call, then confirm which Italian embassy or consulate has jurisdiction over you.
2. Register on the Study in Italy portal at https://studyinitaly.esteri.it/ while the call is open. Registration closes with the call; there is no late route.
3. Choose your grant type — master’s or AFAM, PhD, supervised research, or the intensive Italian language and culture course — and select up to three courses of the same type. You cannot mix types in one application.
4. If you are applying for a PhD, obtain the admission letter to the doctoral programme; pre-admission letters are never accepted. For a research stay, obtain the supervisor’s invitation letter and write the research project.
5. Upload your documents: a legible copy of a valid passport or identity document, academic qualification certificates where already awarded, the enrolment self-declaration with credits (CFU) earned, the language certificate or an admissible self-declaration, proof of Italian citizenship if you are applying as an IRE candidate, and the PhD or research letters where relevant.
6. Submit through the portal before the deadline. The last cycle closed on 26 March 2026 and the portal shut at the published hour, not at midnight.
7. Sit the comparative evaluation run by your mission, including the interview.
8. Watch the mission’s own website for the merit ranking of winners and reserves, and accept in writing within the time it gives you.
9. Enrol at your host institution and take up the grant on the start date in the call. Payments begin once you are registered in Italy.

Which universities and programmes

The award is national, so you choose the institution. Every Italian university in our dataset carries it: Bocconi University, Politecnico di Milano, Politecnico di Torino, Sapienza University of Rome, and the universities of Bologna, Florence, Milan (La Statale), Naples Federico II, Padua, Pisa, Rome Tor Vergata and Turin. AFAM conservatories and fine-arts academies count as host institutions too.

Two traps are worth knowing before you rank your three courses. A MAECI grant is not an admission: Politecnico di Torino requires a separate master’s application through its own system, and Sapienza directs international applicants to this national scheme rather than funding an equivalent of its own. And the grant does not fit every programme at every university — Pisa, for example, accepts it for Laurea Magistrale, AFAM, supervised research and language courses, but not for PhD admission there. Universities in Italy for international students has the list.

Odds, and what to do if you miss it

The odds are not published. The 2026/27 call gives no total number of grants and no selectivity figure, and each mission ranks only the applicants in its own jurisdiction, so your competition is the queue at your embassy. Reserves are called when winners decline, which is why accepting a reserve place quickly matters.

If you miss it, Italy does not close. University-funded awards and fee exemptions run on their own calendars and appear on Italy scholarships for African students. Erasmus Mundus joint master’s scholarships fund consortium degrees that often include an Italian university, and their deadlines fall later in the year.