DAAD Deadlines This Autumn: What's Open Now
As of September 2026, most DAAD scholarship rounds for the current academic year are closed — the EPOS and Study Scholarship main calls run on a Q2 spring cycle, so the 2026/27 call has passed. But the Deutschlandstipendium has no central deadline, some EPOS-approved courses run their own timelines, and October to December is the right window for spring 2027.
DAAD deadlines 2026: Where the calendar stands
Germany has two academic intakes: winter semester (October start) and summer semester (March/April start). The winter semester is the main intake; most competitive programmes and scholarship rounds align to it. Here is where things stand in September 2026:
| Pathway | Typical deadline | Status (September 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Winter 2026/27 university applications | ~15 July 2026 (typical) | ❌ Closed for most programmes |
| DAAD EPOS 2026 call | Q2 2026 (varies by course) | ❌ Closed for 2026/27 entry |
| DAAD Study Scholarship 2026 call | Q2 2026 (annual) | ❌ Closed for 2026/27 entry |
| Deutschlandstipendium | Set per university | ✅ Some open now / rolling |
| EPOS-approved courses — individual deadlines | Varies by institution | ⚠️ Check each course directly |
| Summer 2027 university applications | ~15 January 2027 | 🟡 Opens Dec 2026 |
| DAAD scholarship calls for 2027/28 | Q2 2027 (expected) | 🟡 Opens spring 2027 |
The bottom line: if you are targeting Germany for autumn 2027 or summer 2027, you are entering the ideal preparation window right now.
What DAAD scholarships pay — and what they do not
It is worth being precise about money, because confusion between the DAAD stipend and the German visa requirement is widespread.
DAAD EPOS (Development-Related Postgraduate Courses)
- Level: Master’s (PhD in exceptional cases)
- Stipend: €934/month (as of June 2026, confirmed from the official DAAD database)
- Additional support: health insurance subsidy, rent allowance, family supplement where applicable, travel allowance, language course costs
- Visa fee: waived for DAAD scholarship holders (standard fee: €75)
- Who can apply: students from developing and emerging countries — all eight African origins covered by World Study are eligible
- Key condition: minimum two years of relevant work experience; degree not older than six years at the time of application
- How to apply: EPOS funding is tied to specific DAAD-approved postgraduate programmes. You apply to the programme first; funding is part of the programme application, not a separate scholarship competition
- Deadline: varies by programme — there is no single EPOS application date
DAAD Study Scholarships for Master’s Studies
- Level: Master’s (all disciplines)
- Stipend: €934/month (as of June 2026)
- Additional support: travel, insurance, possible rent and family subsidies, German language course
- Who can apply: all nationalities eligible; African nationals eligible
- Key condition: degree not older than six years; typically requires a strong academic record and clear research/professional motivation
- Deadline: annual call, typically published in Q2 — for 2027/28 entry, expect the call to open spring 2027
- How to apply: via the DAAD scholarship database (daad.de)
Deutschlandstipendium
- Level: Bachelor’s and Master’s (not doctoral)
- Stipend: €300/month — funded half by the federal government, half by private sponsors through the participating university
- Key distinction: the Deutschlandstipendium is not based on nationality — international students are fully eligible
- Deadline: set per participating university; no single national deadline; some universities select in autumn, others in spring
- How to apply: directly to each participating university; check the university’s scholarship pages for current rounds
The figure you need to know before confusing stipend and visa: €992/month (and €11,904/year) is the German blocked-account minimum — the amount you must hold in a German escrow account to prove you can fund yourself for a year. It is a visa requirement, not a DAAD payment. These two figures are frequently conflated in agency blogs. A DAAD scholarship replaces the blocked-account requirement; without one, you need the full €11,904 in a blocked account (as of June 2026, volatile).
EPOS courses: the DAAD route most African students miss
EPOS (Development-Related Postgraduate Courses) is the DAAD programme most relevant to African students with work experience. Rather than a scholarship layered on top of a self-selected programme, EPOS links funding to specific Master’s programmes at German universities that are designed for professionals from developing countries — often taught fully in English, with strong applied and development-sector content.
Because EPOS is programme-specific, each participating course has its own application window. Some EPOS-approved programmes have deadlines in autumn (October to December) for a January or the following October start. The only way to know is to check the DAAD scholarship database directly:
daad.de → Scholarship database → filter: “EPOS” + your subject field
If you are in a development-relevant field — public health, agriculture, water management, environmental science, urban planning, economics, engineering — there is a strong chance an EPOS-approved programme exists for your area. In September 2026, some of those programmes may have open application windows for the next intake.
What is open for German universities right now
Late applications for winter 2026/27
A small number of German universities accept direct applications into September for programmes that have not filled their cohorts. This is the exception, not the rule — but worth checking if you have all your documents ready. Programmes most likely to have spaces: taught Master’s programmes in less competitive fields at universities outside the top tier. Application is direct to the university (not via uni-assist at this stage, as uni-assist processing for African applicants takes 6–7 weeks from the research confirmed June 2026).
Do not expect to find spaces in highly competitive programmes (computer science, business, engineering at TUM, LMU, RWTH), and do not expect APS to be a requirement — it is not required for any African national (confirmed, German Embassy and uni-assist official sources, June 2026).
Summer semester 2027 (March start)
Applications for the summer semester intake (March/April 2027 start) typically open in December 2026, with a deadline around 15 January 2027. This is a smaller intake than winter, with fewer English-language programmes available, but it is a real pathway — especially for Master’s programmes where one intake is lighter and competition is lower.
The preparation window: what to do in September–December 2026
This is the most productive framing for where the DAAD calendar sits right now. Here is the 90-day action plan for a student targeting Germany for autumn 2027:
| When | Action |
|---|---|
| September 2026 | Research EPOS-approved programmes at daad.de; bookmark any with autumn deadlines |
| September – October 2026 | Sit or resit language tests: IELTS (aim ≥6.5), TestDaF or DSH if targeting German-taught programmes |
| October 2026 | Check Deutschlandstipendium rounds at universities you are considering; apply if rounds are open |
| October – November 2026 | Draft your DAAD research/motivation statement; start academic reference conversations |
| December 2026 | Submit summer 2027 applications if appropriate; continue winter 2027/28 preparation |
| January – February 2027 | Apply for summer 2027 intake via university portals (15 Jan deadline typical) |
| Spring 2027 | Watch daad.de for the new EPOS and Study Scholarship annual calls |
| May – July 2027 | Apply for winter 2027/28 university places AND DAAD scholarship (EPOS / Study Scholarship 2027 call) |
Germany numbers: context for the competition
Germany admitted approximately 402,000 international students in winter 2024/25 — the first time the count crossed 400,000, an increase of 6% year-on-year. Sub-Saharan African students number around 20,416, or 5.4% of the international total (as of winter 2023/24, Wissenschaft weltoffen 2025 report). The largest Sub-Saharan origin is Cameroon (~6,789 students).
These numbers reflect self-funded and scholarship-funded students combined. DAAD’s stipend programmes are selective; the scholarship database lists thousands of awards across all levels and disciplines, but each individual programme is competitive.
A note on APS: it does not apply to African students
Multiple blogs and agency sites tell Nigerian and Ghanaian students that Germany requires an APS (Akademische Prüfstelle) certificate. This is incorrect as of June 2026. APS is mandatory only for applicants from China, Vietnam, and India. The German Embassy in Nigeria, the German Embassy in Accra (which uses a separate document-verification process), and uni-assist all confirm that African nationals do not need an APS certificate. Germany uses Anabin (the KMK equivalence database) and WAEC/NECO scratch-card verification for Nigerian credentials — a completely different process. Do not let agency blogs add an unnecessary step to your application.
How World Study Helps
World Study Africa helps students from Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, Uganda, Egypt, Zambia, and Zimbabwe plan Germany applications — from university shortlisting to DAAD scholarship strategy to blocked-account setup. Our core service is free; we earn a commission from universities where students enrol. We do not charge for visa or scholarship “facilitation.”
Check your profile at world-study.africa/eligibility-check/ or reach out via WhatsApp to start planning your Germany application.
Frequently asked questions
The two main DAAD awards for Master's students — the EPOS Development-Related Postgraduate Scholarship and the DAAD Study Scholarship — both pay €934 per month (as of June 2026, confirmed from official DAAD sources). The stipend comes with additional subsidies for health insurance, rent, dependants (where applicable), and an initial travel allowance. The figure of €992 per month sometimes confused with a DAAD stipend is actually the German blocked-account minimum — a separate visa requirement, not a scholarship.
No. Germany's APS (Akademische Prüfstelle) is currently mandatory only for applicants from China, Vietnam, and India. It is not required for any of the eight African origins — Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, Uganda, Egypt, Zambia, or Zimbabwe — as confirmed on the official uni-assist and German Embassy pages (June 2026). Despite many agency blogs claiming otherwise, there is no APS requirement for African nationals.
For most programmes, yes. The typical deadline for winter semester start (October 2026) applications was 15 July 2026, with earlier cutoffs for competitive programmes and Master's degrees. Uni-assist processing for African applicants takes 6–7 weeks; that window has closed for most pathways. A small number of universities still accept late direct applications into September — check individual university portals — but most African applicants should target the summer 2027 or winter 2027/28 intake instead.
DAAD's main scholarship rounds — EPOS and the Study Scholarship for Master's studies — typically publish their next annual call in Q2 (approximately April–June each year). For 2027/28 entry, expect the call to open in spring 2027. The best preparation you can do right now is gather your documents, sit or resit any required language tests, and research EPOS-approved programmes at daad.de to identify the right course before the next call opens.