Tuition fee waivers for international students
A fee waiver reduces tuition and nothing else. Where tuition is the dominant cost that is close to a full scholarship; where it is already low, a waiver can be worth surprisingly little.
At a glance
| Awards we list in this group | 12 |
|---|
A waiver is worth what the tuition is
A 50% waiver on a high-tuition US or UK programme is a large sum. The same percentage at a European public university where the semester contribution is a few hundred euros is nearly nothing — and living costs, which the waiver does not touch, are the real constraint there.
- High-tuition destinations — a waiver is among the most valuable awards available.
- Low-tuition destinations — a living-cost grant is worth far more than a waiver.
- Either way, the visa financial requirement is usually about living costs and is unaffected.
What you still have to fund
- Living costs for the whole course.
- Flights, visa fees and any health surcharge.
- The visa financial requirement, which is money held rather than spent.
- Any tuition the waiver does not cover, which is usually most of it on a partial waiver.
Compare awards by what they leave you to pay rather than by their percentage. A 30% waiver on a cheap course and a small stipend on an expensive one are not comparable as percentages.
Fee waivers we list
12 awards, each with its own deadline, eligibility and the source we read it from.
Fee waivers — FAQs
2 questions
It is a kind of scholarship that reduces tuition only. It does not help with living costs, which are usually the binding constraint.
It may reduce the tuition portion where a route counts one. The living-cost portion is usually unaffected.
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Sources
Checked against these sources on 1 October 2026.