Guide
Funded Master's Programs
Master's programs that are fully tuition-free or that flag scholarship funding. Includes Germany, the Nordics, and programs with universal fellowships, ranked by verified cost.
Last updated: May 7, 2026
"Fully funded master's" typically means one of two things: tuition-free programs (common in Germany, the Nordics, and a few other public-university systems) or programs that advertise scholarship funding for master's students directly. Both are pooled below, with tuition-free options ranked first and scholarship-flagged options sorted by lowest verified cost after.
GradsMatch tracks 2 funded master's programs, of which 2 are tuition-free. Consider pairing any of these with an external fellowship from the fellowships catalog to cover living expenses.
Funded programs
| # | Program | School | Modality | Tuition |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Master of Fine Arts in Directing27 cr | Northwestern UniversityEvanston, US | in-person | Tuition-free |
| 2 | Master of Fine Arts in Stage Management | Yale UniversityNew Haven, US | in-person | Tuition-free |
USD figures are converted from each program's native currency at the FX rate on the day it was last verified. Switch to "Native currency" to see the school's published price.
Frequently asked questions
- What does 'fully funded master's' actually mean?
- Two overlapping things. First, tuition-free: the program has zero sticker tuition because it's at a public university in a country (Germany, Norway, Finland, France at public universities) that doesn't charge its residents or, in some cases, anyone. Second, scholarship-funded: the program advertises program-wide scholarships, assistantships, or fellowships that reduce or eliminate cost for admitted students. The list above pools both.
- Are funded master's degrees available in the US?
- Rarely, and mostly at top research universities offering MS degrees attached to departments that fund PhD pipelines. Stanford, MIT, Caltech, Berkeley, and a handful of others fund some master's students as research or teaching assistants. Most US master's are unfunded by design because the school's PhD students absorb the funding budget. If funding is the goal, you usually want Europe or a PhD.
- Where are tuition-free master's programs?
- Germany (all public universities, modest semester fees of ~300 euros), Norway (free for EU/EEA; Norwegian-taught, with some English programs), Finland (free for EU/EEA, mid-tier tuition for non-EU), France (very low public-university tuition capped by the state), and Iceland. The Netherlands and Sweden charge international students tuition but at rates far below US/UK levels.
- Do I need to speak the local language?
- Not usually. Germany and the Netherlands have large selections of English-taught programs. Norway and Finland have fewer English options but they exist at the major research universities. France has strong English-taught master's at grandes écoles and Sciences Po. Check each program's language of instruction; it's a required field in GradsMatch so the filter is reliable.
- What about fellowships?
- Fellowships are a separate funding source on top of (or instead of) school-offered funding. GradsMatch maintains a catalog of 53+ master's-eligible fellowships at /fellowships including Fulbright, Rhodes, Knight-Hennessy, Chevening, DAAD, and university-specific options like Clarendon (Oxford) and Gates Cambridge. Each program detail page also surfaces the fellowships that fund that country.