Croatia has become a top choice for international students who want to live in a Mediterranean-style country with strict European academic standards. The Ministry of Science, Education, and Youth has started many bilateral scholarships for the 2026/2027 cycle. These scholarships cover everything, from short-term language immersion programs to full three-year doctoral programs.
1. Scholarships from the Croatian government for two people
The Agency for Mobility and EU Programmes runs the main funding programme for 2026. These scholarships are divided into “Types” based on the applicant’s location and level of study.
- Types A and B: Undergraduate and Graduate Tracks
- A1 (Language Semester): Students can study Croatian at the University of Zagreb or the University of Rijeka for 4 to 5 months.
- A2 (Partial Study): It takes 4 to 10 months for Bachelor’s or Master’s students to spend one or two semesters at a school in Croatia.
- B (Full Degree): Available for full Bachelor’s or Master’s degrees, but mostly only to people from certain partner countries or the Croatian national minority.
- Types C and D: Doctoral and Research Tracks
- C1/C2 (PhD): Full (36 months) or partial (1–10 months) stays for PhD research.
- D (Postdoctoral): 1 to 10 months for postdoctoral research.
- Monthly Payments for 2026/2027:
- For undergraduate or master’s students, the monthly allowance is €300 to €320.
- PhD/Postdoc: €320 to €480 a month in grants.
- All Scholars: subsidised housing in student residence halls and subsidised meals at student restaurants (Menza).
- The main deadline for most bilateral awards is April 10, 2026.
2. Summer Classes in Slavic Studies
If you want to commit for a shorter time, Croatia has well-known summer programmes that focus on language and culture.
- The Zagreb School of Slavic Studies is a two-week intensive seminar that will take place in Dubrovnik in August 2026.
- The Award: Type F scholarships pay for the whole course, including housing and food.
- Target: Students of Slavic studies, university professors, and researchers. The last day to apply for the 2026 seminar is also April 10, 2026.
3. Opportunities at Specific Universities
The government gives most of the direct funding, but each university has its own structural advantages for the 2026 intake.
- The University of Zagreb is the biggest and oldest in the country, and it has the most English-taught programs. If their work fits with the university’s priority sectors (like Materials Science or biomedicine), international PhD students can often get internal research grants.
- RIT Croatia is a global campus of the Rochester Institute of Technology that offers American degrees in Dubrovnik and Zagreb. They give out a lot of merit-based and need-based scholarships to international students, and some of them can pay for up to 50% of tuition.
- Algebra University College is a private school that focuses on digital technologies and engineering. They have special “Early Bird” tuition discounts and scholarships for international students in Cybersecurity and Data Science for the year 2026.
4. Estimated costs of living and studying in 2026
Croatia is still one of the cheaper EU countries, but prices vary between the capital city, Zagreb, and the coastal cities.
- Costs of Tuition:
- Most public university programmes cost between €800 and €4,000 a year. Some medical and technical degrees can cost between €10,000 and €12,000.
- Private schools: Usually cost between €4,000 and €9,000 a year.
- Living Costs: As an international student, you should plan to spend between €400 and €700 a month.
- Cost of housing: €150 to €300 for a private room or a lot less for a subsidised dorm.
- Food: €100 to €250 (using the “X-ica” student card to get cheap meals makes this very cheap).
5. Tips for 2026 Applicants on How to Be Strategic
- The Mentor Rule: Before you can apply for research-based scholarships (Types C, D, and E), you need to find a host professor or mentor in Croatia. A letter of invitation from a Croatian faculty member is a must-have part of the application package for 2026.
- NIN and Identity: If you’re from West Africa or outside the EU, you need your National Identity Number (NIN) or a similar document to access the 2026 digital visa and residence permit portals. To avoid delays in getting your “OIB” (Croatian personal identification number), make sure that the information on your application, passport, and health insurance documents is the same.
- Age Limits: For the 2026/2027 cycle, people who want to obtain a full degree in BA, MA, or PhD must be under 30. The maximum age for research stays or partial semesters is 34 years. No age limit applies to postdoctoral visits or the summer seminar.
