UNESCO/The People’s Republic of China – The Great Wall Co-Sponsored Fellowships Programme 2025-2026

Published by unesco-admin on February 3, 2025

About the Programme

With a view to promoting the human resource development and capacity building of developing countries and to enhancing international exchanges in the field of education, culture, communication, science and technology and the friendship among peoples of the world, UNESCO the Government of the People’s Republic of China will co-sponsor a total number of seventy-five (75) fellowships for advanced studies in various fields, at undergraduate and postgraduate levels, during the academic year 2025-2026. Among these fellowships, forty-seven (47) vacancies will be open for new recruitment to candidates from 135 developing Member States in Africa, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Europe and Arab region.

Tenable at a selected number of Chinese universities, these fellowships are intended for students and researchers who plan to pursue degree study at the postgraduate level, or undertake individual research with periodic guidance from the assigned supervisors in China. A candidate may apply for either a one-year Visiting Scholar programme (as General or Senior scholar) or a Master’s or Doctoral Degree programme with the duration of study ranging from 2 to 5 years. Subject to the availability of study programmes at the selected universities, the study programmes will be taught in English or Chinese. Candidates applying for the Chinese-taught programmes should have acquired a certain level of Chinese proficiency before undertaking research or studying in their fields of interest.

The beneficiary countries of UNESCO-China Fund-in-Trust (CFIT) Project are encouraged to submit candidates in the relevant fields of study in Education. Given the high priority that UNESCO places on Gender Equality, Africa and SIDS, women candidates and candidates from Africa and SIDS are strongly encouraged to apply.

Available Study Programmes

Please visit the official web page of China Scholarship Council (CSC) for the fields of proposed studies at the selected chinese universities: http://www.campuschina.org/universities/index.html

Eligibility Requirements

Candidates must be nationals of the above-mentioned invited Member States, fulfilling the following requirements:

Meeting the eligibility requirements in age, language and academic qualifications for the chosen study programme:

One-year Visiting Scholar Programmes

– Candidates applying for General Scholar Programmes must hold a high school diploma and should not be older than the age of forty-five (45); whereas those who apply for Senior Scholar Programmes must hold a master’s degree or an associate professor position (or above) and not be older than the age of fifty (50).

– English proficiency is required. For a candidate applying for a Chinese-taught programme as General or Senior visiting scholar, her/is Chinese proficiency must reach HSK Level 3.

Degree Programmes

– Candidates applying for Master’s Degree Programmes must hold a bachelor’s degree and should not be older than the age of thirty-five (35); whereas those who apply for Doctoral Degree Programmes must hold a master’s degree and should not be older than the age of forty (40).

– English proficiency is required. For a candidate applying for a Chinese-taught degree programme, her/is Chinese proficiency must reach HSK Level 4.
Meeting the admission requirements of the applied universities in terms of academic ability, language proficiency and other relevant criteria.
Be in good health, both mentally and physically.

How to Apply?

Step 1:
Read carefully the Application Guidelines for the 2025-2026 UNESCO/China Co-Sponsored Fellowships Programme to understand the requirements for eligible candidatures and the procedures for the submission of application.

Step 2:
Contact the National Commission for UNESCO of your home country to enquire the application procedures at the national level. Click here for the contact information of the National Commissions for UNESCO.

Applicants are encouraged to contact in advance their target Chinese universities and obtain admission for the applied study programmes. Applicants with admission documents will be prioritized during the fellowship selection. If you have received admission notice, pre-admission letter or invitation from professors, please attach the documents in your online application.

Step 3:
Submit your online application, along with the required supporting documents in the Chinese Government Scholarship Information System (http://www.campuschina.org) as mentioned in the Application Guidelines.

Please refer to the Instructions for Online Application for UNESCO/China – the Great Wall Co-sponsored Fellowships Programme, for a explicit guidance on online application submission.

Step 4:
Submit your online application form and the supporting documents to the National Commission for UNESCO of your home country.

Note: As National Commissions for UNESCO of the invited countries will select and transmit the applications of nominated candidates to UNESCO Paris Headquarters by 21 February 2025 at the latest, applicants are advised to submit their applications to the National Commissions as early as possible.

Step 5:
As soon as you are informed by the National Commission for UNESCO of your country that you are nominated as a candidate for this programme, you should communicate your the online application form and the supporting documents to thegreatwall@unesco.org.

Note: Only applications nominated by the National Commission will be accepted by UNESCO. It is mandatory for each nominated candidate to submit his/er application in the Chinese Government Scholarship Information System before the application deadline. Application without online registration will not be considered.

Step 6:
Letters of nomination, along with the copies of the online Application Forms and all the application documents should be submitted to UNESCO by National Commissions by 21 February 2025 at the latest. Candidates who submit incomplete applications, or submit the online applications beyond this deadline won’t be considered.

Submission and Selection of Candidates

Due to the intergovernmental character of UNESCO, individual applications will not be accepted by UNESCO. Only applications endorsed by the National Commissions for UNESCO will be considered. Applicants should submit their application documents through the National Commissions.

The National Commissions of invited Member States will select qualified candidates and transmit to UNESCO the copies of the online Application Forms and all the application documents of the nominated candidates.

The selection of fellowship recipients will be made by the concerned Chinese universities, and approved by the Chinese authorities and UNESCO, taking into consideration gender equality and diversity. The National Commissions for UNESCO of the selected fellows will be duly informed by UNESCO.