ISLAMABAD: The Higher Education Commission (HEC) has announced a new batch of overseas scholarships for Pakistani and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) nationals seeking MS, MPhil and PhD degrees at leading universities around the world.
The scholarships are being offered under the Overseas Scholarships for MS/MPhil & PhD Studies, Phase-III, Batch-IV programme. Successful applicants will be placed at universities ranked among the top 200 globally in the QS or Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings.
The deadline for submitting online applications is August 28, 2026, at 4:00 pm.
Some of the areas of priority covered by this scholarship program include:
- Digital transformation and Emerging Technologies
- Energy and Climate Change
- Environment
- Agriculture and Food Security
- Agri-Tech
- Health
- Biotechnology and Life Sciences
- Engineering and Advanced Manufacturing
- Natural and Physical Sciences
- Social Sciences
- Business and Governance and Interdisciplinary/Strategic Sectors.
For PhD scholarships, applicants must be Pakistani or AJK nationals with generally at least 18 years of education, including an MS, MPhil or equivalent qualification. Candidates holding a 17-year foreign MS or MSc degree may also be considered after obtaining the required HEC equivalence.
Applicants must have a minimum 3.0 CGPA out of 4.0 under the semester system or a first division under the annual system. A maximum of one second division is permitted during academic studies before the terminal degree.
The maximum age is 40 years for employees of public-sector universities and colleges, R&D organisations, and government or semi-government institutions. For other applicants, the age limit is 35 years.
For MS or MPhil scholarships, candidates must have at least 16 years of education, such as a BS, BE, Master’s degree or an equivalent qualification in a relevant field. They must also have a minimum 3.0 CGPA out of 4.0 or a first division under the annual system, with no more than one second division before the final degree.
The maximum age for MS/MPhil applicants is 35 years for eligible employees of public-sector, government, semi-government and R&D institutions, while the limit is 30 years for other candidates.
Selection will be based on merit, including HEC Aptitude Test (HAT) scores and interviews. Applicable provincial quotas set by the Government of Pakistan will also be observed.
Applicants must indicate their preferred foreign universities or countries during the application process. The selected institution must fall within the eligible top 200 QS or THE rankings, although HEC reserves the right to reallocate a candidate to another eligible university or country.
Applicants are required to submit their forms online through the HEC e-Services Portal and pay a Rs3,000 application processing fee through 1LINK payment services.
No hard copy is required at the initial stage. HEC will later contact shortlisted candidates and ask them to submit signed printed applications along with the required supporting documents.
