International students: scholarships FAQs
Scholarship questions answered: real questions from Waikato's international students.
A list of frequently asked questions (FAQs) from international students applying for scholarships at the University of Waikato.
Applying for a scholarship
The University of Waikato has a range of scholarship opportunities available just for international students.
However, many other scholarships do not exclude international students from applying, and we encourage you to search the Scholarships Finder and check the regulations.
Many funding opportunities are offered through other organisations, and some of these are listed as external funding opportunities.
We cannot advise which scholarships you can apply for; however, we provide a list of scholarship opportunities for you to consider. Check the regulations for the scholarship value and information on your eligibility to apply.
Please note that the University of Waikato does not offer any fully funded scholarships.
New students: If you are interested in applying for a scholarship you will first need to have submitted an application to Enrol to have access to the ‘Scholarships’ at the top of the page tab in your MyWaikato portal.
Please refer to application information for international undergraduate students.
Current students: Review the Scholarships Finder to find scholarships. Then, log into your MyWaikato portal and select the 'Scholarships' tab at the top of the page to search for the scholarships and to begin your application.
The Vice Chancellor’s International Excellence Scholarships are open to new international students enrolling full-time for the first time in an undergraduate or postgraduate programme. More information about eligibility is outlined clearly in the regulations associated with the scholarship.
To ensure you are applying for the scholarship at the correct time:
- Ensure you have received a conditional or unconditional offer of place from the University of Waikato.
- Apply for the VCIES scholarship and complete the application before the closing date for your proposed trimester intake.
- Continue to progress your enrolment by paying tuition fees / submitting a visa application.
If you do not have access to your MyWaikato portal to check your scholarship status, please contact your agent and ask them to provide you with confirmation of the application being submitted.
After you apply
Current scholarship recipients (including current doctoral scholars) can use the Scholarship Variation Request Form to request a variation to their scholarship which is outside of the approved regulations.
To learn more and/or submit a variation request visit the scholarship variation request page.
To view the status of your scholarship application(s), log into your MyWaikato portal and select the 'Scholarships' tab at the top of the page. There, you will view a list of all scholarships and their current status:
- Incomplete: this status means you have not yet submitted your application.
- Evidence Required: this status means we do not have evidence of your previous study. This may be completion of your high school study, or your undergraduate degree programme. When you have this evidence, please upload it your MyWaikato portal and email info@international.waikato.ac.nz; this will allow us to assess your application quicker.
- Application Received: this status means that your application for the scholarship has been received by the scholarship team.
- Pending: this status means that your application is being prepared for consideration by the selection panel. Once the selection panel have made their decisions, you will receive an outcome via your MyWaikato portal.
All Vice-Chancellor’s International Excellence Scholarships applications are processed towards the end of each month (excluding December). It can take up to 8 weeks from the scholarship application closing date to receive the outcome of your application.
Please be patient. You will receive an outcome through your MyWaikato portal in-tray message service. Ensure you check this weekly.
If you were offered a scholarship and were unable to accept by the deadline, there may still be funding available to support you.
Please contact Scholarships with more details of your situation.
We understand that the cost of study for international students is high, but your application has already been considered and the value of your scholarship set.
We encourage you to investigate the University of Waikato's other scholarship opportunities.
Payments and fees
As an international student not yet in New Zealand, you do not need to complete this step.
Please read the regulations, and if in agreement, accept the scholarship offer. You can leave the information about having a bank account blank. By accepting we will have it recorded in our system and your scholarship will not lapse.
If needed, you will be able to input your bank account details once in New Zealand.
The scholarship value is whatever has been stated in your scholarship offer. Any additional costs after the awarded amount must be funded through other means. We understand that the cost of study for international students is high, but your application has already been considered and the value of your scholarship set.
We encourage you to investigate the University of Waikato's other scholarship opportunities.
You may pay the full tuition-fee amount minus the value of the scholarship outlined in the scholarship offer. After accepting the Scholarship Offer, recipients receive an official Scholarship Offer Letter that can be provided to Immigration New Zealand to explain why the full tuition-fee amount hasn’t been paid.
If you have already paid your fees, once the system has loaded the scholarship, you will have a credit on your account which can be received as a refund once you have started your studies in person. To access your refund, do the following:
Load your NZ bank details
- Log in to your MyWaikato portal
- Select ‘Edit Details’ from the drop-down list next to your name in the yellow bar
- Click on ‘Bank Details’
- Enter your NZ bank account number and name. Confirm that the bank account listed is your own. Ensure your bank account is correct so you can receive your payment.
- Click ‘Submit’
Bank Account details
Apply for a refund
- Go to the ‘Finance’ tab of your MyWaikato portal
- Select 'Apply for Refund'.
- In the notes field, explain that you want to receive your scholarship refund.
- The Fees Team will process your request.
It can take up to two weeks for the refund to be approved and to show in your bank account.
Start dates and NZ residency
Our international scholarships are to support international fee-paying students.
Most fee-paying scholarships are paid for each trimester of enrolment.
- For any trimester where you are an international fee-paying student you will retain your scholarship payment.
- For any trimester where you become a domestic fee-paying student you will have that portion of your scholarship removed as soon as we are notified of your change in status.
Scholarships: You can start your studies anytime within the academic year of your scholarship (i.e., the year date in the title of your scholarship regulations) without asking.
If you need to defer beyond one full academic year, you won’t be able to receive your scholarship. Instead, we encourage you to apply again for the scholarship. Note that applications for the Vice Chancellor’s International Excellence scholarships are each month.
Bursaries: If your award has ‘bursary’ in the title then you won’t be able to receive your bursary if you defer your study.