Maastricht UM Social Justice Scholarship 2027: Who Fits, What It Covers, Deadlines

Maastricht University (UM) in the Netherlands offers one UM Social Justice Scholarship a year, for the Master Globalisation and Law. UM’s term is a full scholarship, including a tuition fee waiver and a monthly stipend for 13 months, for a student who can already show work on human rights or the rule of law. Airfare is not covered. If you already have the official scholarship page open, this guide covers what that page leaves to you: whether you realistically fit, what the money does and does not pay for in Maastricht, and how the two separate deadlines for the 2027-2028 round work.

By Derrick Ochieng for Scholarship Tally. This guide separates Maastricht University’s published rules from our own planning advice, which is labelled as such. It was checked on 6 October 2026 against UM’s scholarship page, the UM scholarships overview, the Globalisation and Law admission requirements, admission and enrolment, tuition fee and contact pages, the handling fee page, the Pre-Academic Training and buddy programme pages, UM’s cost-of-living page, the scholarship motivation letter template and the reference letter guidelines. UM marks the scholarship amounts as subject to change for 2027-2028. We are not Maastricht University, and applications go through UM’s own systems, not through Scholarship Tally.

Editorial note: A human editor used artificial intelligence (AI) to draft and organise this explainer from Maastricht University’s pages, then checked every figure and rule against those pages before publication. AI was used to speed the comparison, not as the source of the rules.

UM Social Justice Scholarship at a glance

Maastricht University’s official name for this award is the UM NL Social Justice Scholarship. This guide uses the shorter name UM Social Justice Scholarship. UM links the scholarship to its values of diversity and inclusivity, its Global Engagement Policy 2024-2030, and its United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Chair on Human Rights and Peace.

Who this scholarship fits, and who should not apply

The applicant UM describes

Read UM’s eligibility rules as a profile you can document today, not one you hope to grow into by February. On the scholarship page, every candidate must:

• Hold the nationality of a country outside the EU/EEA, Switzerland or Surinam, and meet the requirements for a Dutch entry visa (the provisional residence permit, known as MVV) and residence permit.
• Not hold dual nationality with an EU/EEA country or Switzerland.
• Have applied for the full-time Master Globalisation and Law for 2027-2028 and submitted the complete application file, meeting all admission requirements, before 10 December 2026.
• Have already made a proven contribution to supporting the rule of law and/or human rights through intra- and extracurricular initiatives and projects.
• Meet the programme’s own admission requirements.
• Be no older than 35 on 1 September 2027. By our arithmetic, that means born after 1 September 1991.
• Show a GPA of 7.5 out of 10 or higher on the latest grade transcript (75%, or 3 out of 4, on other scales). Another line on the scholarship page asks for a cumulative bachelor’s GPA of 75% of the scale maximum. UM does not say which line wins if they differ; ask [email protected].

UM also gives preference to candidates who have not yet obtained a Master’s degree. Across its scholarships, UM assesses academic excellence, extracurricular engagement, active citizenship and financial need, and describes selection as highly competitive. For this award, the Faculty of Law ranks its top three applicants in March before the interview stage. Scholarship Tally’s reading: meeting the eligibility rules gets you into the selection process, but the published criteria do not guarantee an interview or award.

If you already hold a residence permit for another Schengen country, UM says you can only apply if that permit is valid until at least 2 September 2027. If it expires earlier, you must apply from your home country through an MVV visa application.

Programme admission and scholarship application run in parallel

The scholarship requires you to complete the Globalisation and Law admission file before 10 December 2026, but UM does not promise that your admission decision will arrive before the scholarship deadline. The scholarship application itself is due on 1 February 2027 at 23:59 Central European Time.

For 2027-2028, the Globalisation and Law admission page lists law degrees (a Bachelor or Master of Laws) and other academic bachelor’s or master’s degrees in a related field; non-Dutch degrees are assessed by the Board of Admissions. Work experience counts only in very rare cases.

English can be shown by a degree taught solely in English, by enough English-taught courses (the Board decides), or by a test certificate no older than two years. Examples from that page: International English Language Testing System (IELTS) Academic 6.5 overall with 6.5 in writing, or 7 overall; Test of English as a Foreign Language internet-based test (TOEFL iBT) 90 with 25 in writing, or 100 overall. UM also lists TOEIC (Test of English for International Communication) 720 in listening and reading plus 310 in speaking and writing, and Cambridge C1 Advanced grade C or Cambridge First grade A. Under the TOEFL iBT grading method used from January 2026, it lists 5 overall with 5 in writing, or 5.5 overall. Admission documents must be in Dutch, English or German, and the programme needs its own motivation letter addressed to the Board of Admissions of the Faculty of Law, separate from the scholarship letter.

Who should not spend this cycle on it

• Anyone who does not meet the published nationality, dual-nationality, age or GPA requirements should not assume they qualify for this scholarship.
• Anyone who cannot complete the full Globalisation and Law admission file before 10 December 2026.
• Applicants who plan to bring a partner, spouse or children: UM says the scholarship room is not suitable for them, and turning it down cancels the award.
• Anyone set on a different Maastricht master’s: only Globalisation and Law is eligible.
• Applicants without documented human rights or rule-of-law work to point to. UM asks what you have already done, not what you intend to do.

Which Globalisation and Law track qualifies: not published

Globalisation and Law has four tracks: General Programme, Human Rights, Corporate and Commercial Law, and Trade and Investment Law. The scholarship page says only that the master Globalisation and Law is eligible. It does not say whether every track qualifies or only Human Rights. Its “programme’s webpage” link points to the Human Rights track, and the award asks for a human rights or rule-of-law record, but UM never states that the Human Rights track is required.

Scholarship Tally planning advice: before you pick a track in Studielink, email the UM Scholarship Office at [email protected] and ask which tracks are eligible for 2027-2028. The Faculty of Law Admissions Office handles questions about admission itself; both contacts are listed under “Who do I contact with questions?” below.

The two deadlines: 10 December 2026 and 1 February 2027

This award has two important cut-offs: 10 December 2026 for the programme application file and 1 February 2027 for the scholarship application.

Before 10 December 2026: the programme file. Apply for Globalisation and Law through Studielink, complete your full admission file in the MyApplication portal so it meets all admission requirements, and pay any handling fee your programme requires by the same date. UM writes this as “before 10 December 2026” in the eligibility rules and “December 10th” in the application steps, and publishes no time of day.

1 February 2027, 23:59 CET: the scholarship form. By then you must have met all registration requirements except legal residence, tuition payment and the hard copy of your diploma.

Missing the 10 December deadline means you cannot meet this scholarship’s published 2027-2028 eligibility deadline. The regular non-EU/EEA programme deadline is 1 May 2027 at 23:59 CET.

You may submit the scholarship application before receiving an admission decision: UM says complete non-EU/EEA files are reviewed mainly in February and May, aiming to reply within three to four weeks.

Scholarship Tally planning advice: aim to finish every MyApplication task by the end of November, so a rejected upload or a missing transcript page can still be fixed before 10 December.

What the money covers, and what it does not

UM’s published package

The scholarship page’s funding table, marked “subject to change for academic year 2027-2028”, lists:

For scale, the 2027-2028 institutional tuition fee for Globalisation and Law (the fee generally paid by non-EU/EEA students) is €21,800. Adding that to the living allowance and insurance gives about €42,650, before visa, Pre-Academic Training and buddy programme costs. That total is Scholarship Tally’s estimate; UM does not publish a package value.

Is it fully funded?

The award covers tuition, a monthly allowance, insurance, visa costs and the mandatory Pre-Academic Training. UM describes it as a full scholarship, but it is not an unconditional all-costs package. Air tickets are not covered, the UM-allocated room is mandatory, and the cleaning fee and applicable programme handling fee remain the candidate’s responsibility.

The €1,550 a month against living costs

UM breaks the monthly €1,550 down as housing €960, groceries and personal hygiene €160, telephone €60, travel €100, books and study materials €90, clothing, hobbies and going out €125, and miscellaneous €55. All of these amounts are marked subject to change.

UM’s cost-of-living page gives a different reference point: monthly figures from the 2024 national student survey by Nibud (the National Institute for Budget Information), adjusted for inflation. These are Netherlands-wide averages, not Maastricht-specific figures. The table below puts the two side by side using the closest matching categories (our grouping).

What this means for your budget:

• The housing line is the biggest item. Scholarship Tally calculation: after UM’s €960 housing line, €590 a month remains in its published breakdown.
• Scholarship Tally calculation: the Nibud figures for non-rent spending, excluding health insurance, total about €745 a month. On those figures, the difference is about €155 a month. This is our calculation, not a figure published by UM.
• UM does not publish the actual rent of the scholarship room, or whether housing is deducted before the allowance is paid. The table only says living expenses are paid to students and that the room is mandatory.

Costs you still carry

• Air tickets. UM says they are not included and must be paid by the candidate.
• Cleaning fee of about €75, paid directly to Maastricht Housing.
• Handling fee of €100 (excluding bank costs) if your diploma is based on a non-EU/EEA curriculum. It must be paid by 10 December 2026. Late payment means the application is rejected. The International Services Desk does not cover it. UM refunds it, excluding bank costs, once you start your studies. Exemptions include previous education completed in the United Kingdom or Switzerland and recognised refugee status in the Netherlands.
• Family accommodation. The accommodation UM provides to scholarship students is not suitable for partners, spouses or children.
• Later buddy programme blocks. Only the first block, from the end of August to the end of September, is covered. UM’s buddy programme page lists €30 per block.

Timeline for the 2027-2028 round

The Pre-Academic Training means you need to be in Maastricht in early August, weeks before the September start. The 2027 Pre-Academic Training dates and cost are not published yet. The 2026 edition ran from 3 to 14 August 2026 and cost €575. The 2026 price should not be treated as the 2027 price; the scholarship page lists Pre-Academic Training as covered at cost.

How to show a “proven contribution” to human rights or the rule of law

UM’s wording is specific: you must have already made a proven contribution through intra- and extracurricular initiatives and projects, and the motivation letter should emphasise what you already did to improve human rights. UM does not publish minimum hours, preferred organisation types or examples of qualifying projects, so do not assume any.

Scholarship Tally planning advice: use your curriculum vitae (CV), motivation letter and reference letter to reinforce the same strongest evidence of your previous work, while staying within UM’s published document and word limits.

• CV: maximum two A4 pages; UM asks that it be up to date with “relevant information about your education and (job) experience” and that any awards or prizes are mentioned.
• Motivation letter template: one question, maximum 200 words, covers the academic, personal and community achievements you are most proud of. UM does not publish a word split inside those 200.
• Reference letter: pick a referee who saw the work first-hand and can put numbers on it (the letter rules are below).

UM’s motivation letter template has five questions with word limits:

• Why you are applying for this particular scholarship (maximum 100 words).
• Why you are a suitable candidate, with emphasis on your personal development potential (maximum 100 words).
• The achievements you are most proud of: academic, personal and community (maximum 200 words).
• How you see your future and how the scholarship will influence it (maximum 100 words).
• How you see yourself as an ambassador for Maastricht University, during and after your studies (maximum 100 words).

The five motivation-letter questions allow a combined maximum of 600 words, by our count. Scholarship Tally planning advice: treat that as a tight space for selecting your strongest evidence rather than trying to document every activity.

If invited to interview, UM asks you to prepare an action plan on how the programme helps you contribute to strengthening human rights and/or the rule of law in your home country and/or elsewhere. Scholarship Tally’s reading: your written application demonstrates your previous contribution, while the interview task asks you to explain the future impact you intend to build.

Scholarship Tally planning advice: for each initiative, note your role, the dates, what changed because of it, and something checkable, such as a published report, a project page or a news item. Put the strongest example in the community slot of the template and make sure your referee can confirm it.

How to apply

1. Check the nationality, age and GPA rules above, and ask the Scholarship Office about track eligibility if you are unsure.
2. Apply for the full-time Master Globalisation and Law in Studielink, selecting a September 2027 start. Within 24 hours UM emails your UM student number and a link to set a password for the MyApplication portal. You need that student number for the scholarship form.
3. Complete every admission task in MyApplication and pay any handling fee before 10 December 2026.
4. Prepare the scholarship documents listed below in .doc, .docx or PDF format.
5. Log in with your UM account and submit the scholarship form linked from the official scholarship page before 1 February 2027, 23:59 CET. You can submit only once.
6. If invited, take part in the online interview with your action plan.
7. If selected, sign and return the award letter to the International Services Desk, then prepare for the August Pre-Academic Training.

Documents for the scholarship form:

• CV, no longer than two A4 pages.
• Motivation letter on UM’s template.
• Proof of academic excellence: an official transcript or document from your home university showing your most recent GPA of 7.5 or higher, plus a document explaining your grading system.
• Personal statement of financial need, describing circumstances such as financial difficulty, sole parent or caretaking responsibilities, a medical condition, disability or refugee status.
• One reference letter, which you upload yourself.
• Your referee’s relationship to you, work telephone number with country code, and work or institutional email address.

Reference letter rules

The referee must be a current or former professor, lecturer or employer, not a family member. The scholarship page says the letter must be dated and written no earlier than February 2026, and UM may contact the referee to check it. A letter that gives only a personal email address is rejected. On letters that do not follow the guidelines, UM’s wording is that they “are not taken into account, which means your application is incomplete.”

UM’s reference letter guidelines ask for a letter in English, typed, dated, signed, no longer than one page, with the author’s institutional or work contact details. The letter should describe the relationship, quantify your achievements, and explain how a Maastricht master’s will build on your potential. The guidelines file linked from the scholarship page is the 2025-2026 edition and still says letters written from 1 February 2024 are accepted. Follow the scholarship page’s stricter February 2026 rule.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Treating 1 February as the only deadline. A perfect scholarship form cannot rescue an admission file finished after 10 December 2026.
• Sending a GPA without the grading-system document. UM requires the document explaining your grade system alongside the transcript. If your grading system does not match UM’s published equivalents above, Scholarship Tally advice: ask the Scholarship Office rather than assuming your own conversion.
• Using an old or weak reference. Letters dated before February 2026, letters from family, and referee details with only a personal email address all fail UM’s rules.
• Submitting a draft. The form accepts one submission, and UM cannot add or replace documents afterwards.
• Applying for two UM scholarships. UM allows one application for one scholarship; multiple applications are disqualified.
• Locking a track without asking. Track eligibility is not published.
• Budgeting as if flights are paid. Air tickets, the cleaning fee and the handling fee are outside the award.
• Planning to live elsewhere or skip August. The UM room and the two-week Pre-Academic Training are both mandatory parts of the award.

Frequently asked questions

Is the UM Social Justice Scholarship fully funded?

Not unconditionally. Flights, the roughly €75 cleaning fee and any handling fee stay with you, and accepting UM’s room is a condition of the award. The funding section above shows what is paid and how the €1,550 a month is split.

How many UM Social Justice Scholarships are awarded each year?

One. UM offers a single full scholarship per academic year and describes selection as highly competitive.

Can I apply if I also hold an EU or Swiss passport?

No. UM excludes applicants with dual nationality from an EU/EEA country or Switzerland, even when their other nationality would qualify. UM publishes no country list.

Does every Globalisation and Law track qualify?

Not published. The master has four tracks, and the scholarship page links to the Human Rights track without saying the others are excluded. Ask [email protected] before you choose.

Can I turn down the scholarship room and rent privately?

No. The room is a mandatory part of the award until July 2028, and refusing it cancels the scholarship. UM says it will take accommodation preferences, such as religious beliefs, into account.

What English test score do I need?

The scholarship has no separate English score; the programme’s admission rules apply. IELTS Academic 6.5 with 6.5 in writing (or 7 overall) and TOEFL iBT 90 with 25 in writing (or 100) are two of the accepted routes, with certificates no older than two years.

Who do I contact with questions?

For the scholarship, the UM International Services Desk and Scholarship Office at [email protected]. For programme admission, the Faculty of Law Admissions Office at [email protected] (Faculty of Law, Bouillonstraat 1-3, 6211 LH Maastricht).

Official sources

• UM NL Social Justice Scholarship (main scholarship page)
• UM scholarships for talented students (overview with the 23:59 CET deadline)
• Master Globalisation and Law (four tracks)
• Globalisation and Law: Human Rights
• Admission requirements 2027-2028
• Admission and enrolment
• Tuition fees
• Programme contact
• Handling fee
• Pre-Academic Training (2026 edition)
• International Student Ambassador Programme
• Cost of studying and financial assistance
• Motivation letter template for UM scholarships
• Reference letter guidelines (2025-2026 edition)

Facts in this article were checked on 6 October 2026. If this page and Maastricht University’s official pages disagree, the official pages win.