Columbia University Scholarship for Displaced Students

About the Scholarship

The United Nations (UN) estimates that more than 70 million people are currently living as refugees or asylum-seekers, or have been internally displaced due to wars and natural calamity – the largest such population in human history. A significant number of these individuals have had their education interrupted, severely impacting their potential for future success. The Columbia University Scholarship for Displaced Students (CUSDS) is an effort to combat this unprecedented humanitarian and economic loss by providing displaced students with the opportunity to pursue higher education at Columbia University, one of the leading educational institutions in the world.

The Scholarship supports displaced students from anywhere in the world who are unable to complete their higher education. These students will receive full tuition, housing, and living assistance while pursuing undergraduate or graduate degrees across all 18 Columbia schools and affiliates, reflecting Columbia’s full institutional commitment to addressing this global crisis. As the first-ever Columbia-wide scholarship, and the world's first scholarship of its kind, this program will commit up to $6 million in support, per cohort, for up to 30 students each year. Mentoring and support will be provided by the Scholarship, as well as by schools and student groups at Columbia.

The Scholarship aims to shift the global dialogue surrounding displaced persons, from one that views them as a burden to one that recognizes them as vital contributors to global innovation and prosperity. Currently, there is no initiative like this at any university in the world, despite the obvious desire for education on the part of these displaced student populations. The Columbia University Scholarship for Displaced Students aims to be a leader in filling this pressing humanitarian need and will hopefully encourage other universities to follow suit.

(Note: only email inquiries to cusds@columbia.edu will be responded to.  Please read all information below before emailing. Emails must be in English.)

Scholarship Benefits

Full tuition, plus student’s housing and living expenses, for the number of terms necessary to complete the student’s degree.

Application Process

Applicants must apply to and be accepted by one of the degree programs listed below to be eligible for the scholarship. (The application requirements and criteria for scholarship applicants are the same as for normal admissions, and students cannot receive the scholarship if they are not first accepted to a Columbia degree program.) Each school and degree program maintains their own acceptance requirements and specific application deadlines. A full list of eligible degree programs and their respective scholarship deadlines can be found below. Students will only be evaluated for the scholarship if they are admitted to the degree program for which they have applied. Students will be informed regarding the scholarship only after degree admissions decisions are made.

This is a competitive scholarship with limited awards per school, so students may be accepted to Columbia and not receive funding through the scholarship. Acceptance to an academic program does not guarantee funding, through the scholarship or otherwise. Degree program application fees can be waived in extraordinary cases by e-mailing CUSDS@columbia.edu at least two weeks before the student plans to submit their degree application.

Only degree programs listed below are eligible for the scholarship.