We list 11 masters Scholarships Open to Nigerian Students in Australia, with the deadline, study level and eligibility of each one taken from the award's own terms. 5 of them are fully funded. Awards with a known closing date are listed soonest first.
Written from the 11 awards on this page — every figure below is counted from what the awards themselves state. 6 min read.
This page collects 11 masters scholarships in Australia that are open to Nigerian students. Every award here is at masters level, every one is in Australia, and every one is either explicitly open to Nigerian applicants or carries no nationality restriction at all. That is the whole filter: if an award on this page required citizenship of a country other than Nigeria, it would not be here.
Of the 11, 1 names Nigeria or the region in its own eligibility text. The remaining 10 state no nationality restriction, which in practice means the award is decided on academic merit, the proposed programme of study and the strength of the application rather than on a passport. Neither group is better than the other. A named-country award tells you plainly that you are eligible; an open award tells you that you will be judged against everyone else who applies.
Funding is where these 11 differ most, and it is worth reading each award's own page rather than assuming. Five are labelled fully funded. Two are labelled partially funded. The remaining 4 do not state their funding level either way on the listing, so nothing can be assumed about what they cover until you open the award and read its terms.
Among the awards that spell out their benefits in writing:
Those counts describe what the awards say in their own text. They are not a promise that a given award will pay a given line, and they are not a statement about the awards that stay silent. Where an award names tuition only, budget for the rest yourself: living costs in Australia, the Overseas Student Health Cover that most student visas require, flights, and the document costs you will pay in Nigeria before you ever board.
The pathway into these awards is straightforward. You hold a first degree or HND — B.Sc, B.A, B.Eng, LLB, MBBS or HND — and you are applying for a taught or research masters. That is the qualification base the awards on this page are built around.
Two practical points matter more than most applicants expect. First, awards that set a minimum degree class usually phrase it as an upper second; on a Nigerian transcript that corresponds to Second Class Upper (2:1). If your transcript reads 2:1, you meet that bar on its face. If it reads 2:2, read the individual award carefully before you spend money on a transcript courier. Second, whether an HND is accepted is decided by each university, not by this page and not by a general rule. If you hold an HND, confirm directly with the admissions office of the university you are targeting before you build an application around it.
Australia is a real destination for Nigerian students, not a marginal one. The UNESCO Institute for Statistics recorded 2,385 Nigerian students in Australia in 2024, making Nigeria the 7th largest source of students there. You would be joining an established group, not arriving alone.
The requirements stated across these awards are modest in number but firm in nature. 3 awards state a minimum degree class. 2 ask for work experience. 1 asks for letters of recommendation. 1 requires that you hold an admission offer first before the scholarship application can proceed.
That last one changes your sequencing. If an award requires an admission offer first, the scholarship clock does not start when you decide to apply — it starts when the university admits you. Admission decisions take time, and Nigerian applicants are often waiting on transcripts, reference letters and English-test results at the same moment. Work backwards from the scholarship deadline, not forwards from today.
On English tests: some Australian universities waive the English requirement where your previous degree was taught and examined in English. That is decided by the university, and the position varies. Ask the admissions office in writing, keep the reply, and do not assume a waiver because a friend received one at a different institution.
The 11 awards spread across ten subject areas, which means the list is not concentrated in one faculty:
Natural Sciences and Social Sciences account for 1 each as well. If your intended masters sits in any of these areas, there is something here to read. If it does not, the same universities run other awards that are not filtered onto this page.
Of the 11 awards, 4 carry a stated date, 4 are currently still open, and 7 are undated on the listing. 4 are recurring, meaning they run again on a cycle rather than closing permanently. The busiest months across the dated awards are April, August and October, with one deadline falling in each.
Four awards close soonest, in this order:
Two other awards on the page work differently. The University of Queensland (UQ) 2027 listing runs its window from August to November. The Deakin Vice-Chancellor's International Scholarship 2026 asks for an application one month before you commence study — a relative deadline, which means it is set by your own start date, not by a fixed calendar date.
The providers on this page are a mix of national schemes and individual universities. Deakin University accounts for 2 of the 11. The rest each account for one: Participating Australian Institutions, Queensland University, Australian National University (ANU), University of Tasmania and University of Adelaide.
Where an award is attached to a named university, the scholarship and the admission are usually decided by the same institution, and you will deal with one office for both. Where an award runs through participating institutions, the scholarship is the national scheme and the university is chosen separately. Read which of the two you are applying to before you write a single line of your statement.
Start with the four dated awards above, because their deadlines are fixed and the earliest is 30 April. Open each one, read what it says it covers, and check whether you meet the stated degree class before you order anything.
Then gather documents in this order, since each step depends on the one before it: your transcript and degree certificate from your Nigerian institution, your reference letters, your English-test result or a written waiver confirmation, and finally your admission application. Transcripts and courier fees cost money and take weeks. Do not leave them until the month a deadline falls.
If an award requires an admission offer first, apply for admission earlier than you think necessary. If an award names Nigeria or the region, you already know you clear the nationality bar. If an award states no nationality restriction, your case rests on your academic record and your proposed research or coursework — so give those the time they deserve.
Finally, treat the funding label as a starting point, not a conclusion. Five awards here are fully funded, two partially, and four do not say. Read the terms of the specific award you want, and budget for everything it does not name.
Australia remains one of the most sought-after study destinations for Nigerian students — known for its high-ranking universities, multicultural campuses, and globally recognized degrees. Yet, the cost of studying abroad often becomes a significant barrier for many deserving students.
Fortunately, numerous fully funded and partially funded scholarships are available specifically for Nigerian students, covering everything from tuition fees and living expenses to travel and health insurance. These opportunities aim to attract talented individuals and support their academic, professional, and personal growth in Australia.
In this comprehensive guide, we've curated the Top 10 Scholarships in Australia for Nigerian Students for 2026. These include generous government-funded programs like the Australia Awards Scholarships, as well as merit-based and research-focused grants offered by top institutions such as the University of Melbourne, Monash University, and the University of Sydney.
Whether you're pursuing an undergraduate degree, a Master’s, or a PhD, these scholarships can significantly reduce your financial burden — and even provide long-term pathways to career development or migration.
Let’s explore the best scholarship options that can turn your dream of studying in Australia into reality.
*UNESCO Institute for Statistics, inbound internationally mobile students from Nigeria, 2024.
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