What a DAAD scholarship CV must contain
A DAAD scholarship CV is a full curriculum vitae in tabular form, at most three pages long. The master's Study Scholarships call wants it as a PDF in the DAAD portal, next to a 1 to 3 page motivation letter.1
Written 13 October 2026, updated 22 October 2026. CitedCV. How we write our guides
Start with the call for your country and status
DAAD publishes each programme as a call in its scholarship database, and the document list can change with the country you apply from and your status. Select Graduates and Turkey, then open the Application procedure tab. Everything on this page comes from the call 'Study Scholarships - Master Studies for All Academic Disciplines' shown for graduates in Turkey, read on 12 October 2026.
Funding and timing in this call
- Funding: 992 euros a month, an annual study allowance of 460 euros, insurance and a travel allowance on application; DAAD does not cover tuition fees.
- Duration: 10 to 24 months, the standard length of the chosen programme. For this round, funding must begin in 2027, usually on 1 October 2027.
- Timing: applications open on 1 June; DAAD updates the deadlines each year in the second quarter and lists them in the call.
- Eligibility points that affect your CV: your most recent degree should, as a rule, be no more than 6 years old at the deadline, and you cannot apply if you have lived in Germany for more than 15 months at the deadline.
A Turkey-only alternative
DAAD also lists DAAD-TEV master's scholarships, run with Türk Eğitim Vakfı for outstanding Turkish students with a bachelor's degree. DAAD and TEV each cover half of the costs, and the TEV share must be paid back to the foundation. Its database entry gives the overview and TEV as the contact; check TEV's own announcement for the documents.
How the selection committee reads a CV
An independent committee of academics decides, not DAAD staff. DAAD lists its criteria in three groups, and a scholarship CV is the place where most of them become visible at a glance.
The criteria and the rows that show them
| Criterion in the DAAD call | What the CV can show |
|---|---|
| Academic achievements, including grade point average and the development of grades | Final or current grade with scale, and the trend from year to year |
| Course of studies and school-leaving certificate | Programme, focus modules, thesis, school certificate if relevant |
| Knowledge of the language of instruction | Certificate, level and date |
| Relevant internships and work experience | Dated rows with the field of work |
| Quality of the study project and preparation | Contacts made, programme chosen, admission status |
| Extracurricular commitment and social engagement | Student societies, volunteering, tutoring, with dates and roles |
Scholarship CV and admission CV are not the same document
| DAAD scholarship CV | uni-assist admission CV | |
|---|---|---|
| Length | At most 3 pages | No limit stated |
| Coverage | Full CV in tabular form | Everything from your first school, no omissions, current to the application date |
| Emphasis | Grades and their development, project, commitment | A complete, gap-free educational path |
| Where it goes | DAAD portal, PDF | My assist, one copy or one per application |
Reusing the admission CV is fine as a starting point, but three pages leave room for the rows the committee weighs and none for filler. The master's admission CV has its own page.
Checklist built from the DAAD Study Scholarships call
Each line quotes or closely paraphrases the call or DAAD's Important information for scholarship applicants. The right column says how to meet it.
| Item | What DAAD says | How to meet it |
|---|---|---|
| Curriculum vitae | Full curriculum vitae in tabular form (max. 3 pages) | Dated rows, newest or oldest first but consistent, three pages at most |
| Letter of motivation | Academic and personal reasons for the study project, 1 to 3 pages; upload under study project/motivation | Same dates and names as the CV; nothing in the letter the CV contradicts |
| Admission letter | Upload it, or submit it before funding begins if you do not have it yet | Name the programme and status on the CV: applied, admitted, or expected |
| Programme form | Form 'Information about your preferred master programmes', uploaded under course profile | Programme names on the CV match the form |
| Transcript | Current overview of grades with individual grades, under university degree certificates | The grade on the CV is the one on the transcript, with its scale |
| Degree certificate | With final grade(s); may follow by the start of funding | Mark the degree as expected with month if not finished |
| Language proof | For the language of instruction, should be no older than 3 years | Certificate name, level and month on the CV |
| Recommendation | One recent letter from a university teacher, on the form generated in the portal | The referee's course or project appears on the CV |
| Optional documents | Other relevant documents, e.g. employment certificates or proof of extracurricular engagement | Upload proof for the commitment rows you list |
| File format | Upload in PDF format only | Export the CV as PDF; check it opens and text can be selected |
| Translations | Documents not in German or English need translations; they do not have to be certified and you may translate yourself | Upload each translation together with the original |
| Certified copies | Not needed at first; DAAD may ask for them after a positive selection | Keep certified copies ready |
Calls are updated every year. Check the linked call for your country before you upload.
Translations: DAAD and uni-assist differ
For the DAAD application, a translation does not need to be certified or sworn. University admission is a separate process: uni-assist accepts translations from Turkey only from a sworn translator whose stamp includes the words "yeminli tercüman". If you upload the same diploma to both, the sworn translation serves both.
DAAD CV example: rows that answer the criteria
These rows are invented to show the form. They fit the three-page limit by saying one thing each, with a date.
| Period | Entry | Criterion it answers |
|---|---|---|
| 09/2021 - 06/2025 | B.Sc. Molecular Biology and Genetics, [University], Ankara; GPA 3.48/4.00; by year 3.02, 3.35, 3.61, 3.78 | Grade point average and development of grades |
| 02/2024 - 06/2025 | Bachelor thesis: "Heat stress response in wheat seedlings", supervised by [Professor] | Course of studies; the recommendation letter author |
| 07/2024 - 08/2024 | Summer internship, plant genetics laboratory, [Institute], Izmir | Relevant internship |
| 10/2022 - 06/2025 | Peer tutor for first-year biology, 4 hours a week, [University] student society | Extracurricular commitment |
| 03/2025 | IELTS Academic 7.0 | Language of instruction, within 3 years |
| since 11/2025 | Applied to M.Sc. Plant Sciences, [German university], start winter semester 2027/28 | Preparation of the study project |
[First name Last name]
[City], Türkiye · [email] · [phone]
Education
- 09/2021 - 06/2025
- B.Sc. Molecular Biology and Genetics, [University], Ankara. GPA 3.48/4.00; by year 3.02, 3.35, 3.61, 3.78
- 02/2024 - 06/2025
- Bachelor thesis: "Heat stress response in wheat seedlings", supervised by [Professor]
- 09/2017 - 06/2021
- [High school], Ankara. School-leaving certificate (Lise Diploması)
Practical experience
- 07/2024 - 08/2024
- Summer internship, plant genetics laboratory, [Institute], Izmir
Extracurricular commitment
- 10/2022 - 06/2025
- Peer tutor for first-year biology, 4 hours a week, [University] student society
Languages
- 03/2025
- English: IELTS Academic 7.0
- Turkish: native
Study plans
- since 11/2025
- Applied to M.Sc. Plant Sciences, [German university], start winter semester 2027/28
Keeping it to three pages
The grade development row only works if your transcript shows yearly averages or you can compute them from it. Do not add numbers you cannot prove. To stay within three pages, drop school rows below the school-leaving certificate, merge short courses into one line, and leave the place-and-date line as the last line.
What the call does not say
- It names no template. Europass is not mentioned in this call; a tabular CV in your own layout meets the wording.
- It does not ask for a signature or a photo on the CV.
- It sets no minimum grade. DAAD says its programmes as a rule do not stipulate a minimum GPA, though academic performance is a key criterion.
- It does not ask you to convert your grade. Write the Turkish grade with its scale; converting it is covered on its own page.
Who this checklist is not for
Doctoral and research grants ask for a research proposal, up to 10 pages unless the call says otherwise, and applicants in architecture, fine art, design, film, performing arts and music have separate DAAD programmes. Their CV rules can differ.
Next steps
- Apply for admission in parallel; DAAD only pays if you are admitted to the programme named in your application. The master's CV page covers the admission CV and uni-assist.
- For the letter of motivation, DAAD's own question list (education, academic motivation, reasons for the scholarship, interests) is in its Important information, section B.
- CitedCV can lay out the tabular CV in English or German from the facts you enter and keep each line tied to those facts, which helps when the committee compares the CV with your transcript.
Questions people ask
What is the DAAD CV format?
A full curriculum vitae in tabular form, at most three pages, uploaded as a PDF to the DAAD portal. That is the wording of the master's Study Scholarships call.
How many pages can a DAAD CV be?
At most three pages in the Study Scholarships call for master's studies. The letter of motivation is a separate document of one to three pages.
Do I need to sign my DAAD CV?
No signature is mentioned in the Study Scholarships call. Follow the call for your own programme, which is the document that counts.
Does DAAD require a Europass CV?
Not in the Study Scholarships call we read, which asks only for a full curriculum vitae in tabular form of at most three pages.
Can I write my DAAD application in English?
Yes. Unless the call says otherwise, DAAD accepts applications in German or English, and documents in other languages need German or English translations.
Do my translations need to be certified for DAAD?
No, not for the application. DAAD says translations need not be certified and you may translate yourself; it may request certified documents after selection.
What GPA do I need for a DAAD scholarship?
There is usually no fixed minimum. DAAD says its programmes as a rule set no minimum grade point average, but academic achievement is a key selection criterion.
Can I apply to DAAD before I am admitted to a university?
Yes. If you have no admission letter when you apply, you must submit it before the funding period begins, for the host university named in your application.
Sources
- DAAD: Study Scholarships - Master Studies for All Academic Disciplines (graduates, Turkey)www2.daad.de/deutschland/stipendium/datenbank/en/21148-scholarship-database/?status=3&origin=14&detail=50026200
- DAAD: Important information for scholarship applicantswww.daad.de/en/study-and-research-in-germany/scholarships/important-information-for-scholarship-applicants/
- DAAD: DAAD-TEV Master's degree scholarshipswww2.daad.de/deutschland/stipendium/datenbank/en/21148-scholarship-database/?status=3&origin=14&detail=50016578
- uni-assist: Other documents (CV requirements for admission)www.uni-assist.de/en/how-to-apply/assemble-your-documents/other-documents/
- uni-assist: Info country by country, Turkey (translations)www.uni-assist.de/en/tools/info-country-by-country/details-country/country/tr/