Malta Endeavour II Scholarship 2026: No IELTS Required, ESF+ Funded — Applications Closed, Here’s What’s Next

The Malta Endeavour II Scholarships Scheme has built a reputation among postgraduate scholarship hunters as one of the rare EU-backed awards that drops the standard IELTS gate. That reputation is accurate, but it sits next to a fact many summaries leave out: the scheme is not open to the general international public, and its 5th Call for 2026 already closed its application window on 5 June 2026. For readers researching this scholarship from Nigeria or elsewhere outside Malta, understanding exactly who qualifies matters more than the headline about English tests. This guide verifies the scheme’s current status, funding structure, and eligibility rules directly against the official 5th Call Regulations published by Malta’s Scholarships Unit.

1. What the Malta Endeavour II Scholarship Actually Is

Endeavour II is a postgraduate scholarship scheme run by the Scholarships Unit within Malta’s Ministry for Education, Sport, Youth, Research and Innovation (MEYR). It funds study at MQF Level 7 — Malta’s qualifications-framework tier for master’s degrees — at institutions in Malta or abroad. The scheme has run five consecutive annual calls since 2022, aiming to help people pursue advanced research, close skills gaps in Malta’s priority economic sectors, and grow the country’s research and innovation capacity.

The scheme is co-funded by the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) 2021–2027, the EU’s main financial instrument for employment, education, and social-inclusion investment. That EU co-financing means multi-year budget commitments and formal reporting obligations rather than a discretionary national spending line — a stability marker, though it says nothing about who is allowed to apply.

2. Current Status: The 5th Call Has Closed

The 5th Call 2026 application window ran from 27 April 2026 to 5 June 2026 at noon, Malta local time — that deadline has passed. Successful applicants from this round are now moving through the scheme’s second stage, submitting acceptance letters and transcripts by 9 October 2026. New applications are not being accepted at this time, and any article claiming otherwise for 2026 should be checked against myscholarship.gov.mt directly.

Quick Answer: No, the scholarship is not open for new applications right now. The 5th Call closed on 5 June 2026; going by the scheme’s pattern of one call per year since 2022, a 6th Call would be expected sometime in 2027, though no date has been published yet.

3. Who Can Actually Apply: The Residency Rule Most Guides Skip

This is the detail that changes everything for readers outside Malta. Endeavour II is not a globally open international scholarship. Under the official 5th Call Regulations, an applicant must fall into one of four categories:

• A Maltese citizen who has resided in Malta for the past five years (time spent abroad for study, health, or work does not count against this).
• A national of an EU/EEA state who holds permanent residence in Malta and has lived there for the past five years.
• An EU/EEA national exercising Treaty rights in Malta as a worker or self-employed person, with five years of residence.
• A third-country (non-EU) national who has been granted long-term residence status in Malta and has lived there continuously for at least five years.

Important Note: A Nigerian applicant living in Nigeria, without existing Malta residency, does not qualify under any of these four categories. Endeavour II is designed for people already settled in Malta — including long-term Nigerian or other international residents — not as an entry route into the country.

For non-Maltese applicants, a valid permanent or long-term residence permit is a mandatory upload. Malta’s long-term residence status itself requires five years of continuous legal residence, proof of stable income for the two years prior, suitable accommodation, and comprehensive health insurance — a separate, earlier process that must be completed before Endeavour II eligibility even begins.

4. What the Scholarship Covers

Payments are staged: 50% of the ECTS value is paid after the grant agreement is signed, interim payments follow once the first half of credits is confirmed, and the final 5% is released once the university confirms the qualification was completed.

Key Statistic: The 5th Call 2026 has €2,500,000 in total funding, distributed as ECTS-based grants rather than a flat lump sum per awardee.

5. Is IELTS Really Not Required? Verifying the Claim

The official 5th Call Regulations document — all 28 pages of it — contains no IELTS, TOEFL, or PTE Academic requirement anywhere in the eligibility, application, or selection-criteria sections. The scheme itself does not test English proficiency. That confirms the core claim behind the scholarship’s reputation.

What the regulations do require, instead, is a GMAT or GRE score for some university programmes — and Endeavour II funds explicitly do not cover those test fees. Separately, the university or programme an applicant chooses may still set its own English-language requirement independent of the scholarship; Malta’s universities teach primarily in English, so IELTS can still surface as an admission condition set by the institution, not by Endeavour II.

6. Eligibility Checklist

7. Step-by-Step Application Guide

1. Confirm which of the four residency/citizenship categories applies to you and gather proof (residence permit, ID history, or citizenship documents).
2. Secure your Malta e-ID login for the myscholarship.gov.mt portal — this cannot be arranged on the same day as submission.
3. Choose up to five recognised institutions and select one priority area of study from the scheme’s approved list (ICT, Health, Finance, STEM, Law, and others).
4. Draft a roughly 300-word motivational letter that leads with your chosen priority area and ties your proposed study to Malta’s stated economic needs — this carries 65% of the selection score.
5. Complete Schedules I, II, and III, and gather academic transcripts.
6. Submit online before the deadline, then save the system-generated acknowledgement as proof of submission.
7. If shortlisted, attend the interview, then by the second deadline submit your Letter of Acceptance, transcripts, and residence documentation.

Pro Tip: Because the motivational letter accounts for 65% of the total score — far more than academic merit (20%) or work experience (15%) — spend the bulk of your preparation time making sure it names a specific gap in one of Malta’s priority sectors rather than reading as a general personal statement.

8. Application Timeline

9. Cost of Living in Malta While You Study

Even with tuition and a study allowance covered, budgeting matters. Recent Malta-focused student cost guides put a typical monthly budget between roughly €800 and €1,300, with shared-room rent the largest share — commonly €300–€800 depending on location, inland towns being cheaper than Sliema or Valletta. Utilities, groceries, and student health insurance together add another €200–€350 a month, and Malta’s public bus network is free for registered students. Budget higher for the first month, often €1,500–€2,500, for a rental deposit and setup costs. These are planning estimates from current guides, not figures published by Endeavour II.

10. Frequently Asked Questions

Is the Malta Endeavour II Scholarship open to Nigerians living in Nigeria?

Not directly. Endeavour II requires applicants to already hold Maltese citizenship, EU/EEA permanent residence in Malta, or long-term residence status held for at least five years. A Nigerian citizen without existing Malta residency does not meet any of the four eligibility categories.

Do I need IELTS to apply for Endeavour II?

The scholarship scheme itself sets no IELTS, TOEFL, or PTE requirement. However, the university or programme you apply to may still require an English test as part of its own admission process, separate from the scholarship.

Can I apply for a PhD through this scheme?

No. The 5th Call 2026 covers MQF Level 7 (master’s) programmes only. Applicants who already hold an MQF Level 8 (doctoral) qualification are not eligible.

What happens if I already have one master’s degree?

You can apply to read for another master’s degree, but not for a lower-level qualification such as a postgraduate certificate or diploma.

How much weight does the motivational letter carry?

It accounts for 65% of the total selection score, versus 20% for academic merit and 15% for work experience — the single most important part of the application.