Who Can Apply for the BDGS 2027/28
Nationality, age limits, academic qualifications, English requirements — and the exclusions that catch students off guard.
ScholarshipUnion Editorial
4 min read
Updated Oct 6, 2026
Nationality — it’s open to more countries than you think
The BDGS is open to international students of any nationality. The recent MFA calls are addressed to foreign students and do not limit the scheme to a list of countries. Citizens of African, Latin American, Central Asian or European countries can apply on the same terms as ASEAN citizens.
The confusion arises because many scholarship aggregator sites describe the BDGS as an “ASEAN scholarship” or list only ASEAN and OIC countries. That framing misses the actual scope. If you hold citizenship from any country and meet the other criteria, you can apply.
The 2024/2025, 2025/2026 and 2026/2027 calls did not ask for an endorsement from your own government. You apply directly through the MFA portal. Some older guides still list an endorsement step; check the document list in the 2027/2028 call when it is published.
The three exclusions
The 2024/2025 and 2025/2026 calls stated that these three groups are not eligible:
- Brunei citizens. Citizens of Brunei Darussalam cannot apply. This is a scholarship specifically for foreign students.
- Permanent Residents. Brunei Permanent Residents — regardless of their original nationality — are also excluded.
- Prior Brunei students. International students who are studying, or have studied, at a tertiary institution in Brunei.
The 2026/2027 call kept the ban on Permanent Residents but worded the third point more softly: the scholarship is “intended primarily for international students studying for the first time in Brunei Darussalam”. If you have already studied at any Brunei tertiary institution, assume this counts against you unless the 2027/2028 call says otherwise, and ask the MFA before applying.
Age requirements
Age is measured on 1 July of the year the programme begins — not on the application date. You must not be older than 25 (Diploma and Undergraduate) or 35 (Master’s) on that day. So if you turn 26 in March 2027, you are too old for a 2027/2028 undergraduate place; if you turn 26 in August 2027, you still qualify.
No minimum age is specified in the official calls, though applicants must have completed the academic prerequisite for their chosen programme (school-leaving qualifications for undergraduate study, a Bachelor’s degree for Master’s programmes).
Academic qualification requirements
The MFA call sets no grade thresholds of its own. Entry requirements are set by each institution and programme. As a general guide:
- Diploma programmes: secondary school leaving certificate or equivalent to Brunei’s O-Level standard. Specific requirements depend on the institution and programme.
- Undergraduate programmes: GCE A-Level, International Baccalaureate, or equivalent secondary school qualifications sufficient for university entry. Minimum grades vary by institution and faculty.
- Postgraduate Master’s: a recognised Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field. The institution determines what counts as “relevant.” Programmes by research require a research proposal, which the 2026/2027 portal asked you to upload.
The BDGS covers three levels: Diploma, Undergraduate and Postgraduate Master’s. If you want PhD funding at a Brunei university, the UBD Graduate Research Scholarship (administered separately by UBD) is the relevant programme. Under UBD’s current terms (dated 26 May 2026, for the September 2026 intake onwards) it pays a subsistence allowance of BND 1,200 a month for up to 36 months. These two programmes have different eligibility, different processes and different administrators — do not conflate them.
English language proficiency
This is one area where the official requirements are more flexible than most guides suggest. IELTS is not mandatory. The recent calls accept any one of the following:
| Qualification | Minimum requirement |
|---|---|
| GCE O-Level English Language | Credit 6 or above |
| IGCSE English (as Second Language) | Grade C or above |
| IELTS | 6.0 overall |
| TOEFL | Minimum score of 550 |
The 2026/2027 portal checklist marked the English certificate as “if applicable”, so the upload itself was optional. Institutions may also ask you to sit a written test of English, Malay or Arabic where relevant. Whether a medium-of-instruction letter is accepted in place of a test is not stated in the calls, so check with your chosen institution.
Medical fitness
Applicants do not need to submit medical documents when they apply. The offer is made subject to a certificate that you are medically fit to study in Brunei, which you provide after you accept. You pay any costs of the medical report yourself. The MFA can also require health screening in Brunei if it considers it necessary.
Other conditions
The following conditions apply throughout the scholarship period. The MFA publishes them as general terms and conditions with each call; the full list is given to successful applicants, who sign a declaration accepting it:
- You cannot hold any other scholarship, fellowship, grant or loan concurrently without written Ministry approval. Discovery of a violation results in immediate termination.
- You cannot take paid employment during the scholarship period, including at any country’s representative mission in Brunei.
- You cannot change your programme or institution after being selected.
- You must comply with Brunei’s laws, customs and university regulations throughout your stay.
- Political activities are not permitted during the scholarship period, and you must leave Brunei as soon as your programme ends.
Married applicants
Marital status is not an eligibility criterion — married applicants can apply and win. However, the official terms state that a scholar is “not encouraged to bring any family members” for the duration of the scholarship. No family accommodation is available, and no marriage or child allowance is included in the package. This is a personal decision, but the financial and logistical reality should be understood clearly before applying. See Benefits & Stipend for the full package.