Application step tracker
Tick each step as you finish it. Country windows differ — Poland is a published example (15 Sep–30 Nov 2026). This is a planning tool, not an official SBFI decision.
This is a planning tool, not an official SBFI decision. Decisions are published by the end of May for a 1 September 2027 start.
GO ESKAS only — and the supervisor comes first
Applications for 2027–28 are submitted in GO ESKAS (Grants Online). SBFI's at-a-glance page is the official entry: access was published as available from 20 August 2026. Do not send a file by email or on paper. FCS will not process those routes.
Opening day is not the same as your opening day. Country types and country close dates are published on the official SBFI list. This handbook will not tell you that a country is open unless that country's window is a published fact. Poland is one published example: NAWA lists 15 September–30 November 2026. Your country may have closed already or may still be weeks away.
Files go to Swiss diplomatic representations. FCS then scores three things: the candidate profile, the quality of the research project or artistic work, and the potential for future research cooperation.
The order that actually works
Read your country line on SBFI
Check which types you may request and the close date for your origin. If art is not listed for your country, do not build an art file. Official list: Swiss Government Excellence Scholarships.
Find the supervisor (research / PhD)
This can take weeks or months. Neither the ESKAS secretariat nor the universities will do the search for you. Prepare a short CV, a motivation letter, two or three recommendations, and a 2–3 page research sketch before you write the first professor. Full method: find a Swiss supervisor.
Treat PhD admission as a second process
A support letter is not a matriculation. For an individual doctorate, FCS does not require an admission letter at application time. For a doctoral school, admission is a condition of applying. If the school forbids contacting a supervisor before admission, FCS says an ESKAS application is not possible on that route.
Register in GO ESKAS
Create the Grants Online account from the official at-a-glance apply link. Download the FCS research-proposal form inside the system. Enter two referee email addresses; the system contacts those professors and asks them to upload the FCS recommendation form.
Submit one complete file
One host, one type, one research proposal. Incomplete files and formal errors are exclusion criteria. Dual citizens upload both passports. If you already live in Switzerland, upload the permit or registration proof.
What FCS scores
Candidate profile
Academic record, research competence, and motivation for a stay that starts 1 September 2027.
Project quality
Originality and method. The five-page FCS form must include a non-specialist summary and a timeline with milestones.
Cooperation
Quality of the Swiss supervision and the chance of future research links with the host group.
Do not pay anyone to apply
The Confederation warns that fake “Swiss Government Scholarship” emails and social posts ask for visa or insurance transfers. The application is free. If someone using this name asks for money, do not reply and do not pay.