National Fellowship and Scholarship for Higher Education of ST Students (NFST) 2023-24 is an opportunity offered by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Government of India. The objective of the scheme is to promote higher education among the students of ST community and to encourage them to pursue their career in professional and research fields.
This central sector scheme offers two types of opportunities:
- National Fellowship Scheme: This fellowship is for students who have completed their Master’s degree and want to pursue M.Phil or Ph.D. courses.
- National Scholarship Scheme: This scholarship scheme is for students who want to pursue graduate or postgraduate courses in top-class government and non-government institutes in professional fields such as Management, Medicine, Engineering, Information Technology, Law, etc.
To be eligible, an applicant must:
- belong to the Scheduled Tribe (ST) category
National Fellowship Scheme:
- be of 36 years of age as on the first day of July in the relevant year of the scheme
- have taken admission in regular and full-time M.Phil/Ph.D courses in the following categories of University/Academic Institutes:
- University/Institute/College included under section 2(f)/12(B) or 2(f) and 12(B) of UGC Act
- Deemed-to-be-Universities included under Section 3 of the UGC Act, 1956 and eligible to receive grant-in-aid from UGC
- University/Institute/College receiving grants by Central/State Government
- Institutes of National Importance, as notified by the Ministry of Higher Education, Government of India
National Scholarship Scheme:
- have secured admission in a notified institution and UG/PG courses approved by the Ministry
- not have an annual family income exceeding INR 6,00,000
Note:- Kindly refer to the ‘Detailed Document on Scheme’ for the list of universities/institutions/colleges approved under this scheme.
For National Fellowship Scheme:
The applicants selected for the fellowship will be entitled to the stipend as stipulated in the following table subject to the fulfilment of conditions laid down in the scheme:
| Course | Stream | Monthly Scholarship | Annual Contingency |
| M.Phil. | Humanities & Social Sciences/Engineering Technology/Science |
INR 31,000 | INR 10,000 |
| INR 12,000 | |||
| Ph.D. | INR 31,000 for the first two years and INR 35,000 for the remaining 3 years | INR 20,500 | |
| INR 25,000 |
- House Rent Allowance (HRA) for all the courses (monthly): Equal to UGC rates based on city of residence (8%, 16%, and 24%)
- Escort Allowance for Divyangjan (monthly): INR 2,000 (at par with UGC rates)
Important Note:
- The above rates are equal to UGC rates, which may be revised as and when required.
- If a student lives in a hostel provided by the university, they can’t claim House Rent Allowance (HRA). They can only claim the hostel fees charged by the university.
- The student is not entitled to claim any other expenses, such as mess fee, electricity charges, or water charges. The student must provide a certificate obtained from the Registrar/Director/Principal to this effect.
For National Scholarship Scheme:
The selected candidates will receive financial assistance as stipulated in the
the following table, subject to fulfilment of conditions laid down in the scheme:
| Component | Details | Remarks |
| Tuition Fee and Admission Fee | Full admission fee, tuition fee and other non-refundable charges with respect to Government Institutions | There will be a ceiling of INR 2,50,000 per annum per student for private-sector institutions |
| Books and Stationery | INR 5,000 per annum | For students without bills/vouchers |
| Stipend | INR 3,000 per month | — |
| Computer and Accessories | INR 45,000 (One-time assistance during the course tenure) | Computer & accessories may be desktop/laptop etc. (without bills/vouchers) |
Applicants applying for the National Fellowship Scheme are required to submit the following documents:
- Latest coloured passport-size photograph
- ST/PVTG certificate issued by the competent authority
- Class 10/Matriculation/Equivalent certificate in support of date of birth
- Divyangjan certificate issued by the competent authority
- Postgraduation marksheet [Aggregate marks in percentage]/Equivalent % marks in case of CGPA (Conversion formula from CGPA to percentage issued by Institute/University is to be produced.)
- Admission/Joining certificates of M.Phil/Ph.D./Integrated M.Phil + Ph.D from the concerned university
- Offer of admission with regard to students admitted to IITs/IIMs/IISERs/AIIMS
Applicants applying for the National Scholarship Scheme are required to submit the following documents:
- Fee receipt
- Marksheet/certificate of qualifying examination
- A Bonafide certificate issued from the Institute
- A scanned copy of the bank passbook (The student name on the passbook should match the name as mentioned in the application form)
- ST/PVTG certificate (Caste Certificate is required to be signed and stamped by competent authority)
- Income certificate (for the F.Y preceding the year of selection issued by the designated authority by the respective state/UT) [For fresh candidate]
Note: The documents must be uploaded in the specified format and size.
Eligible candidates can apply for the fellowship by following the below-mentioned steps:
Step 1: Click on the ‘Apply Now’ button.
Step 2: Click on the ‘Register’ button and fill in the required registration details. (Note: If already registered, log in using Gmail/Mobile number/Email ID)
Step 3: Read the documents carefully and navigate to the checkbox at the bottom of the page.
Step 4: Tick the checkbox and click on the ‘Proceed‘ button.
Step 5: Fill in the required details to complete the registration process.
Step 6: After successful registration, fill in the required details, upload the necessary documents and submit.
