
Post-Graduate
Business & Management

Are you a talented woman who wants to pursue an MBA but has encountered severe personal or professional challenges? The IMD BackPack Excellence Scholarship 2025 could be the opportunity you have been looking for. This distinguished fellowship, granted by the IMD Business School in Switzerland, is intended to encourage exceptional female leaders by removing financial barriers and giving them with the resources they require to grow.
What is the IMD BackPack Excellence Scholarship?
The IMD BackPack Excellence fellowship is a fully funded fellowship designed to encourage women who have showed resilience in the face of adversity such as financial limits, family responsibilities, or professional setbacks. This scholarship not only covers the entire cost of the IMD MBA program, but also equips beneficiaries with the tools, network, and experience they need to flourish in leadership roles across industries.
Scholarship Overview
Host Country |
Switzerland |
Provider |
IMD Business School |
Degree Levels |
Master’s |
Eligible Courses |
Business & Administration |
Eligible Nationalities |
Open to women from all nationalities |
Benefits |
Fully Funded |
Deadline |
July 1, 2025 |
Eligibility Criteria
The IMD BackPack Excellence Scholarship is for women who have endured significant hurdles in their lives or careers. These challenges may include:
- Financial Difficulties: Women who have faced major financial obstacles in pursuing higher education or professional progress.
- Family Responsibility: Women who have had to balance their careers with significant family duties, such as caring for children or elderly relatives.
- Career Disruptions: Women who have had their careers interrupted owing to personal or professional problems, such as changing industries, returning to work after a long absence, or overcoming social barriers.
While all applicants must complete the IMD MBA program's basic admission requirements, those who have overcome one or more of these challenges with outstanding resilience and determination will be given priority.
Financial benefits
The IMD BackPack Excellence Scholarship provides significant financial benefits to the selected winner, allowing them to concentrate on their studies without the burden of tuition or living expenses. Here is a breakdown of the financial assistance provided:
- Full Tuition Coverage: The scholarship covers the entire tuition charge for the IMD MBA program, which is CHF 133,500.
- Living Expenses: In addition to tuition, the scholarship covers living expenses while enrolled in the MBA program. This includes lodging, food, transit, and other daily expenses, ensuring that the recipient can live comfortably in Switzerland while studying.
The scholarship is worth CHF 133,500 in total, which is enough to cover tuition and living expenses for the duration of the program. This makes the IMD BackPack Excellence Scholarship an extremely significant opportunity for women who want to obtain an MBA without incurring financial burdens.
Application Deadline
The last date of application submission is 1st July, 2025.

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To qualify for the scholarship, international students must meet specific criteria: non-Swiss BSc students must have successfully passed all parts of their first-year exams, while non-Swiss MSc students without an ETH-BSc degree are required to have completed a minimum of 40 KP in their preceding master’s study year.
Benefits
ETH scholarships are granted as a secondary source of finance and do not cover the entire living and studying costs. They are eligible up to the end of the regular duration of studies set out in the respective programme regulations, plus two additional semesters. Scholarships are awarded based on both financial need and academic performance.


Required Documents
Parents’ definitive tax return from 2023, indicating taxable income, assets, and deductions.
Other scholarship decisions (country of origin, foundations) for 2024/25.
Loan decisions for 2024/25.
Completed and signed “Evidence of assets” form by parents.
Internship contract (if applicable).
Decree of orphan’s pension/old age pension/alimonies (if applicable).
Evidence of transport costs (if domicile is not in the City of Zurich).


Scholarship's Benefits
The Swiss Government Excellence scholarships amount varies with the level of study as Research, PhD, Fine Arts students will receive 1’920- Swiss Francs per month and Postdoctoral students will receive a sum of 3’500.- Swiss Francs per month.
Health insurance is provided.
Travel expenses are covered.
Study tours to various European regions and free dinner all sponsored by the Swiss government.
The scholarship winners will be provided with other living allowances and won’t be required to pay any kind of course fee.


This Swiss Excellence Program is for Ph.D., Research Fellowship, and Post Doc. Master Degree students can also apply. The Scholarship is sponsored by the Federal Commission of Scholarships (FCS).
Application Process
You need to visit the official website. Carefully read the application details, required documents, and eligibility criteria. Do your research, Join some Facebook groups, and get in touch with scholarship holders.


The university creates more space for curiosity, creativity and flexibility within degree programmes to give its students practical experience through project work.
How to Apply:
The students must first enroll and gain admission in their desired programme. Then, to apply for this opportunity, they must complete a grant application form.
Supporting Documents:
The students are required to present the following documents to the university:
Completed electronic application form
Project description and objectives


Study Level


Subject / Specialist

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