Bulgarian National Bank Announces its Annual 2024 Scholarship Competition:

• Two scholarships of BGN 750 per month each for Master’s students.
• One scholarship of BGN 1000 per month for Ph.D. Students. The scholarships are awarded for a period of nine months.

Requirements to candidates:

1. To be Bulgarian citizens;

2. To be, as of the date of applying for a scholarship, a full-time PhD student or a full-time Master’s degree student in an accredited higher education institution or a research institute in Bulgaria or abroad, pursuing specialities relevant to the BNB;

3. Master’s students:

- After they have acquired a Professional Bachelor's or 'Bachelor's degree, should have average semester grade of at least very good (5.00) and average grade at the state exams or the defence of graduation thesis not less than very good (5.00);

- without acquired Professional Bachelor's or Bachelor's degree should have completed at least six semesters and average grade of their studies at the time of applying not less than very good (5.00); 4. Should not be BNB employees;

5. Should not be relatives in a direct line, spouses, relatives in a lateral line to the fourth degree inclusive, or relatives by marriage to the second degree inclusive, and stable non-marital partners of any member of the Commission for Selection and Work with BNB Scholarship Students or of the BNB Governing Council.

6. A person, who has been a BNB scholarship holder, may not apply again for a BNB scholarship, unless he/she has received the previous one as a regular Master’s degree student and now applies for a scholarship as a Ph.D. student.

Documents required for applying for Master's and PhD students:

1. Letter of Motivation;

2. Curriculum Vitae (for candidates PhD students should be focused on the candidate’s scientific activities – articles published, participation in conferences and seminars, research papers written and presented, etc.);

3. For Master’s degree students – documents issued by the university administration certifying that they are registered for the respective semester under a Master’s degree programme for the current year, and:

- Professional Bachelor's or Bachelor's degree graduation diploma for Master’s degree students having graduated as a 'professional Bachelor’ or ‘Bachelor’; or

- a document certifying that they have completed six semesters and indicating their grades to date (certificate, scientific record) for Master’s degree students not having a Professional Bachelor’s or Bachelor's degree;

4. For PhD students – a document certifying admission to a Ph.D. programme:

Candidates from universities abroad can find additional information here.

5. Еssay up to 5 standard pages in Bulgarian or English language on one of the following subjects:

• For Master’s degree students: Interaction between fiscal and monetary policy in a pro-inflationary environment
• For PhD students: Structural challenges facing the Bulgarian economy and convergence.

6. Declaration as per sample form;

7. Consent for processing of personal data as per sample form.

Submission of documents:

Candidates’ documents will be submitted by 29 December 2023 incl.

• To e-mail: scholarship@bnbank.org, and the enclosed documents should be in Portable Document Format (.pdf).
• By registered letter: Bulgarian National Bank, 1, Knyaz Alexander І Sq. 1000 Sofia regarding: "Annual 2024 Scholarship Competition".
• In the Information, section of the BNB cash lounge - 1 Knyaz Alexander I Sq., 1000 Sofia, from 8:30 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. on business days.

Information regarding the competition is available on business days on phone: (02) 9145 2723 from the Secretary of the BNB Commission for Selection and Work with Scholarship Students.