Belt & Road Initiative — Silk Road scholarship
Belt & Road is a Chinese government scholarship designed for the "One Belt — One Road" initiative. Requirements are simpler than CSC and applications go directly to the university. Especially strong for technical majors and regions along the route.
- Coverage
- Up to 100 % (tuition + housing + stipend)
- Stipend
- ¥1,500–3,000/month
- Priority for CIS, Southeast Asia and the Middle East
- Admission to top provincial universities (Sichuan, Hunan, Jiangsu...)
- Over 100 participating universities
- Lower competition: 1:5 vs 1:25 at CSC
Who it suits
- Bachelors from EAEU/SCO with average GPA 3.5+
- Masters in technical fields without strong publications
- Students from Silk Road countries — Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Belarus, Thailand, Pakistan, Iran
- Those who did not get CSC this year
Requirements
- Citizenship of one of the Silk Road countries
- Bachelor: GPA 3.0+/5, HSK 3+ or basic English
- Master: GPA 3.5+/5, HSK 4+ or IELTS 5.5+
- Age 18–40 depending on the degree level
- No other active Chinese grant
How to apply for Belt & Road — step by step
Five to seven steps from first consultation to enrollment. A curator is with you at every stage in Chengdu or Shanghai.
1. Choose Belt&Road universities
The list changes every year — we provide an up-to-date list of provincial and national universities with active quotas.
2. Documents
Same as for CSC, but no mandatory research proposal for bachelor's. For master's — a simplified motivation letter.
3. Submission via the university portal
Submission goes through the personal account of each university. Support is more often in English, a notarized apostille is mandatory.
4. Interview (often optional)
Most universities select by documents without an interview. The decision is faster than at CSC.
Finish
What to do when
Calendar for the academic year. If you start with a language year — add +12 months to the study start.
- Applications openDecember–January
- DeadlineMarch–May (softer than CSC)
- DecisionMay–June
- Studies startSeptember
Pitfalls
What usually goes off-plan — and what we anticipate ahead of time.
- Stipend is smaller than CSC — ¥1,500–3,000/month
- The list of universities changes — always check the current one
- Some programs are in Chinese only — HSK is required
- Does not cover medical and legal majors in most cases
Frequent questions about Belt & Road
Yes, but at different universities. At one university only one application for one scholarship is allowed.
All admission questions — on the FAQ page.
Scholarship decisions are made by universities and scholarship committees. ChinaEduEasy helps prepare and submit applications but does not guarantee scholarship approval.
Discuss Belt & Road with a curator
Tell us about your profile — we will assess real chances of getting a grant and plan the application. Free and with no obligations.
What you get during the consultation
- — CSC chance estimate for your profile (1–10)
- — 3 target universities with direct quotes
- — Budget breakdown: cost even without a grant
- — Comparison of CSC vs Belt & Road vs university scholarships