NSP Portal, commonly known as the National Scholarship Portal, is a dedicated digital platform of the Government of India that looks after the effective implementation and disbursement of various government scholarship schemes. It is a nationally acclaimed portal that hosts more than 80 scholarships offered by different government departments. Over the years, the portal has disbursed over hundreds of crores worth of scholarships to meritorious and under-served students studying at different education levels.

What is NSP portal? What are the key features it offers? Which are the schemes it enlists? How can students apply for the schemes on NSP portal? What process must be followed to track your application status on the portal? Get a detailed answer to all these questions in this article further. It enlightens you with every relevant information related to the NSP portal. 

NSP Portal – An Overview

The NSP portal was introduced as part of the Mission Mode Project under the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP). The key objective behind introducing this portal was to ensure easy and hassle-free implementation as well as disbursement of scholarships. The portal offers a Simplified, Mission-oriented, Accountable, Responsive and Transparent (SMART) system to its users thereby ensuring direct delivery of funds into the accounts of the beneficiaries. It further reduces any chances of leakage within the system. The table below gives a detailed overview of the NSP portal. 

Detailed Overview of NSP Portal

Particulars	Details
Name of the portal	National Scholarship Portal (NSP Portal)
Introduced by	Government of India
Implementing agency	Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology
Types of scholarships listed	Central schemes, UGC schemes, AICTE schemes and State schemes
Number of scholarships	80+
Application Process	Online
Application Timeline	July/August to October/November (tentative)
Academic year	2020-21
Website URL	https://scholarships.gov.in/

NSP Portal – Overall Workflow

How the NSP portal functions? What happens when a student submits the scholarship application form? Is the portal only open for students? The answers to all these questions are covered in this section. The portal offers distinctive functionalities for students, institutions and government departments. The overall workflow of the NSP portal mentioned below will give you a clear insight of how the portal actually functions. 

Step 1: Online registration and submission of application by students

Step 2: Initial level of application verification at Institute level

Step 3: Second and third level of application verification at District/State/Ministry level 

Step 4: Creation of beneficiary records and validation of account by PFMS (Public Finance Management System)

Step 5: Deduplication of applications and generation of merit list

Step 6: Generation of payment file and financial approval

Step 7: Disbursement of the scholarship amount through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT)

NSP Portal – Its Key Features

Besides allowing the students to apply for different scholarship schemes, the portal also boasts of a number of services for the students as well as institutions. You can explore all the services offered by the portal by visiting the official website of the NSP portal under the ‘Services’ section. The key services that the portal offers include –

1. NSP 2.0 user manual – To acquaint you with the overall workflow on the NSP portal

2. Scheme eligibility – To allow you to filter out the scholarships based on your specific requirements. You can filter the scholarships based on your domicile state/UT, course level, caste/category, religion, gender, annual family income, and disability status

3. List of Ministry Coordinators – Highlighting the list of coordinators for different government departments/ministries.

4. Scheme-wise state nodal officers – To help you browse the list of state nodal officers based on the scheme you want to apply for.

5. Know your AISHE code – Allows you to check the AISHE code of your school/college/institution which is registered on the NSP portal

6. Get AISHE code of your institute – Allows the institutions to register on the portal. 

7. List of applicants processed for scholarship – Allows you to access the list of applicants who are selected for scholarships. 

8. Search nodal officer details – Allows you to get the details of the nodal officers for each ministry, state or district

9. District nodal officer details list – Allows the students to browse the district-wise list of nodal officers

10. Institute operational manual – Allows the institutions to get the operation manual for filling the registration form, updating the profile, and removing the DISE/AISHE/NCVT code

Besides these services, the portal also enlists a number of documents for the ease of its users. These documents are listed on the home page of the NSP portal under the ‘Important Documents’ section. The key documents listed are –

1. FAQ for the applicants – To answer the frequently asked questions of the students related to scholarships, their eligibility, application and renewal 

2. Institute FAQ – To answer all the queries which are related to the institutions like AISHE code, institute registration, etc. 

3. Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) – This document highlights the core functionalities of the NSP portal in detail

4. Institute Operational Manual – Provides a clear overview of how the institutes function through this portal

NSP Portal – Types of Scholarships Listed

The NSP portal enlists more than 80 scholarships offered by different government departments. These scholarships are broadly categorized into Central schemes, UGC schemes, AICTE schemes and State schemes. 

The key departments which host their scholarships under the central scheme section of the NSP  portal include the Ministry of Minority Affairs, Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Ministry of Labour and Employment, Ministry of Tribal Affairs and others. 

These scholarships are meant to serve the distinctive requirement of both meritorious and underserved students studying at pre-matric and post-matric level of education. To get a detailed overview of the scholarships listed on the portal under each section, refer to the table below. 

Particulars	Details
Explore the complete list of central schemes	Click here
Explore the complete list of UGC schemes	Click here
Explore the complete list of AICTE schemes	Click here
Explore the complete list of state schemes	Click here

Also Read: National Scholarship Portal 2020 – Last Date, Schemes, Eligibility, Documents Required

NSP Portal – Scholarship Application

When you are aware of the scholarships that are available on the NSP portal and you fulfil the eligibility conditions specified, you can apply for them online. The steps to be followed for making a successful application on the portal include –

Step 1: Visit the official website of the NSP portal. 

Step 2: Check if your institute is registered on the portal by clicking on the ‘Search for Institute’ button. If your institute is not registered, ask your institute to register first. 

Step 3: Once your institute is registered, proceed to register on the portal by clicking on the ‘New Registration’. 

Step 4: A page of registration guidelines will open. Read them carefully and click on the ‘Continue’ button to proceed.  

Step 5: Fill in all the required details in the registration form and click on ‘Register’. 

Step 6: An application ID and password will be delivered on your registered mobile number. Keep it intact for future reference. 

Step 7: Make a login to the NSP portal using the registered application ID and password.

Step 8: You will be asked to provide the OTP received on your registered mobile number and change the password (mandatory step). Click on ‘Continue’. 

Step 9: An applicant dashboard will open. Click on the ‘Application Form’ to proceed with the scholarship application. 

Step 10: Fill in all required details in the application form. 

Step 11: Upload all supporting documents with the application form. 

Step 12: Finally, click on the ‘Final Submit’ button.

Important Note: Make sure to double check the information entered in the application form before submitting it as no editing in the application form is allowed after final submission. 

NSP Portal – FAQs

Q. Who can use the NSP portal?

The primary users of the NSP portal include students/applicants, institute nodal officers, District/State/Ministry nodal officers, scheme owners (like ministries, departments or other government bodies), Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology and other concerned government departments.

Q. How can institutes/schools/ITIs register on the NSP portal?

Students can apply for any of the scholarship schemes listed on the NSP portal only if their current institution is registered on the portal. For any institution to register on the portal, they are required to possess a valid AISHE/DISE/NCVT/SCVT code. The institutes having a valid AISHE/DISE/NCVT/SCVT code can register on the portal by making a request to the District or State Nodal Officer.

Q. How do I check my NSP scholarship status?

The students who have applied for any scholarship on NSP portal can track their application status online. Login to the user dashboard using your application ID and password and click on ‘Check your status’ tab to get real-time status of your application.