Eligibility
To be considered for an undergraduate scholarship, you must have applied to the University of Cambridge by the relevant deadline and have received a conditional offer of admission.
The Cambridge Trust plays no role in the admission of applicants to the University and is not able to influence the chances of an applicant being offered a place. The University sets minimum standards for admission – check the requirements for undergraduates for more information.
Applicants are encouraged to meet the entry requirements of the University as early as possible, including (if necessary) the completion of an English language test. This will help to prevent the Trust from offering valuable scholarships to students who are ultimately unable to take up their places at Cambridge.
To be eligible for any undergraduate scholarship from the Cambridge Trust, you must demonstrate evidence of:
- significant academic achievement and potential
- financial need.
Some of our scholarships are awarded based on academic merit alone while others have additional selection criteria. For details of these, please visit Find a Scholarship and read the information in the relevant scholarship listings.
Nationality
We support a range of scholarship programmes for Home and Overseas fee-paying applicants. Visit fees and funding on the University’s website to find out more about your fee status.
Some of our scholarships, which are funded with our partners, are allocated to students of particular nationalities or with other specific eligibility criteria. This will be clear in the scholarship listings.
If you have Home fee status, the Cambridge Bursary Scheme offers non-repayable bursaries to students with Home fee status, in addition to the Cambridge Trust’s awards.
Equality
The Trust is committed to equality of opportunity, and no applicant will be treated less favourably than another on the grounds of sex (including gender reassignment), marital or parental status, race, ethnic or national origin, disability, sexual orientation, religion or age. The selection of scholars is based on the strength of the applicant’s fit with the selection criteria for each scholarship programme.
Other important information
- The Trust will not support students at a degree level that is the same as, or lower than, a degree they already hold, with one exception for international students who are proposing to study as an affiliated student at Cambridge for a second BA degree. Find out more about studying as an affiliated student.
- The Trust does not accept applications from students who are part-way through a course at Cambridge, unless they are applying for funding towards a higher degree course following graduation.
- Most students register for full-time study, but, in the interests of widening participation, the Trust considers applications from students for part-time study where such courses are offered by the University.
How to apply
If you meet the eligibility criteria and wish to apply for undergraduate funding from the Cambridge Trust, please follow the steps below.
Step 1: Find your course and College
Applicants may study any subject available at the University of Cambridge. Visit the undergraduate course directory for further information.
If you are applying for undergraduate study, your application form will ask you to which College you are applying, or you may make an Open Application (meaning that you do not specify a College, and will be considered by any College).
All students who are offered admission to the University will be given a place at one of the Colleges. The Trust plays no part in the selection of Colleges for applicants or assigning accommodation.
Step 2: Find your scholarships
Visit Find a scholarship to find a list of the Cambridge Trust scholarships for which you are eligible.
Please read the information in each scholarship listing carefully as some have additional eligibility criteria.
Step 3: Submit your UCAS application
Applicants intending to pursue a course of undergraduate study at the University of Cambridge must complete and submit a UCAS application by the deadline published on the UCAS website in order to be considered for funding.
If you do not submit your UCAS application by the relevant deadline, we are unable to consider you for funding.
Step 4: Apply for Cambridge Trust funding
Overseas fee rate scholarships – Once you have an offer of admission to a Cambridge College, you will be invited by your College to complete an application to the Trust to be considered for funding. You do not need to apply directly to the Trust for funding as the Trust only considers applicants who are put forward by their Colleges.
Home fee rate scholarships – For full details on how to apply, please visit the outreach scholarships page on the University’s website.
Some Cambridge Trust scholarships require a separate application. This is made clear in the scholarship listings in Find a scholarship. If so, you must have submitted your UCAS form by the relevant deadline and have a conditional offer of admission, in conjunction with submitting the separate application, in order to be considered.
Step 5: The awards process
The Trust’s awarding period runs from the middle of February to the end of July and is an ongoing process throughout that period. Most of our awards are made early during the months of February and March, but some of our partner funded awards involve additional processes such as interviews, which means funding decisions tend to be later from April to June.
Although we cannot provide funding updates for individual applicants, the Trust will confirm on our website once we have finished issuing offers for our main scholarship programmes.
Throughout the awarding period the Trust will be reallocating awards that have not been taken up. Therefore, all applicants will remain under consideration for any reallocated award for which they are eligible until the end of July.
If you have not been contacted by the Trust by the end of July, you should assume that your funding application has not been successful. Please note that due to the number of applications the Trust receives, it is not possible to notify unsuccessful applicants, or to provide individual feedback.
If you have any questions regarding the process of applying for admission, please contact the University’s Undergraduate Admissions Office.