Uk University Scholarships: Are British Students Eligible?

The UK is home to some of the world's best universities, but it also has some of the highest tuition fees. Luckily, there are many scholarship options available for both domestic and international students. The UK government, universities, and third-party organisations offer a range of scholarships to support students in their studies and help them develop skills that will enhance their career prospects. These scholarships are typically awarded based on merit, academic achievement, or financial need.

Scholarships for British students at the University of Cambridge

Many UK universities offer scholarships for British students. These scholarships can be offered by the universities themselves or by third parties, such as governments or organisations in the student's home country.

The University of Cambridge offers several scholarships for British students. One notable example is the Gates Cambridge Scholarship, which is open to students from any country outside the UK. This scholarship covers the full cost of studying at Cambridge, including tuition fees, maintenance allowance, airfare, and visa costs. It is available for PhD and one-year postgraduate courses. The selection criteria for the Gates Cambridge Scholarship include outstanding intellectual ability, a commitment to improving the lives of others, and leadership potential.

In addition to the Gates Cambridge Scholarship, the University of Cambridge likely provides other scholarships and funding opportunities for British students. These may include academic, merit, and excellence scholarships, as well as subject-specific scholarships offered by individual departments.

It is always worth checking the university's website and contacting their admissions or financial aid office to inquire about specific scholarships and funding opportunities that may be available for British students. Additionally, students can explore external scholarship options, such as those offered by the UK government or other organisations, to supplement their financial needs.

Scholarships for British students at the University of Oxford

The University of Oxford offers a range of scholarships for British students, including:

Undergraduate Scholarships

• Crankstart Scholarships: Offered to UK residents from lower-income households (annual household income of £32,500 or less) studying for their first undergraduate degree. The scholarship includes a non-repayable bursary worth up to £6,090 per year towards study and living costs, as well as access to funded internships, volunteering opportunities, and community events.
• Oxford Bursaries: Available to UK students or Republic of Ireland (ROI) nationals living in the UK or Ireland, from lower-income households studying for their first undergraduate degree (or Graduate Entry Medicine) and are not eligible for, or do not take up, a Crankstart Scholarship. The bursary amount depends on the annual household income.
• Oxford Travel Supplement: For UK bursary holders studying for their first undergraduate degree and living more than 80 miles from Oxford. A non-repayable annual supplement of £220 is provided for those living between 80 and 150 miles from Oxford, and £550 for those living over 150 miles away.
• Care-Experienced and Estranged Undergraduate Support: For UK students who have experienced being in care or are studying without family support, a non-repayable annual bursary of up to £3,500 is available for each year of their course, including during vacations.
• Student Support Bursary: Available to UK students who may require financial assistance or need to meet additional exceptional costs once they have started their course.
• Hill Foundation Scholarship: For students ordinarily resident in and/or educated in Russia, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, or Ukraine. It covers course fees and provides an annual grant towards living costs.
• Palgrave Brown Scholarship: For students ordinarily resident in and/or educated in Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, North Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Poland, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, or Uzbekistan. It provides an annual grant towards living costs.
• Palgrave Brown UK Scholarship: For students who have been resident or educated in Norfolk or Suffolk. It offers an annual grant towards living costs.
• Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies (OCIS) Undergraduate Scholarship: For applicants ordinarily resident in the UK and from a Muslim community, applying for any subject except medicine and PGCE. It covers course fees at the home rate and provides a grant for living expenses.

Graduate Scholarships

• Crankstart Graduate Scholarships: Available to former undergraduate Crankstart scholars pursuing taught postgraduate study at Oxford. The scholarship covers course fees and provides a grant for living costs.
• The Duke Of Cambridge Scholarship: For applicants ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom and applying to the Master of Public Policy (MPP) graduate course. It covers course fees and provides a grant for living costs.
• Black Academic Futures Scholarship: Available to applicants ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom, of Black or Mixed-Black ethnicity, and applying to full or part-time graduate courses. It covers course fees and provides a grant for living costs.
• Wolfson Postgraduate Scholarships in the Humanities: For applicants ordinarily resident in the UK and applying to study a DPhil course in the Humanities Division in history, literature, or languages. It covers course fees and provides a grant for living costs.
• Scatcherd European Scholarships: Available for applicants from any European country, awarded in partnership with other Oxford scholarships.
• The Clarendon Fund: Offering around 200 new fully-funded scholarships each year to outstanding graduate scholars.
• Commonwealth Shared Scholarships: In partnership with the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission (CSC), these scholarships are available to applicants who are nationals of and ordinarily resident in specific developing Commonwealth countries. The scholarship covers course fees, provides a grant for living costs, return airfares, a warm clothing allowance, and study travel and thesis grants.
• China Oxford Scholarship Fund: For applicants who are nationals of and ordinarily resident in the People's Republic of China, Hong Kong, or Macau, applying to any full-time master's or DPhil course at Oxford.
• Oxford-Pershing Square Graduate Scholarship: Available on the Saïd Business School website.
• Oxford-Weidenfeld and Hoffmann Scholarships and Leadership Programme: More information is available on the dedicated webpage.
• Refugee Academic Futures Scholarship: For applicants to any full-time and part-time DPhil and master's courses at Oxford who have lived experience of displacement. It covers course fees and provides a grant for living costs.
• The Clarendon Fund: Offering around 200 new fully-funded scholarships each year to outstanding graduate scholars.
• Mastercard Foundation AfOx Scholarships: In partnership with the Mastercard Foundation, these scholarships offer a range of opportunities for African candidates applying for taught postgraduate courses at Oxford for 2025/26 entry. The scholarships cover course fees and provide a grant for living costs.
• The Oppenheimer Fund: Provides small awards linked to other scholarship schemes such as AfOx, Clarendon, Commonwealth, and the Skye Foundation to offer full scholarship awards for applicants to a full-time master's course who have previously studied at a South African university.
• Oxford-Nizami Ganjavi Graduate Scholarships: Available for applicants to any full-time or part-time DPhil or Master’s course offered by the Humanities or Social Sciences Division, where their proposed research relates to the study of the history, languages, and cultures of Azerbaijan, the Caucasus, and Central Asia. It covers course fees and provides a grant for living costs for both UK and International Students.
• Oxford-Nuffield Tony and Judith Atkinson Graduate Scholarship: For applicants to a full or part-time graduate course in the departments of Economics, Politics, and Sociology, with a preference for students in the field of inequality and poverty studies. It covers course fees and provides a grant for living costs.
• Oxford-Sir Anwar Pervez Graduate Scholarship: For applicants ordinarily resident in Pakistan applying for any full-time or part-time Master’s or DPhil course. Scholarships are awarded based on

Scholarships for British students at the University of Bristol

The University of Bristol offers a range of scholarships for British students.

Think Big Scholarships

The University of Bristol's flagship scholarship scheme, Think Big, offers undergraduate scholarships worth £6,500 and £13,000 for each year of study. Postgraduate scholarships are worth £6,500, £13,000, and £26,000 for each year of study. The application deadline for undergraduate scholarships is 24 February 2025, and 23 April 2025 for postgraduate scholarships.

GREAT Scholarships

The University of Bristol is offering GREAT Scholarships for the 2025-26 academic year, worth £13,000 each. These are available for all full-time postgraduate taught master's programmes. The deadline for applications is 28 April 2025.

Other Scholarships

The University of Bristol offers a wide range of other scholarships, including:

• The Geraldine Keefe Women in Engineering Futures Scholarship
• The Vertical Aerospace Black Engineering Scholarship
• The Wills Hall 101 Scholarship
• The Qube Scholarship in Research and Technology
• The Leverhulme Postgraduate Bursary
• The Leverhulme Undergraduate Bursary
• The Bristol Master's Scholarship
• The Bristol International Scholarship
• The Bristol International Postgraduate Scholarship
• The Bristol International Undergraduate Scholarship
• The Bristol Black Master's Scholarship
• The Bristol Postgraduate Research Scholarship
• The Bristol Scholars Bursary
• The Bristol Standalone Bursary
• The Vice-Chancellor's Scholarship
• The University of Bristol Bursary
• The Accommodation Bursary
• The Conference Travel Fund
• The Bob Savage Memorial Fund
• The Lady Ryder Medical Scholarships
• The Wellcome Trust Biomedical Scholarships
• The Black Bristol PGCE Scholarships
• The British Council Scholarships for Women in STEM
• The Black Futures Scholarship
• The Harriet Munro Scholarship
• The R Senathi Rajah Memorial Scholarship
• The Michael Wong Pakshong Bursary
• The Phyllis Mary Morris Bursaries
• The Cratchley Scholarship in History
• The Global Accounting and Finance Postgraduate Scholarship
• The Graduation Gown Bursary
• The Futures Scholarship
• The Global Accounting and Finance Undergraduate Scholarship
• The Fulbright University of Bristol Award
• The Lloyds Scholars Programme
• The Access Postgrad Fee Waivers
• The Marshall Partnership Scholarships

The University of Bristol also offers scholarships for international students.

Scholarships for British students at the University of Westminster

UK universities do offer scholarships for international, undergraduate, postgraduate, and British students. The University of Westminster, for instance, offers several scholarships for British students. These include:

Vice-Chancellor's Scholarship

The Vice-Chancellor's Scholarship supports British students from a Black or Black Mixed ethnic background during their higher education at the University of Westminster. The deadline for applications is 7 July 2025.

Foundation Degree Scholarship

The University of Westminster offers several scholarships for students who will start an undergraduate course with an Integrated Foundation Year. The deadline for applications is 7 July 2025.

Undergraduate Disability Scholarship

The University of Westminster provides scholarships for British students with a documented disability. The deadline for applications is 7 July 2025.

Undergraduate Great Start Scholarship

The Undergraduate Great Start Scholarship is provided to support British students with their maintenance costs during their studies. The selection is made based on financial need and personal statement. The deadline for applications is 7 July 2025.

CLASS Scholarship

The CLASS Scholarship is a one-off payment of £1000 towards maintenance costs for Level 6 full-time undergraduate Home students with financial needs. The deadline for applications is 10 February 2025 at 5 pm.

Care Leaver Bursary

The University of Westminster offers a Care Leaver Bursary of £1000 for each year of academic study for British undergraduate students. Applicants must provide evidence from their Local Authority that they are care leavers.

Living Expenses Support Scheme (LESS)

The LESS scheme provides an additional grant to help UK undergraduate and postgraduate students meet maintenance needs, such as rental costs, travel costs, childcare costs, or day-to-day expenses. The scheme cannot be used to pay tuition fees, and applicants must have taken out the maximum student support available from Student Finance, including the maintenance loan. The closing date for applications was 21 June 2024.

Sanctuary Scholarship

The University of Westminster offers Postgraduate Sanctuary Scholarships to support students seeking asylum or with refugee status living in the United Kingdom. The scholarship covers full tuition costs plus a maintenance grant of £1,000 per month for up to 12 months. The deadline for applications is 25 June 2025, and applications will open in January 2025.

International Postgraduate Excellence Award

The International Postgraduate Excellence Award is designed to support international students who have achieved academic excellence and show passion for their chosen field of study. The University of Westminster offers scholarships of £3,000 towards full-time Master's tuition fees. The deadline for applications is 2 June 2025.

International Sporting Excellence Award

The International Sporting Excellence Award supports international students at the undergraduate or postgraduate level who are performing or playing sports at an elite level or showing strong evidence of future outstanding potential. The award amount ranges from £2,500 to £5,000. The deadline for applications is 2 June 2025.

GREAT Scholarship

The GREAT Scholarship is jointly funded by the University of Westminster, the UK government's GREAT Britain campaign, and the British Council. For September 2025, the University of Westminster is offering one £10,000 scholarship towards tuition fees for a one-year master's programme to students from Thailand. The deadline for applications is 23 June 2025.

Chevening Scholarship

The Chevening Scholarship is the UK government's global scholarship programme for overseas fee-paying students. This fully-funded scholarship covers flights, accommodation, and course fees for a one-year Master's course at any UK university. Applications for a September 2025 course start are now closed. Please check their website from summer 2025 when applications for a September 2026 course start will open.

Scholarships for British students at the University of Birmingham

The University of Birmingham offers a range of scholarships, grants, and bursaries to support students in their studies. While some of these are aimed at international students, there are also several scholarships available for British students. Here is some information on scholarships for British students at the University of Birmingham:

Chamberlain Award

The Chamberlain Award is a financial support scheme for UK students joining the University of Birmingham to undertake their first undergraduate degree. For 2025 entry, there are two tiers of the award:

• A £2,000 award for students with a household income of £25,000 or less
• A £1,000 award for students with a household income between £25,001 and £35,000

Music Scholarships

The University of Birmingham offers several Music Scholarships each year. These are open to prospective students with an offer of a place on a full-time undergraduate programme (excluding the Department of Music) who are performing at a Grade 8 standard in an instrument or vocals. The scholarships offer approximately 17 hours of musical tuition per year for three years, with a total equivalent cash value of £3,000.

Sports Scholarships

The University of Birmingham Sport & Fitness offers sports scholarships each year to high-achieving performers from any academic department and of any nationality. Support can include facility membership, strength and conditioning work, sports science and medicine services (including physiotherapy), lifestyle workshops, and help with sports-specific expenditure.

Care Leaver Scholarship

The University of Birmingham offers a Care Leaver Scholarship to provide extra support to students leaving care to come to university. The scholarship includes a cash bursary of £2,000 per academic year and £500 on graduation after completing the programme. A minimum of two scholarships are awarded each year.

Pathways to Birmingham

Students who complete a Pathways to Birmingham programme and apply to the university will receive special consideration from admissions tutors. If their application is successful, they will receive two offers: the standard offer and an alternative offer, which is at least two grades below the standard offer. Students may also be eligible for Pathways to Birmingham financial support.

Frequently asked questions