About the programme
Offers around 70 full-cost awards each year to non-UK applicants for any postgraduate degree available at Cambridge. About two-thirds go to PhD students. Two selection rounds run each year: a US-citizen round for those resident in the USA, and an international round for all other eligible applicants. Selection is based on intellectual ability, reasons for course choice, commitment to improving others' lives, and leadership potential.
Duration: Duration of the postgraduate course; up to 4 years for PhD scholars
Eligibility
- Must be an outstanding applicant from a country outside the UK
- Must be admitted to, or apply for admission to, a postgraduate course at the University of Cambridge
- Must be nominated by academic department (department ranking stage)
- PhD applicants must submit a research proposal
- Sign in to check these against your background.
What they look for
- Strong intellectual ability
- Clear reasons for choice of course
- Commitment to improving the lives of others
- Leadership potential
Needs a third party. Academic department must nominate/rank the applicant; a Gates Cambridge reference is required from a suitable referee.
What you receive
- Full cost of studying at Cambridge (University Composition Fee)
- Maintenance allowance of £23,152 for 12 months at 2026-27 rate
- One economy single airfare at start and end of course
- Inbound visa costs and Immigration Health Surcharge
- Discretionary funding such as academic development, dependent children allowance, fieldwork, parental and hardship funding
What you will need
- Gates Cambridge selection questions
- Gates Cambridge reference
- Two academic references
- Research proposal (PhD only)
- Application for admission via University portal
How to apply
- Apply via the University's Graduate Application Portal by the round deadline
- Departmental ranking
- Review and selection by panels
- Scholarships offered, accepted within 72 hours
Applications are submitted on Gates Cambridge Trust, University of Cambridge’s own site. Open Doors helps you prepare; it is not the official application portal.
Who received it before
Past scholars are a community of more than 1,700 alumni from 116 countries, studying across all subjects at Cambridge.
- Pedro Vallejo Ramirez, 2016 PhD Biotechnology, born in Colombia and raised in Panama, Robinson College
From the programme’s own pages.
From people who applied
No notes yet.
Source and verification
- Official source
- Gates Cambridge Scholarship · Application
- Last checked
- 13 Nov 2026, read automatically from the official page
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