Application fee waivers

The University of Cambridge is committed to widening access at postgraduate level and applicants may be eligible for an application fee waiver under one of the four schemes listed below.  

Application fee waiver deadlines

Please ensure that you allow sufficient time, at least 10 working days, for the assessment of your application fee waiver request in order to submit your application before the course deadlines.

If you intend to apply for funding you must apply for your application fee waiver by the following deadlines to ensure that your request is processed in time for you to submit your application by the funding application deadlines:

 25 November for the December funding application deadline of 1 December 2022.

21 December 2022 for the January funding application deadline of 5 January 2023.

If you do not allow sufficient time, we cannot guarantee to process your request in time for you to meet your course/funding application deadline.

1. UK Applicants from low income households

Prospective students from the UK are eligible for an application fee waiver in either of the following circumstances.

• They can evidence that they were in receipt of full state support for maintenance as an undergraduate in their final year at a UK university within the last 4 years (i.e. during or after the 2019/20 academic year).
• They were not a student in the 2021/22 academic year and are in receipt (when making the request) of either: Income support, Income-based jobseekers allowance, Income-based employment support allowance, Pension credit guarantee credit or Universal credit (UC) are eligible for an application fee waiver.

In order to qualify, applicants should start an application to study and submit the application fee waiver request form and required supporting documentation before submitting an application.

2. Applicants with asylum seeker or refugee or humanitarian protection status

Applicants who are able to evidence they have a valid Asylum Registration Card or Biometric Residence Permit are eligible for an application fee waiver. In order to qualify, applicants should start an application to study and submit the application fee waiver request form and required supporting documentation before submitting an application.

For more information on the support provided by the University, please visit our Refugee Hub.

3. Overseas applicants from any of the following countries

• The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)'s Development Assistance Committee (DAC) list of Overseas Development Aid (ODA) recipients (Least Developed Countries and Other Low-Income Countries only).
• The World Bank list of Low-Income Countries.
• The United Nation’s list of Least Developed Countries.
• Iran (due sanctions on international bank transfers)
• Ukraine

A list is provided below for ease of reference. Please note that applicants should be a national of one of the listed countries, and have lived in that country since birth. This application fee will be waived automatically on submission of the application and no further action is required.

4. Applications to the Postgraduate School of Life Sciences

The Postgraduate School of Life Sciences has a scheme that enables three applications to be made with payment of a single application fee. A list of eligible courses and further information can be found here.

5. Mastercard Foundation African Scholars Program

Applicants who wish to apply for the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program and be considered for a manual application fee waiver, please visit the fund page for more information. Please follow the instruction to apply for the Mastercard application fee waiver.