Overview

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has established the Gates Cambridge Trust to provide full scholarships for 160 graduate students from all over the world to study at the University of Cambridge in England.  The scholarships will cover tuition, room, board, travel and stipend for study at Cambridge.  Between 60 and 80 awards will be made each year to students resident in the United States.  The scholarships may be held for 1 to 4 years, depending on the course of study and are conditional on the student gaining admission to Cambridge by the University's regular application process. 

Eligibility

• hold, or expect to be able to obtain before October of the year in which they hope to begin their studies at Cambridge, a bachelor's degree Summa Cum Laude and
• gain an offer of admission from a Cambridge college in the normal way.

• hold, or expect to be able to obtain before October of the year in which they hope to begin their studies at Cambridge, a bachelors degree Summa Cum Laude or Magna Cum Laude,
• gain admission in the normal way to the University of Cambridge and to a constituent College in due course,
• meet the conditions set by the University for admission, (e.g. academic qualifications, evidence of proficiency in the English language etc), and
• normally be under the age of 30.
  

Criteria

• Proven academic achievement and potential for further scholarly development and a commitment to use the benefits of higher education for the common good.
• Sound academic reasons for wanting to study at Cambridge, familiarity with Cambridge, and finally, be able to show how graduate study at Cambridge fits into broader plan for personal, educational or professional development.
• Since preparatory or foundation courses are not available, students will need to have clearly identified a field of study or research and to demonstrate adequate academic preparation to begin research work directly.  It is the responsibility of the student to ascertain that the necessary supervision and resources are available at Cambridge.

Value

The Gates Cambridge Scholarships cover:

• University and College fees at the applicable rates
  • where an applicant from overseas has been successfully nominated for an ORS award, the University Composition Fee will be paid at the home rate.
  • where a student from the European Union has been successful in gaining a fees award from public authorities, the Trust will not pay these fees.
• a maintenance allowance sufficient for a single student
• a further discretionary allowance
• one return economy airfare

Application Process

Students should begin by exploring the Cambridge University web site to learn about the university and its opportunities. Details about applying to the University are available in the Cambridge Graduate Admissions Prospectus and the Cambridge Undergraduate Admissions Prospectus. Details about applying for the Gates Cambridge Scholarship are available from the Gates Cambridge Scholarships web site.