Gates Cambridge Trust offers full fee postgraduate (Masters and PhD) Gates Cambridge Scholarships for outstanding International students to study any course at the University of Cambridge, UK.
Gates Cambridge Scholarships are highly competitive full-cost scholarships. They are awarded to outstanding applicants from countries outside the UK to pursue a full-time postgraduate degree in any subject available at the University of Cambridge. The Gates Cambridge Scholarships programme aims to build a global network of future leaders committed to improving the lives of others.
About Gates Cambridge
The Gates Cambridge Trust was established in October 2000 by a donation of US$210m from the Gates Foundation to the University of Cambridge. This remains the largest single donation to a UK university.
The Trust has a Board of nine distinguished Trustees (two of whom are appointed by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the remainder by the University) who meet twice a year to decide on the overall strategic direction of the programme. The Provost (CEO) is supported by a Director of Finance and a Programme Director and a small administrative team who manage all op... continue reading
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Gates Cambridge Scholarships
Aim and Benefits of Gates Cambridge Scholarships
- Scholarship will cover the full cost of study
- the University Composition Fee and College fees at the appropriate rate
- a maintenance allowance for a single student
- one economy single airfare at both the beginning and end of the course
Requirements for Gates Cambridge Scholarships Qualification
- a citizen of any country outside the United Kingdom.
- applying to pursue one of the following full-time residential courses of study: PhD (three year research-only degree); MSc or MLitt (two year research-only degree); or a one year postgraduate course (e.g. MPhil, LLM, MASt, Diploma, MBA etc.)
- already a student at Cambridge and want to apply for a new postgraduate course. For example, if you are studying for an MPhil you can apply for a Gates Cambridge Scholarship to do a PhD. However, if you have already started a course, you cannot apply for a Gates Cambridge Scholarship to fund the rest of it.
- already a Gates Cambridge Scholar and want to apply for a second Scholarship. You must apply by the second, international deadline and go through the same process of departmental ranking, shortlisting and interviewing as all other candidates.
Selection Criteria
- outstanding intellectual ability
- leadership potential
- a commitment to improving the lives of others
- a good fit between the applicant’s qualifications and aspirations and the postgraduate programme at Cambridge for which they are applying
Application Deadline
October 13, 2021
How to Apply
Interested and qualified? Go to
Gates Cambridge on www.gatescambridge.org to apply
For more details, visit Gates Cambridge website.
Notes: Gates Cambridge Scholarships are extremely competitive: over 4,000 applicants apply for 90 Scholarships each year.
Given the intense competition, the Trust has a four stage selection process:
- Departmental ranking – the very best applicants to each department are ranked on academic merit only
- Shortlisting – Gates Cambridge committees review the applications of ranked candidates using all four Gates Cambridge criteria and put forward a list for interview
- Interview – all shortlisted candidates have a short interview to assess how they meet all four Gates Cambridge criteria
- Selection – chairs of interview panels meet to decide the final list of Scholars
- A good fit between the applicant’s qualifications and aspirations and the postgraduate programme at Cambridge for which they are applying
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