UCL Sparck AI Scholarship 2026

This UK Government award, named after pioneering computer scientist Karen Spärck Jones, supports the development of talented leaders in AI and its application across diverse disciplines.

• Table of Content
• About University College London
• UCL Master's Scholarship
• Aim and Benefits of UCL Master's Scholarship
• UCL Master's Scholarship Courses
• Requirements for UCL Master's Scholarship Qualification
• Interview date, Process and Venue for UCL Master's Scholarship
• Application Deadline
• How to Apply

UCL Master's Scholarship

Aim and Benefits of UCL Master's Scholarship

• There are up to 100 scholarships available across all nine participating UK universities in 2026/27. UCL has 8 scholarships to award in total.
• The value of the scholarship is full tuition fees plus £22,780 stipend.
• The scholarship is tenable for one year only.
• The Spärck AI Scholarship may not be held alongside other UK Government scholarships, studentships, awards, or bursaries.
• Bursary recipients are obliged to inform the UCL Student Funding Office immediately of any other funding they are awarded towards their UCL Master’s degree studies, before or subsequent to the Spärck AI Scholarship being awarded.

UCL Master's Scholarship Courses

• Architectural Computation
• Artificial Intelligence Enabled Healthcare
• Artificial Intelligence for Biomedicine & Healthcare
• Data Science
• Digital Innovation
• Digital Technologies and Policy
• Drug Discovery and Pharma Management
• Energy Systems and Data Analytics
• Health Data Science
• Integrated Machine Learning Systems
• Neuroscience
• Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technologies
• Scientific and Data Intensive Computing
• Spatio-Temporal Analytics and Big Data Mining

Requirements for UCL Master's Scholarship Qualification

Candidates must fulfil the following criterion:

• have submitted a complete admission application (including the submission of references) for a full-time Master's degree* at UCL starting in 2026/27, in one of the following programmes:
  • MSc Architectural Computation
  • MPA Digital Technologies and Policy
  • MRes Artificial Intelligence Enabled Healthcare
  • MSc Artificial Intelligence for Biomedicine & Healthcare
  • MSc Data Science
  • MSc Digital Innovation
  • MSc Drug Discovery and Pharma Management
  • MSc Energy Systems and Data Analytics
  • MSc Health Data Science
  • MSc Integrated Machine Learning Systems
  • MSc Neuroscience
  • MSc Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technologies
  • MSc Spatio-Temporal Analytics and Big Data Mining
  • MSc Scientific and Data Intensive Computing

Interview date, Process and Venue for UCL Master's Scholarship

Final decisions on awards will be made by the UCL Spärck AI Scholarship Leadership Group.  They are looking to recruit candidates from a broad range of backgrounds, who can demonstrate how they meet some of the following characteristics. Upon receipt of your application, assessors will consider these qualities as part of the selection process, recognising that candidates may demonstrate them in different ways and through varied experiences:

Strengths:

• Curiosity, critical thinking, and problem-solving
• Comfort with ambiguity and change
• Strong communication skills
• Entrepreneurial mindset and leadership potential
• Teamwork

Motivations:

• What it means to be part of a government-funded scholarship and how you would make the most of this opportunity
• Your motivation to contribute to the AI ecosystem in the UK

Check also:
Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program at UBC 2027
Chevening Scholarship 2027

Application Deadline

How to Apply

Step 1 - Before you apply, you should already have received an offer of admission from one of the participating programmes listed below:

• MSc Architectural Computation
• MPA Digital Technologies and Policy
• MRes Artificial Intelligence Enabled Healthcare
• MSc Artificial Intelligence for Biomedicine & Healthcare
• MSc Data Science
• MSc Digital Innovation
• MSc Drug Discovery and Pharma Management
• MSc Energy Systems and Data Analytics
• MSc Health Data Science
• MSc Integrated Machine Learning Systems
• MSc Neuroscience
• MSc Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technologies
• MSc Spatio-Temporal Analytics and Big Data Mining
• MSc Scientific and Data Intensive Computing

Step 2 - Complete the Sparck AI Scholarship application form. Download the word document below and save it to your computer:

Sparck AI Scholarship Application Form

Step 3 - Obtain a reference letter from someone who knows your work and can endorse your suitability for a scholarship. For example, this could be a tutor or manager.   

Reference Guidance - Sparck AI Scholarship (part 4 of form)

Step 4 - Your completed application form and reference must be emailed to the designated email for the programme you are applying to, by 17:00(BST), Friday 1st May 2026. 

For more details, visit UCL Scholarship webpage