NOTE THAT FUNDING APPLICATION FOR 2026-27 ENTRY HAS NOW CLOSED.
Applicants are able to apply for various Cambridge funding schemes within their Postgraduate application form. You can use the Cambridge Funding Search page to find out which type of funding you might be eligible for.
More information on Postgraduate funding opportunities can be found at Postgraduate funding | Postgraduate Study
Department Funding:
We had a number of Department funding awards available to offer to 'Home fee' students in 2026-27, details of which can be found below:
The Cambridge Stem Cell Institute have two bursaries available for UK students to cover their "Home" rate fees.
Candidates must apply for the 'MPhil in Stem Cell Medicine' for Michaelmas Term (October) 2026 entry via MPhil in Stem Cell Medicine | Postgraduate Study by the funding deadline of 2nd December 2025. Shortlisted candidates will be interviewed in January 2026 and funding offers will be made in the Spring,
Candidates must also tick the box in your application to "apply for Cambridge funding".
Deadline for applications for the studentships: Tuesday 2nd December 2025.
This PhD studentship was made possible thanks to the support of the Sybil Eastwood Memorial Trust.
Who is this for: 'Home' fee rate PhD applicants. Standard University eligibility rules apply.
What does it cover: 'Home' rate fees and annual stipend for 3 years.
How to apply: Candidates must contact potential supervisors to discuss potential projects/supervision, in advance of submitting an application. Candidates can then submit their application to the PhD in Stem Cell Biology.
Candidates must tick the box in your application to "apply for Cambridge funding" to be considered for these.
Application deadline: Tuesday 2nd December 2025.
The Cambridge School of Clinical Medicine Doctoral Training Programme in Medical Research (SCM DTP-MR) are offering a number of fully funded PhD studentships commencing in October 2026. Departments can submit nominations for these in early 2026, once we have completed Department interviews. Eligible students will therefore automatically be considered for these without the need for an additional application.
If you are nominated for DTP-MR funding, you will be required to attend an additional interview organised by the Clinical School. Further details will be provided if you are nominated / shortlisted for an interview. We will contact our nominated candidates in advance, to confirm that you have no objections to being considered for this funding.
It is expected that students on this Programme (DTP-MR) will undertake 2 rotation projects prior to commencing their PhD studies with their preferred supervisor/project. The expectation however is that applicants will have a clear rationale for wanting to join this specific department for the PhD and be able to talk about relevant areas of interest, rather than applying for rotations.
Who is this for: ‘Home’ fee rate applicants only. Standard University eligibility rules apply.
What does it cover: ‘Home’ rate fees for 3 years and an annual stipend.
How to Apply: Candidates are advised to contact prospective supervisors about potential projects in advance of submitting an application. You can then submit your application to the PhD in Stem Cell Biology, detailing the supervisor name and project details on your application form. A list of advertised projects can be found at PhD Projects | Cambridge Stem Cell Institute.
Candidates must tick the box in your application to "apply for Cambridge funding" to be considered for these.
Application Deadline: Tuesday 2nd December 2025.
Applications are invited for the below project:
|
Project Title: Exploring MLLT Therapeutics in Haematology |
|
Project Outline: A major challenge in cancer therapeutics has been the identification of targets that are selectively toxic to cancer cells while displaying limited effects on healthy counterparts. This project will focus on novel drugs targeting the transcriptional complex called the Super Elongation Complex (SEC). SEC has been identified as an exciting potential therapeutic target in several blood cancers, including paediatric acute leukaemias (Rajhansa et al., bioRxiv 2024). MLLT proteins are epigenetic readers within the SEC that are attractive drug targets. Beyond their role in cancer, MLLT proteins have also been shown to regulate normal haematopoietic stem cell (HSC) self-renewal during fetal development. However, MLLT proteins have not been explored in post-natal or adult human HSCs and there remain important unanswered questions related to their role and requirement in these contexts. The main aims of this project are to: (1) assess the activity of compounds targeting MLLT in adult human HSCs, (2) determine the consequences of targeting MLLT and other SEC components on human HSC function ex vivo and in vivo, and (3) investigate the molecular role of MLLT proteins and other SEC components in HSCs. The project will leverage novel compounds generated by Dark Blue Therapeutics and powerful ex vivo HSC culture technologies available in the Wilkinson group (Wilkinson et al., Nature 2019; Sakurai et al., Nature 2023), alongside a range of functional and transcriptional assays. Details of Industrial Partner: Dark Blue Therapeutics have developed several potent drugs that potently and specifically target MLLT proteins. The company has expertise in drug development, epigenetics, and blood cancer therapeutics. |
Shortlisted candidates will be invited to a Department interview in January 2026. If you are nominated for this iCASE project funding, you will be required to attend an additional independent interview organised by the Clinical School. Further details will be provided if you are nominated / shortlisted for an interview. We will contact nominated candidates in advance, to confirm they have no objections to being considered for this funding. Funding for this project is not guaranteed - nominated candidates will be competitively considered against candidates for other iCASE projects across the School.
Who is this for: ‘Home’ fee rate applicants only. Standard University eligibility rules apply.
What does it cover: ‘Home’ rate fees for 3 years and an annual stipend.
How to Apply: Contact Dr Adam Wilkinson | Cambridge Stem Cell Institute to discuss the project further. Applications must be submitted to the PhD in Stem Cell Biology by 2nd December. Applications must list Dr Adam Wilkinson and the above project title on your application form.
Candidates must tick the box in your application to "apply for Cambridge funding" to be considered for this.
Application Deadline: Tuesday 2nd December 2025.
The Cambridge Stem Cell Institute is pleased to be able to offer up to two fully funded (Home fee rate) PhD studentships for students beginning in October 2026.
The studentships offer:
- Stipend for 3.5 years at standard UKRI rate (currently £20,780 per year)
- Tuition fees at UK rate
- Research expenses
How to apply: Candidates must contact potential supervisors to discuss potential projects/supervision, in advance of submitting an application. Candidates can then submit their application to the PhD in Stem Cell Biology.
Candidates must tick the box in your application to "apply for Cambridge funding" to be considered for these.
Deadline for applications for the studentships: Tuesday 2nd December 2025.
The Department of Haematology is offering two fully funded (Home fee rate) PhD studentships for students beginning in October 2026.
The studentships offer:
- Stipend for 3.5 years at standard UKRI rate (currently £20,780 per year)
- Tuition fees at UK rate
- Research expenses
- Two rotation placements in your first two terms to help you choose your lab for your main PhD project
- An exciting choice of projects supervised by Department of Haematology PIs.
Deadline for applications for the studentships: 23:59 UK time (GMT) Sunday 30th November 2025. NB These studentships have their own application deadline which is earlier than some other funding opportunities.
Visit Haematology PhD studentships | Department of Haematology for more details including the bespoke application process.
All Cambridge Trust scholarships are available only for study at the University of Cambridge, and require that you apply to the University via the normal online application form, and in most cases, require that you apply by the relevant deadline.
Procedures for applying for postgraduate study (Masters, PhD and similar).
Deadlines for Postgraduate Study
If you are applying for postgraduate study, please check and apply by the specific course deadline. There will be two general course deadlines in December and January (see individual course to know which date to adhere to).
Please apply by the relevant deadline set for entry to your particular course and complete the 'Funding' section in the online Applicant Portal in order to be considered for funding.
There will be no differential of deadlines for application between UK or EU or International postgraduate applicants.
For intellectually outstanding postgraduate students with a capacity for leadership and a commitment to improving the lives of others.
Eligibility - Gates Cambridge considers applications from citizens from outside the United Kingdom who wish to pursue a full-time postgraduate degree at the University of Cambridge. See our eligibility page for details
Deadlines - There are two Gates Cambridge application deadlines; one for US citizens normally resident in the USA, and a later round for all other applicants. Deadlines can be found here.
For full details of how to apply, visit here.
The prestigious Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program at the University of Cambridge was established in 2022 as a collaboration between the University and the Mastercard Foundation. Over 500 Scholars from the African continent will be enrolled in the program between 2023 and 2030 to undertake a wide range of Master's courses.
The Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program would provide bright students from under-represented communities in Africa with a fully funded opportunity to complete their Master's training, develop transformative leadership skills and contribute to climate resilience and sustainable futures in Africa.
Full eligibility details: Eligibility | Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program
How to apply: Students are asked to select funding bodies they are interested in applying to when completing the University application form. Please select the 'Mastercard foundation scholars programme' where you will then be required to submit a mandatory personal statement. This is the only part of the application process where applicants are specifically asked about their fit for the Mastercard Foundation Scholarship Program.
Queens’ College is offering to co-fund 1 PhD student to start in the academic year 2025-26.
Eligibility: For applicants with Black or Black-Mixed ethnicity.
What does it fund?: The scholarship is at the home UK fee rate and provides a Maintenance stipend for 4 years at the UKRI level, plus research consumables for 4 years (£18,000 in total).
Please see Scholarship flyer and full details on the website: Alexander Crummell PhD Scholarships
The University of Cambridge funding competition is extremely competitive. Alongside your University application, we therefore recommend you apply for any other external funding opportunities that you can find. Some that we are aware of, are listed below.
Note that these funds are in no way linked to The University of Cambridge and it is your responsibility to review the eligibility / application processes / deadlines for each one:
-
La Caixa Foundation
-
Bayer Foundation
-
B. Braun Scholarship
-
The Boehringer Ingelheim Funds
The Boehringer Ingelheim Funds awards PhD fellowships to outstanding junior scientists (max. age: 27 years) who wish to pursue an ambitious PhD project of approximately 3 years in basic biomedical research in an internationally leading laboratory.
Eligibility - For further details please refer to their webpage, PhD fellowships - Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds
Deadlines - 1 February, 1 June, 1 October of each year. Pre-selection takes place about 4 weeks after the respective deadline, and the final selection approximately 5 months after the respective deadline.