Gates Cambridge Scholarship: A Comprehensive Overview

Established in 2000 through a generous donation from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Gates Cambridge Scholarship stands as a prestigious international postgraduate award. It enables outstanding applicants from countries outside the UK to pursue full-time graduate studies at the University of Cambridge. The scholarship aims to cultivate a global network of future leaders dedicated to enhancing the lives of others.

History and Mission

The Gates Cambridge Scholarship program was established in October 2000 by a donation of US$210 million from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to the University of Cambridge, the largest ever single donation to a UK university. The first class of scholars came into residence in October 2001. Since then, the Trust has awarded over 2,000 scholarships to scholars from more than 100 countries.

The mission of the Gates Cambridge Scholarship is to "build a global network of future leaders committed to improving the lives of others. It aims to achieve this mission by selecting outstanding scholars, providing them with financial and non-financial support at one of the world’s leading universities and facilitating community building at and beyond Cambridge."

Scholarship Details

Each year, the Gates Cambridge Trust offers around 80 full-cost scholarships. Approximately two-thirds of the awards are for PhD students, and one-third are for Master's students. Around 25 of the awards are for US citizens, and about 55 are for international applicants. This makes the award particularly appealing to students applying for a PhD. The scholarship covers the full cost of studying at Cambridge, including:

Tuition fees
A maintenance allowance for a single student
Airfare to and from the UK
Inbound visa costs & the cost of the Immigration Health Surcharge

The Trust also considers applications for several types of additional funding on a discretionary basis:

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Academic development funding - Up to £500 to £2,000, dependent on the length of the applicant's course, to attend conferences and courses.
Fieldwork - Applicants may apply to keep up to your normal maintenance allowance while on fieldwork as part of their PhD (the Trust does not fund other fieldwork costs as these should be funded by the University Composition Fee).
Family allowance - Up to £10,120 for a first child and up to £4,320 for a second child (2020-21 rate). No funding is provided for a partner.
Maternity/Paternity funding - Should applicant require it, applicant may apply to intermit their studies for up to 6 months and continue to receive their maintenance allowance during this time.

Eligibility Criteria

Applicants from any country other than the United Kingdom are eligible to apply for the Gates Cambridge Scholarships. To be eligible, candidates must be pursuing one of the following full-time residential courses of study at the University of Cambridge:

PhD (three-year research-only degree)
MSc or MLitt (two-year research-only degree)
One-year postgraduate course (e.g., MPhil, LLM, MASt, Diploma, MBA, etc.)

To apply for the Gates Cambridge to pursue an MA, you must be graduating the school year during which you submit your application. And to apply for the for the PhD, you must have a graduate degree by the time you would start your award.

Selection Criteria

The Gates Cambridge Trust uses a three-stage selection process to select its Scholars. The selection criteria are:

Outstanding intellectual ability: Candidates must demonstrate evidence of academic excellence through their transcripts, references, and experience. They need to show that they possess the academic background, skills, and expertise necessary to complete their chosen course.
Reasons for choice of course: The Trust seeks Scholars who will have an academically transformative experience at Cambridge. Applicants must fully justify their choice of a particular postgraduate degree at Cambridge and make a strong case for it. Those applying for taught Master's courses should explain why the course is optimal for them and how it is critical to their future academic or professional training plans. It is important that candidates can make a convincing argument for doing a particular postgraduate degree at Cambridge. Therefore, researching the degree is important. Examine the way in which your proposed course of study will enhance your plans to pursue a particular subject or degree.
A commitment to improving the lives of others: A defining characteristic of the Gates Cambridge program is the commitment of Scholars to improving the lives of others. The foundation desires students who expect to contribute creative solutions to problems in all areas, not just academics. A Gates Scholar will change the world by good research, analysis, and proposing solutions.
Leadership potential: Successful applicants must be able to demonstrate a capacity for leadership, which can be expressed in a multitude of ways. The Trust looks for students of exceptional academic achievement and scholarly promise for whom advanced study at Cambridge would be particularly appropriate. Successful applicants will have the ability to make a significant contribution to their discipline while in Cambridge, with a strong aptitude for research, analysis, and a creative approach to defining and solving problems.

The Trust expects a good match to be made between the applicant’s qualifications and aspirations and what Cambridge has to offer.

Application Process

Applicants apply for the Gates Cambridge Scholarship as a part of their application to Cambridge University (simultaneously) via the University of Cambridge’s Graduate Application Portal. In other words, the Gates Cambridge application is a part of (and embedded within) the general graduate school application for Cambridge University.

The large majority of applicants submit their application for admission and funding (Gates Cambridge and other funding) via the University’s Graduate Application Portal. There is a separate application route for MBA and MFin applicants.

Key Application Components

Combined Application Form: Applicants submit their application for admission and funding (Gates Cambridge and other funding) via the University’s Graduate Application Portal.
Academic References: In addition to two academic references for admission to Cambridge University, the Gates selectors require a personal reference setting out how the applicant meets the scholarship’s criteria. The two academic references must be from faculty who can advocate for your admission to the program you have chosen and should, therefore, be from faculty in the same field.
Gates Cambridge Statement: Applicants must explain why they are applying for a Gates Cambridge Scholarship and how they meet the four main criteria. The statement is used by Gates Cambridge to help distinguish between those candidates who have nominated by academic departments.
Research Proposal: Gates Cambridge requires PhD applicants only to submit a research proposal as part of their application for funding. PhD applicants (and most research MPhil applicants) will need to make contact with a potential supervisor with whom they will develop a research project, a summary of which is part of the application.

Selection Procedure

Departmental Ranking: Potential Scholars are ranked by the department they are applying to. Academic departments at the University of Cambridge nominate only the most academically outstanding applicants for a Gates Cambridge Scholarship. Departmental nominees are the most academically outstanding applicants for postgraduate studies in the department.
Shortlisting: Once the Trust has a list of all ranked candidates, these are divided into broad subject areas and passed to Shortlisting Committees. These Committees look at the candidates' entire application packet (including the Gates Cambridge Statement and Reference) and apply all four Gates Cambridge criteria in order to identify those who will be invited for interview. The list of departmental nominees is then forwarded to the Gates Cambridge Trust, where it is divided into broad subject areas and passed to the Shortlisting Committees. Each Committee reviews the entirety of a departmental nominee and applies the Gates Cambridge selection criteria to shortlist applicants for interview.
Interview: There are four broadly subject-based interview panels: Arts; Biological Sciences; Physical Sciences; Social Sciences. Candidates are invited to interview in Mid-December or Early-March. We will coordinate mock interviews for those students called to an interview.

The Gates Cambridge Community

Cambridge's Colleges: All graduate students become a member of one of Cambridge’s 31 Colleges, each with its own character and offerings. The College system is unique to Cambridge and Oxford and offers and enhanced experience where students and academics from across disciplines meet, discuss and form bonds.

The Gates Cambridge Community at Cambridge is vibrant, diverse and passionate. There are numerous community-building events throughout the year, including orientation for new Scholars, a welcome dinner, professional development events run by the Learning for Purpose program, an annual lecture, Day of Service, Day of Research, Gala, Scholar symposia and a Graduation Dinner - in addition to regular informal activities each week. The Scholars’ Council hosts many of these events and facilitates Scholars in hosting their own events. Scholars have access to the well-resourced Scholars’ Room - a physical hub for many Gates Cambridge activities.

In 2002, Gates Cambridge Scholars organized and elected a student committee titled The Gates Scholars' Council. The Council aims to represent the Gates Scholars at Cambridge and to build a scholar community interwoven into the fabric of the university. In cooperation with the Gates Cambridge Trust, the university and various academic and professional organizations, the Scholars' Council organizes a number of academic, social and professional events that have distinguished and built the reputation of the Gates Scholars at Cambridge University.

As an alum of the program Scholars are connected to the Gates Cambridge community in numerous ways - through on-line interactions, informal meet-ups and substantive alumni events.

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Timeline and Deadlines

US citizens living in the US have a deadline in early October. There are two possible application deadlines for all other applications -- and these are based on course to which the applicant is applying. These are generally in early December or early January.

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