Best Cambridge University Scholarships for Indian Students: Stipends, Eligibility, and How to Apply in 2026-27

Note for this table: The Cambridge Trust’s 2025-26 round of grants is now closed. It’s up on cambridgetrust.org, but the list for 2026-27 isn’t quite finished yet. Always look at the page for changes. The Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Cambridge Scholarship is open to PhD students from India in any subject and may be taken up at any college, according to the Cambridge Trust website. Check the British Council’s website to see if Cambridge still qualifies as one of the schools eligible to apply for the GREAT Scholarship for 2026–2027.

Counselor insight: As of writing, there are about 56 awards listed for 2026-27 from the Cambridge Trust. But most of these are not unique to India. Students from India who complete the funding section of the admissions portal carefully will be automatically considered for all awards for which they qualify. The majority of Indian students who don’t receive Trust funding don’t receive it because they didn’t fill out the financial need section of the portal.

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Gates Cambridge awards about 80 full-fee scholarships each year to non-UK citizens who wish to pursue postgraduate studies at Cambridge. Of these, approximately 55 reach the international round, where evaluators place Indian applications.

Full University Composition Fee: Monthly grant of £21,000 (Rs.27,17,190) for one year for living costs, one return economy flight, and the cost of an immigration visa, which includes the health surcharge. The award allows PhD students to remain in school for up to four years. There is extra funding available for academic growth. From £500 to £2,000 (Rs.64,695 to Rs.2,58,780) depending on the length of the course.

Eligibility for Indian applicants: You do not need to be a resident of the UK to apply for a full-time PhD, MSc/MLitt, or one-year course at Cambridge. Applicants are looking for academic excellence, a clear reason for choosing this course at Cambridge, a desire to make other people’s lives better, and leadership potential. You must have a minimum CGPA of 8.5. If you can quote a journal article in a peer-reviewed journal or a study prize, it goes a long way towards strengthening your case.

How to complete the form: There is no other form. Complete the Gates Cambridge section in the Cambridge Graduate Admissions Portal. The international round is for people from India. Dates vary by course but are either December 2, 2025, or January 7, 2026.

Counselor insight: Most of the Indian candidates do not answer the Gates Cambridge Statement well. What makes applications stand out is specificity: a named professor whose work you will build on, a clear research question, and leadership experience that goes beyond college fests and typical jobs. I have seen vague language about “giving back to society” in almost every application I have turned down.

Most Cambridge grants that are not awarded by the Gates Cambridge are administered by the Cambridge Trust. These awards include full and partial cost awards for PhD, Master's, and undergraduate studies.

• Cambridge Trust International Scholarship (PhD): This scholarship will cover the full university composition fee and a living grant for one person for applicants who are paying fees outside their country (other than the UK and Ireland). The only criteria in the selection process are academic rank, qualifications, references, and research ability. No leadership standards. You can apply on the Cambridge applications website.
• The Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Cambridge Scholarship: It is open only to Indian nationals. This is for Indians who want to pursue a PhD in any subject at any college. Includes the cost of college, salary each year, and Immigration Health Surcharge. It is run jointly by the Cambridge Trust and the Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund.
• Scholarship for Inlaks at Cambridge: This is one of the few awards exclusively for Indian students. Full fees, living costs, and the IHS apply to Master's and PhD students. The prize has a value of up to USD $120,000. The Inlaks Shivdasani Foundation, in conjunction with the Cambridge Trust, funded it. Requires a separate application to the Inlaks Foundation by March 31 each year.

Important: Inlaks does not fund Engineering, Computer Science, Business Studies, Medicine, or Public Health at Cambridge (these exclusions apply at most institutions; Imperial College is an exception for Engineering and CS). Confirm your subject's eligibility at inlaksfoundation.org before applying.

• Cambridge Trust UG scholarships: For foreign students only who can prove they need the money. You can't go to Cambridge if your family cannot afford it without any difficulty. It’s a partial-cost award for people who really need it, but they’ll still have to pay a big chunk of the costs themselves.

Counselor insight: Most Indian candidates are aware of the Gates Cambridge Scholarship but not of the Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Cambridge Scholarship. This award is a more realistic goal for strong PhD applicants who have no leadership story to write because selection is based only on academics, and there is no need for a leadership essay.

Counselor insight: The NAAC/institution grade row matters more than most Indian students realize. If you are applying from a lesser-known Indian university, proactively including your institution's NAAC grade, NIRF ranking, or any international recognition in your CV reduces the chance that an assessor unfamiliar with your institution undervalues your academic achievement.

• The December scholarship date goes by, and you still don’t have your final grade report. This is the paper that gives the most trouble to Indian PG applicants. Cambridge and Cambridge Trust will accept a provisional award from your university showing the percentage or CGPA and bearing the official university seal. The information is clear enough at the entry level. If your school does not normally issue provisional certificates, you can request one from the department registrar, along with a letter on official university paper. Don’t wait for the final degree to apply; submit your application in time with the provisional certificate.
• Your deadline for the Gates Cambridge was 2 December 2025. Gates Cambridge is still open for people with a course ending on 7 January 2026. Check out the page for your subject. The Gates Cambridge round for 2025-26 is closed once the December and January dates have passed. You cannot apply retrospectively. Your next opportunity is the January round of the Cambridge Trust for part-cost support. Most Master’s programs have an open round until January 7, 2026. If they both make it, start working on a better application for the 2026-2027 cycle.
• It’s less than 8.0 on a 10-point scale. By this point, you are unlikely to have won the Gates Cambridge or the Cambridge Trust International Scholarship (PhD full-cost). You may still be eligible for part-cost awards from the Cambridge Trust and the Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Cambridge Scholarship, which assess your potential to study on the basis of your proposal and references. Inlaks: At least 65% in social sciences and arts, and 70% in the sciences. Check your percentage. Does it meet the standards?
• Your grant offer is valid, but your UK student visa has been rejected. You can still apply for a UK student visa if you are a Cambridge Trust or Gates Cambridge prize winner. Indian students who have accepted a grant offer have had their visas refused. This is almost always due to problems with their financial documents, such as their Financial Undertaking Form to Cambridge, their CAS (Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies), and their bank statements. If you are refused, you can usually ask for a formal review. Please get in touch with a licensed immigration specialist immediately. Your visa application will need evidence of your grant, and the Cambridge International Student Office can advise on what you need. For more information, see our guide on the documents required for a UK student visa.
• Your referee has not reached the portal limit. When the date for applying comes, Cambridge’s portal blocks people from submitting references. If your referee has not submitted it by then, your application will be incomplete, putting it at a disadvantage and risking refusal for administrative reasons. Go after your judges twice: the first two weeks, then five days before the due date. If a referee pulls out at the last moment, you should immediately ring the relevant department’s admissions office. Some departments will give you a little more time if you need it.

• Before looking for scholarships, you should apply for school. Cambridge’s scholarships are all accessed through the admissions portal, not individually. You can start the scholarship process as soon as you have applied to the school
• Try to aim for the end of December rather than January. The best funding is available from the December applicant pool. Students who wait until January to apply because they have exams at the end of the term miss the best award opportunities.
• Check out cambridgetrust.org for awards to India that are not just the Gates Cambridge. The Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Cambridge Scholarship and the Inlaks Cambridge Scholarship are specific to India, fully funded, and nowhere near as competitive as the Gates Cambridge Scholarship. If your GPA is good but your leadership experience is lacking, these are your best options.

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