Gates Cambridge Scholarship

Established in 2000 through an endowment from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Gates Cambridge Program enables 80–100 students from around the world to pursue 1–4 years of graduate study at the University of Cambridge.

Dr. Deirdre Moloney, [email protected] , 609-258-1998 

• Citizen of any country outside the United Kingdom
• Must apply to pursue one of the following full-time residential courses of study:
  • PhD (three-year research-only degree)
  • One-year post-graduate course (e.g., MPhil, LLM, Diploma, MBA)
  • MSc or MLitt (two-year research-only degree)
  • MBBChir Clinical Studies (three-year taught degree)
• Must be admitted to one of the degrees above at Cambridge through the university’s normal admission procedures (the Trust does not admit students)

• Intellectual ability
• Leadership capacity
• A good fit with Cambridge
• A desire to use knowledge to contribute to society

There is no Princeton process for the Gates Cambridge Scholarship. Students apply directly through the Gates online application, which is available as a part of the Cambridge University Graduate Studies Prospectus. Check the OIP Calendar in the fall for a Gates Cambridge workshop on finalizing your application. The workshop is typically held in early October. 

**Please note for non-U.S. students, the application deadline varies by department. Please visit the website for more information.**

Applicants must undertake significant research about the program, the faculty, and the college in which they wish to study. Contacting faculty at Cambridge and gaining familiarity with their work is appropriate and will be an important element for consideration.

Although leadership skills will help to differentiate candidates and the trust seeks to fund well-rounded individuals, the focus is on a demonstrated intellectual hunger and a sense of future application of the knowledge gained.

There is no GPA cutoff for the Gates; however, a 3.65 minimum GPA is advised. A poor first year may be redeemed by outstanding work in later years, for instance. The key is that the student demonstrates adequate preparation for the course of study intended.

Most Cambridge MPhil programs are for one year, and most PhDs are for three to four years. Students must be self-starters and must not be daunted by the prospect of producing a substantial thesis or dissertation with little direct supervision.