Visiting research students

Overview

Engage in joint research with a Cambridge Judge Business School faculty member.

If you are a scholar registered as full-time student at another university aiming for a postgraduate degree you may be able to apply to carry out joint research for a limited period (not more than one year).

We have a limit of 5 visiting students at any one time.

Available spaces

We have only one space available between 15 December 2023 – August 2024.

When to apply

Please note the availability given above, and that you may need to apply many months ahead of your visit. The administrative process at Cambridge Judge Business School and in the CAS sponsorship office can take several weeks, and a Student Visa may then take up to 2 months to obtain. As a minimum, all applications should be submitted 3 months before the requested arrival date.

How to apply

You will need to obtain the support of a Cambridge Judge Business School faculty member, who agree to be your host. The faculty member applies to the Director of the PhD programme on your behalf, outlining the proposed joint research and target journals for a joint publication. 

Following provisional approval by the PhD Director, you must contact the PhD office to provide:

1

A supporting letter from your academic supervisor at your current university, including confirmation that your research here relates to your ongoing studies overseas and confirmation of visit dates.

2

The dates of your visit.

3

A scan of your passport page.

4

Transcripts for your current and previous degrees.

5

An enrolment document which shows that start and end date of your current degree (you must be registered as a student at your home institution throughout your visit to Cambridge Judge).

6

An English Language test result (Visiting students at the Business School are required to have an IELTS (English language test) score of 7.5 overall. This test must have been taken in the last 2 years. If you narrowly miss this score, then you may take a test with the University Language Centre to determine whether your English language ability is sufficient (we will advise you whether this is possible). This test will cost you £93. More detail about the language requirement for your nationality and country of recent study can be found at Competence in English | Postgraduate Study by selecting ‘PhD in Management Studies.’

7

Other documents depending on the type of visa you require.

Fees

For October 2023 – September 2024 the fees are £495 per month – including the summer. Visitors are entitled to use all the University facilities*. They are invited to attend seminars and join in with PhD events.

If you are required by the University Language Centre to take an in-sessional English Language course during your visit, that will cost you £570.

* In usual times our visiting students are guaranteed a business school desk and PC. Depending on what social distancing regulations are in place, it may not be possible to allocate you a desk or there may be a rota in place such that you can use a desk for a limited number of hours each week.

Coming to Cambridge

Are you from outside the UK and Ireland? If so, you’ll require a student visa to study full-time at Cambridge. To obtain this visa, you’ll need sponsorship from a licence holder (the International Student Team at the University of Cambridge). The Business School’s PhD office will contact the International Student Team on your behalf to request that a ‘Confirmation of Acceptance’ (CAS) be sent to the UKBA.

The CAS will only be granted if you meet the language requirements stated above and provide the PhD Office with your academic transcripts for review.

As part of the visa application, you will need to pay the application fee and the immigration health surcharge (currently £470 per year this visa is granted).

Non-EEA nationals will continue to be issued a Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) as evidence of their student immigration permission. EEA and Swiss nationals will be issued a digital status which can be verified online.

Once in Cambridge, as a ‘Student visa’ student you must:

  • report to the School’s PhD office at the start of your visit/study
  • provide the School’s PhD office with a copy of your passport and visa/ID card
  • ensure the School has up-to-date contact details for you at all times
  • ensure that you engage in-person within the department; your supervisor will be required to write about your academic engagement each term.

‘Student Visa’ students are advised by the International Student Team to apply for their visa at least two months before the planned start of their visit to Cambridge.

Please note that if your visit is for less than six months, you may be able to come to the UK on a visitor visa instead of under the Student visa.

As a Department, we do not arrange for College membership. If you wish to become a member of a College you will need to apply through the formal admission process to Postgraduate Admissions (with an annual deadline of 5 January). Academic requirements would be the same as above. Different fees would apply.

There are a few Colleges within Cambridge who may accept a direct application for membership after admission by the Department and upon payment of a College fee. As a Department we are not involved in these arrangements

Visit the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) website for information on international students and Council Tax.

Essentially, if the university where you are registered is not in the EU and you are here for more than a couple of months then it is very likely that you will have to pay Council Tax as a ‘resident adult’. As an example, the annual Council Tax for 2022/23 for an average Band D property in Cambridge with no exemptions was £2,014.

Visit the Cambridgeshire County Council website for more tax bands.

In line with the holidays/vacation days taken by our full-time PhDs, this department sets a limit of 4 weeks a year travel outside Cambridge for visiting students (plus bank holidays plus weekends). The 4 weeks should be pro-rated if you are visiting for less than 12 months. There is also a strong expectation that holiday is not taken within the dates of full term.

Tours and candidates

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