Overview
All PhD and Master of Research students, as well as some MPhil research students, will be considered for 3 years of full funding (including University fees and a maintenance stipend) as well as a 4th year of funding that is conditional on progress.
The wider University of Cambridge offers additional funding sources for domestic and international students.
Funding deadlines
| 16 October 2025 | Deadline for MPhil and MRes applicants eligible to be considered for Cambridge Trust funding. |
| 2 December 2025 | Deadline for PhD applicants eligible to be considered for Cambridge Trust funding. |
| 7 January 2026 | Deadline for PhD applicants eligible to be considered for Cambridge Trust funding. |
Applying for a PhD
The usual route to a Cambridge Judge Business School PhD is via one of our 3 research MPhils, via our Master of Research (MRes), or in exceptional cases via a Cambridge MPhil in Economic Research.
How the PhD funding works
PhD and MRes applicants must apply for any and all funding for which they are eligible. This includes funding from the Cambridge Trust, College funding, Gates Cambridge Scholarships and any external sources of funding.
With all offers that include funding, we guarantee that any shortfall in funding from the University or other sources will be covered by a Cambridge scholarship.
In addition to making up the shortfall, the Business School also increases the maintenance stipend for all PhD students who receive funding to the level of a research council stipend (for the 2024/25 academic year, this was £20,285 per annum). We also award bursaries over and above the value of the maintenance stipend in the form of:
- Cambridge Judge Director’s Scholarships, which are awarded to the best applicants and are worth £1,000 per annum for 3 years.
- Research bursaries for students who successfully secure external funding, worth £500 per annum for 3 years.
You may supplement your maintenance funding by doing paid work within the department (eg supervision and teaching assistance). Some students may be offered work as research assistants with a supervisor for the period between the MPhil and PhD programmes or for short periods in the summer.
In the 4th year of the PhD programme, no fees are payable, and we offer full maintenance funding to all students who have received a ‘revise and resubmit’ invitation from a top-tier journal in their placement discipline and substantial funding to students who demonstrate good progress towards placement at a top university. Other sources of funding for the 4th year include research and teaching assistantships.
PhD scholarships and bursaries
Explore the scholarship and bursary options that may provide you with further financial support.
Cambridge Trusts funds
There are many Trust funds within the University (known as “the Cambridge Trusts”, and including Gates scholarships) that provide funding for PhD and MPhil students. Most of these scholarships are only available to students at the start of their programme.
To be automatically considered for most scholarships for which you are eligible, you must submit your application form by the funding deadline, stating ‘yes’ in the Funding section of the form.
There are a small number of Cambridge Trust scholarships which require a separate application.
Other Cambridge funding
Take a look at the Cambridge Funding Search database, which contains details of awards available from all departments, faculties, Colleges, central offices and other internal sponsors. Cambridge Judge Business School is listed under ‘Technology’. Some of these schemes require a funding application in addition to the graduate application form.
Many Cambridge Colleges offer scholarships, bursaries, hardship funding and prizes.
External funding
Several organisations fund students to undertake PhD and MPhil programmes. We recommend looking at the list of external scholarships relevant to our MPhil programmes, some of which may be relevant. Please note these scholarships are not administered by Cambridge Judge Business School, so please follow the links direct to the organisations’ websites for more information and contact the organisations directly if you have any questions.
Explanation of fees at Cambridge
Postgraduate students at Cambridge are expected to meet the following costs:
- The University Composition Fee, which covers the teaching and supervision you will receive from Cambridge Judge Business School as well as College membership. This is payable for 9 months of the masters and for 3 years of your PhD; in the PhD 4th year, no fees are payable.
- Maintenance, which is an estimate of your likely basic living expenses and personal costs, including accommodation. The University sets a minimum annual maintenance figure. You must have this sum available in order to cover your living expenses for 9 months of the masters and in years one to 4 of the PhD programme.
These costs vary depending on whether you are a Home/EU or international student. Visit the Postgraduate Admissions website to find out more.
In years 2 to 4 of the PhD programme you should be prepared for maintenance costs to increase, reflecting rising inflation (note that fees are not applicable in your 4th year).
Research and skills funding
Generous funding is available for conference travel, academic workshops and other research expenses.