Grants and awards

Government funding

The main sources of funding for postgraduate students in the UK are the Government Research Councils. There are five Research Councils whose remits fall within those of the Museum. All the Research Councils award studentships to individual postgraduates.  Competition for Research Council awards is intense, with only a small percentage of candidates actually making successful applications.  Obtaining a place in a postgraduate course does not automatically entitle applicants to an award. Funding is easier to obtain in the science and engineering disciplines than in the arts or social sciences.

• BBSRC The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
• EPSRC The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
• MRSC The Medical Research Council
• NERC The Natural Environment Research Council
• PPARC The Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council

Awards

The Research Councils award many types of grants. To be eligible for a Research Council award the applicant must be 'ordinarily resident' in the UK throughout the three years preceding their application. Applicants should also possess a first-class or upper second-class honours degree from a UK higher education institution, although there are exceptions to this.

Advanced Course Studentships - Awards for Masters-level taught courses.
Standard Research Studentships - Awards for PhD and MPhil.
Collaborative Awards in Science and Engineering (CASE)- The CASE award requires a partnership between academia and industry (either industry, a public body or government research unit).

Students from outside the UK but within the European Union are eligible for Research Council awards that cover tuition fees but do not provide a maintenance grant.

International students

Below are a few grant awarding bodies that fund overseas students.

Applications made in the UK

British chevening scholarships
Education Affairs Section, Cultural Relations Department, Foreign and Commonwealth Office
London SW1A 2AH
Tel: + 44 (0) 207 270 1500
Fax: + 44 (0) 207 210 6812

Overseas research students award scheme
29 Tavistock Square
London WC1H 9EZ
Tel: + 44 (0) 207 387 9231
Fax: + 44 (0) 207 383 4573

Marshall aid commemoration commission
John Foster House, 36 Gordon Square
London WC1H 0PF
Tel: + 44 (0) 207 387 8572
Fax: + 44 (0) 207 387 2655

Commonwealth scholarship and fellowship plan Commonwealth Scholarship Commission
Association of Commonwealth Universities
John Foster House, 36 Gordon Square
London WC1H 0PF
Tel: + 44 (0) 207 387 8572 Fax: + 44 (0) 207 387 2655

Department for international development shared scholarship scheme
Association of Commonwealth Universities, John Foster House, 36 Gordon Square
London WC1H 0PF
Tel: + 44 (0) 207 387 8572
Fax: + 44 (0) 207 387 2655

Fulbright scholarships
The Fulbright Commission, 62 Doughty Street
London WC1N 2LS
Tel: + 44 (0) 207 404 6880
Fax: + 44 (0) 207 404 6834

Applications in the US

British Consulates General in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston and San Francisco, British Embassy in Washington DC and British Information Services, 845 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10022

Initial applications for US students should be made to this office
Institute of International Education (IIE)
809 United Nations Plaza
New York, NY
10017 3580
USA

ORSAS

The Overseas Research Students Awards Scheme grants awards on a competitive basis to overseas postgraduate students of outstanding merit and research potential. The award scheme is administered by the Committee of Vice-Chancellors and Principals on behalf of the Department for Education and Employment, and is reimbursed by the UK funding councils.