Eligibility  

To be eligible for Aspiring Researchers: AH, you will need to meet the following criteria: 

Essential criteria (all required):  

1. have, or expect to have and be able to prove right to live and work full time in the UK for the duration of the programme https://www.hr.admin.cam.ac.uk/hr-services/visas-immigration/right-work-checks;  

2. have completed or at be in the penultimate or final year of undergraduate study at a UK or Republic of Ireland university;  

3. have an interest in undertaking a postgraduate research degree (MPhil or PhD) in the Arts and Humanities, and intend to apply to postgraduate research study for 2025-2026 entry;  

4. not have already completed or be currently studying a postgraduate research degree (e.g. MPhil, DPhil, PhD, etc.) or have an offer to start a postgraduate research degree. 

Note: if you have already received an offer for postgraduate research study or have completed a postgraduate research degree, you are not eligible to apply for the programme. You will be asked to confirm this when applying and accepting your offer.   

       5. have an interest in undertaking a research postgraduate degree in the arts and humanities, and be intending to make an application to a UK higher education institution for 2024-2025 entry. 

Academic criteria (all required):  

Be on track to achieve or have achieved a final undergraduate degree grade of a high 2:1 or First in an arts and humanities subject. 

Socio-economic criteria (at least one):  

• be in the first generation of their family to study at undergraduate level   

• have entered university at undergraduate level from a care background or a Foyer resident  

• have been a young carer under the age of 18 or have caring responsibilities during their undergraduate study;  (providing unpaid support for a family who has a physical or mental health condition, or misuses substances)  

• be estranged from their parents/guardians 

• have been in receipt of free school meals at secondary school

• be in receipt of full state support for maintenance for their course of undergraduate study 

• be a mature undergraduate student (aged 21 or over on the first day of an undergraduate course)     

• would be a mature postgraduate student (aged 25 or over on the first day of a postgraduate course)  

• be either a single parent, or lone guardian of a young person who is aged under 18 and/or is still in full-time education    

• have refugee status

We particularly encourage applications from students not studying at a Russell Group university and/or identify as Black or Mixed Black, Bangladeshi or Mixed Bangladeshi, Pakistani or Mixed Pakistani.   

Widening Participation Criteria  

Please indicate whether you satisfy any of the widening participation criteria by selecting the appropriate criteria on the application form. The corresponding question on the application form, as well as further details, where applicable, can be found in the table below.  

If you are shortlisted, we may contact you to request evidence to support the widening participation criteria you have selected. This ensures transparency and fairness in our assessment processes.