As at all universities there are two costs you will need to consider: Tuition fees and living costs.

Tuition Fees (also referred to as University fees)

For the academic year 2012-2013 Cambridge University will charge UK and EU students £9,000 per year for tuition fees.  Both UK and EU students can choose to pay their fees whilst at University or they can take out a Tuition Fees loan.  This loan is then repaid in instalments once the student leaves university and is earning a minimum salary of £21,000 per year.

Application for the Tuition Fees loan can be made online via the Student Finance website.

College Fees

Unlike overseas-fee-status students (and students from the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man), UK or EU students who have been judged eligible for public support do not have to pay an additional College fee, unless they are studying for a second degree. College fees for 2010-2011 are £4,800.

Living Costs

In addition to the loan for Tuition Fees UK students are able to take out a loan to cover living costs. The amount of the loan depends on your household income, all students are eligible for 75% of the maximum loan (£5,500 in 2012-2013). Again this is repaid after graduation and once earning the minimum salary of £21,000.  

Some examples of Living Costs for 2011-2012

Accommodation Costs (rent) ranges from £850 to £1250 per term (average £1050per term).

Kitchen Fixed Charge (KFC) approximately £191 per term.

Computer Connection Charge £25 per term

Additional charges may include:-

Meals - cost apply for meals taken (breakfast, lunches,formal halls etc).  Electricity - personal use 12p per unit (i.e. for use of additional heating etc). Print Costs - 5p per A4 sheet. 

Maintenance Grants

UK students from lower income households could be eligible for a full or partial non-repayable Government Maintenance Grant. Since 2006, new full-time students from lower-income households have been eligible for a non-repayable maintenance grant (up to £3,250 in 2012-2013). The amount you will receive is dependent on your family’s income, assessed by your Local Authority or award agency. (Receipt of a maintenance grant will reduce the size of student loan you can receive).

Cambridge Bursary Scheme

Cambridge Bursaries are available to students from the UK and EU taking any undergraduate course at the University of Cambridge.  These bursaries are intended to help students in financial need and to encourage them to apply to Cambridge.  The value of each bursary is calculated on a sliding scale base assessment and applications must be renewed annually. It is not a loan and does not have to be paid back. For further information go to the Cambridge Bursary Scheme website.

National Scholarship Programme

In addition to the Cambridge Bursary students from particularly disadvantaged backgrounds will be eligible to receive a £6,000 fee waiver in their first year. 

To be considered students must be from households with an income of £21,000 per year or less and must also satisfy one of the following:

• have spent more than six months in care

• are a lone parent

• were entitled to free school meals whilst at school

• have a disability

Students who do not meet one of these criteria but whose household income is less than £12,000 per  year will also be considered for an award.

There are government limits on the number of awards that will be available and therefore it is not possible to guarantee that all that apply receive an award.

Overseas Applicants

Applicants from the Commonwealth or other foreign countries who would find it financially difficult or impossible to come to Cambridge should consult the University Prospectus for sources of funding open to them. The College actively contributes to the funding of non-UK students in collaboration with schemes run by the University for those in need of financial assistance. There is further information for International Students on the University's website.

Travel awards

In addition the College offers overseas travel awards and, through the University, vacation study grants to the best performing undergraduates.

Book awards

All Cambridge Bursary students will receive an allowance for essential books or working materials.

These provisions have been made possible through a generous gift from Dr. John Taylor, an Old Member and Honorary Fellow of the College.

Benefactions fund scholarships, prizes and grants

These are normally awarded on the basis of performances in the Tripos examinations.

Nicholas Bacon Scholarship for Lawyers

For many years the Nicholas Bacon Society has maintained links between law students and lawyer alumni through the annual dinner and other events.

One very important aspect of these links has been the setting up of the Corpus Christi Nicholas Bacon Fund. This was created as a separate registered charity, (No 1115923), by a group of Corpus lawyers, led by Sir Terence Etherton, to support outstanding undergraduate and post-graduate students in Law, who might otherwise have met with financial difficulties. Current Students are invited to apply for awards from the Fund.

Organ Scholarships and Choral Awards

Applications for these must be made before the beginning of September in the year before you plan to come up. An organ applicant who is accepted then has no more interviews. A choral applicant who is successful must still have academic interviews in December. An unsuccessful choral applicant will not be disadvantaged in his or her chance of an academic place. For further details click here.

Instrumental Awards

Auditions for Instrumental Awards are held in the summer of the same year in which you hope to come up. Applications, only from those who have been made a conditional or unconditional offer, must be in by the end of February.

For further information click here.