Postgraduate bursaries, awards and scholarships

There are many forms of financial support on offer for our prospective postgraduate students. The funding opportunities below relate to the academic year 2026-2027.

Please note that before applying for a bursary or scholarship you must hold an offer to study at the RAU.

All eligible requests received after 10 April 2026 cannot be guaranteed, but will be considered after the Scholarship Committee have reviewed existing requests at the end of April. The committee for each scholarship will meet each month to consider remaining applications and the outcome will be emailed to you soon after.

Name	Who can apply	Value of award	Closing date
Vice-Chancellor's International Scholarship	International students, full-time and part-time MSc, PGDip and MBA offer holders	Up to 20% contribution towards tuition fees	Now open
Clyde Higgs Scholarship	UK students only	Up to £3,000	6:00pm, 10 April 2026
International Referral Programme	RAU alumni or current student	£500 to referrer and £500 to new international student	14 July 2025
RAU Sports Scholarships	UK and international students, attainment at national or international level of sport	At least £1,000	6:00pm, 10 April 2026
Sir Emrys Jones Memorial Trust award	UK, strong Welsh links	Up to £4,000 PhD students could be awarded a higher amount	6:00pm, 10 April 2026
SAFS African Research Grant	International student from an African country	Return flights and living costs for a month of research up to £1,500	Closed for applications
Commonwealth Shared Scholarship Scheme 2026	Citizen, permanent resident of or have been granted refugee status by an eligible Commonwealth country or be a British Protected Person (BPP	Tuition fees and living expenses	Closed for applications

All scholarship applications received after 10 April 2026 will be considered by a selection panel, with a decision expected by the end of the following month, except for Vice-Chancellor's Scholarships, where an initial decision will be sent within two weeks of your submission.

Alumni discount

All RAC/RAU alumni who are accepted for postgraduate degrees at the RAU are eligible for a 20% reduction in tuition fees.

External awards

Name	Who can apply	Amount of award	Closing date
1^st Formations Business Scholarship	UK and international	Up to five awards of £500 each	31 January 2026
Chadacre Agricultural Trust	UK, resident in Suffolk, Norfolk or Cambridgeshire	Variable, for research beneficial to Eastern Counties	N/A
Chevening Scholarships	International students	Fully funded one year Master's course	Closed for applications
Edgar Pye Research Scholarship	UK, must be studying an agriculture related course	£3,000 towards a research project	Closed for applications
Education Future International Scholarship	Indian national	Between 2 - 10 lacs Indian Rupees	Open for applications
Global Scholarships	International students	$3,000	31 May 2026
Marshal Papworth Scholarship	International students	Total of £21,875 (£11,875 course fees, £10,000 expenses)	18 February 2026
NFU Mutual Charitable Trust Centenary Award 2025	UK and international students	Up to 75% of course fees for postgraduate agricultural student.	Application to open early January 2026
Postgraduate Solutions Study Bursaries	UK and international	Five bursaries each worth £2,000	30 September 2026
Snowdon Trust Master's Scholarship	UK, with a disability	Up to £30,000 towards tuition fees and living expenses	23 February 2026
The Royal Bath & West of England Society Grants and Scholarships	UK, strong links with Somerset, Dorset, Devon, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and Bristol	Variable. Students must be on an agriculture related course	22 October 2026 and 1 June 2026
The Dick Harrison Trust	UK, strong links with Scotland, the Counties of Cumbria, or Northumberland	Grants towards books, equipment or travel for students on livestock auctioneering and/or rural estate management courses	31 November 2026

Find out more information about a Postgraduate Master's Loan and Postgraduate Doctoral Loan.

Contact

Scholarships