Windsor Scholarship – University College London

Windsor Fellowship is working with University College London (UCL) to launch a scholarships programme to support Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic postgraduate research degree students – the UCL Research Opportunity Scholarship (UCL-ROS). The scheme offers full financial support and a skills development programme, both designed to promote academia as a more attractive career option.

The Opportunity 

The UCL-ROS programme also offers a comprehensive personal and professional development support package. This includes:

• Standard postgraduate UK/EU fees;

• A maintenance stipend;

• Coaching, mentoring support and advocacy;

• Enhanced training and skills development from UCL’s Organisation Development Team, through UCL’s Doctoral Skills Development Programme (including the “Brilliant Club” scholars programme) and the Windsor Fellowship.​

Eligibility Requirements

The scholarships are open to individuals who meet the two following eligibility criteria:

• You must hold an offer of a place for a research degree at UCL in one of the following faculties/departments:

  • Arts & Humanities

  • Brain Sciences

  • Department of Chemical Engineering

  • School of Slavonic and East European Studies

  • Social & Historical Sciences

• You must be a UK-permanent resident from one of the following: ​

  • Pakistani (Pakistani or Pakistani British, or Pakistani Mixed or Pakistani Mixed British)

  • Bangladeshi (Bangladeshi or Bangladeshi British, or Bangladeshi Mixed or Bangladeshi Mixed British)

  • Black (Black or Black British African, Black or Black British Caribbean, Black or Black British other or Mixed Black or Black British)

Award Value: Benefits and Duration

The scholarships consist of fees equivalent to the standard postgraduate UK/home rate (2022/23: £5,690 ) plus a maintenance stipend (2021/22: £17,609 – 2022/23 -tbc) for full-time study (benefits are calculated ‘pro rata’ for part-time students). The scholarship also includes additional research costs of up to £1,200 per year for the stated duration of the programme.​

Awards are normally tenable for years 1, 2, and 3 of a full-time MPhil/PhD/EngD degree programme (or years 1-5 of a part-time programme), subject to annual review and renewal.

Where students are undertaking integrated four-year doctoral programmes the award will be extended to the final year of study.

If granted, funding begins at the start of the next academic year.

The UCL-ROS scholarships also offer a comprehensive personal and professional development support package.

• Coaching, mentoring support and advocacy;

• Training and skills development through UCL’s Doctoral Skills Development Programme (including the “Brilliant Club” scholars programme) and the Windsor Fellowship.

• The Windsor Fellowship offers to provide pastoral mentors, support for scholars to participate in professional development opportunities and support in planning next steps.

• The details of support may vary by discipline but the programme seeks to prepare scholars for an academic career.​

Selection Criteria

Awardees will be selected by a panel from UCL and the Windsor Fellowship on the basis of:

• Holding an ‘offer’ of a place/admission on an eligible UCL research degree programme;

• Academic attainment – as demonstrated by prior results, references, publications and research proposal;

• Financial need based on socio-economic background.

How to Apply

You must apply for admission no later than start January 2022, inform your department that you wish to be considered for this scholarship.  Please be aware that some academic departments set their own deadlines which may be earlier than this date, so make sure you check with them directly.

Prospective students please do Step 1-4​

Current students please go directly to Step 4

1. You should first make an informal research enquiry before submitting your application for admission to UCL. You must submit a complete application for admission onto a research degree programme by the specified deadline. You do not need to have secured an offer of a place at UCL in order to apply for the scholarship, but you must have submitted your admission application by early January 2022

2. When completing the research degree application for admission you should indicate in the ‘Funding’ section that you are also applying to the UCL-ROS programme.

3. You must contact your academic department/institute/division/unit to notify them that you would like to be considered for a UCL-ROS.  You must have done this by by early January 2022 (exact date tbc)

4. You must complete a UCL Research Opportunity Scholarship (ROS) application by early January 2022 (exact date tbc)

5. All the applicants in your faculty will then be considered and shortlisted by a faculty panel based on academic merit. This will happen by February 2022.

6. UCL and the Windsor Fellowship will then consider your academic merit, financial need and personal statement.

7. UCL and the Windsor Fellowship will make the final decision on March 2022. UCL will contact the scholarship awardees in April 2022

PLEASE NOTE: You must complete all three elements of the application process a) apply for admission to UCL b) notify your department that you would like to be considered and c) submit a UCL ROS application. If any of these three steps is not completed then we will not be able to consider your application.

If you require assistance with completing your UCL-ROS application form and/or you would like more information on the programme, please contact Karlene Mahoney at [email protected]

​Click here for more information.